Korean Job Discussion Forums

ESL Milk "Everyday · Joined: 12 Sep 2007

This is by no means intended as an attack on anyone-- I was just thinking that ever since reading about all the racism here I've ended up shying away from Korean co-workers who I honestly know very little about just because I can't feel like I can trust them or like they're not worth knowing-- mostly because of all the stories I've read here.

Today I ended up making a fool of myself because I thought that some apparently harmless name-calling (in front of the students, which really bugs me) was more serious than it might have been. It wouldn't upset me if it was something that happens to everyone (which it apparently is), but it would if it was only because I was a foreigner. On the other hand, maybe I'm an idiot for believing that it happens to everyone.

Sure, I get treated like an idiot at all times by the students and the teachers aren't exactly brimming with respect either (though they are friendly), but I sometimes wonder how much of it is their racism and how much is just my own ignorance about the culture and how people treat each other here in general. The terrible reputation that Korea has must be for a reason, but on the other hand, maybe they're all just misunderstood?

Bramble · Joined: 26 Jan 2007 Location: National treasures need homes

No, not really. But it makes me a bit sick of seeing this character:

poet13 · Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 12:29 am Post subject:

Sick of Korea? Nope. Makes me glad I live way the hell out and away from almost all foreigners. Some here are good, but for the most part, from the stuff I read here, I'm glad I live in Hicksvile.

PeteJB · Joined: 06 Jul 2007

You'll be glad to know thats how Koreans treat each other too. Wink

Chloe11 · Joined: 23 Jul 2007

Coming here makes me feel a sense of relief that most of the bitter garbage that you read on Dave's is probably being spewed by people who very rarely make the effort to socialize with other people. In other words, these people represent a minority of those who I may end up interacting with at some point. For this, I am thankful and have perhaps just at touch more appreciation for the many fine people that I do meet here.

Chloe11 · Joined: 23 Jul 2007

Yu_Bum_suk · Joined: 25 Dec 2004

Coming here makes me feel so wonderful about my job, co-workers, students, and school. Today I got mildly upset because three student in a class of 29 were being pretty lazy; as a result I made them stay behind during break and redo the excercise they didn't pay attention to the first time around. I remember thinking to myself, gee, would Mr Lovestick, the math teacher, have had to do something like that? Are some students always trying to get away with doing as little as possible in my class just because I'm a whitey?

Then I come here and think, wow, none of my students ddong-chimed me, swore at me, threw things at me, hit me, yelled 'Ya! Teachah!' at me, or ran around the classrom like screaming monkeys today. Thanks Dave's ESL community, for making me feel so good about working in Korea.

Atavistic · Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 1:25 am Post subject:

Didn't JAD have nearly an exact same thread title?

poet13 · Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 1:31 am Post subject:

"poet13 wrote:
Sick of Korea? Nope. Makes me glad I live way the hell out and away from almost all foreigners. Some here are good, but for the most part, from the stuff I read here, I'm glad I live in Hicksvile.

Chloe11
Dave's ESL forums are an excellent source from which to generalize all foreigners in Korea. Really."

I qualified it with, "from the stuff I read here..."
I have also been coming to Korea since 2001, permanently since 2005.
I have traveled and stayed in cities all over the country.

I have enough material to generalize from.

nicholas_chiasson · Joined: 14 Jun 2007 Location: Samcheok

daveseslcafe is a sort of 'everyone having a bad day' gets in one place. I don't think the complaints are exaggerated or false, I think it just seems like a lot of problems with no positives. Granted how interesting is a thread devoted to "my kids were kind at school today, I got a pizza sent to my house, and went to bed at 9:00PM." Not going to get a lot of responses with something like that are you...

peppermint · Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 1:43 am Post subject:

Why is there no yawning emoticon on this site!

poet13 · Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 1:57 am Post subject:

True. Time to click "stop watching...."

xingyiman · Joined: 12 Jan 2006

Take it with a grain of salt. Korea, just about like everything else in this life is what you make of it.

endo · Joined: 14 Mar 2004 Location: Seoul...my home

For the most part I absolutely love living in Seoul and I don't at all regret my time here.

But then I come on this board and read yet another Korean article (usually translated) where the Korean media/netizens/politicians/general public are bashing waygooks (primarily males) or going on about some pathetic issue like Dokdo, the Hub of whatever.......

and I become imersed with RAGE!!!!! Laughing

Mi Yum mi · Joined: 28 Jan 2008