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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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htrain
Joined: 24 May 2007
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 Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 9:26 pm Post subject: |
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| steroidmaximus wrote: |
| Sounds to me like she was trying to write a moving piece on ethnicity to get a better grade and make an impression. Taking a class like that, she was probably encouraged to 'confront' her inner turmoil, to root out some traumatic experience and spill it onto a page. Also sounds like she took her reading of Kingston's "The Woman Warrior" to heart and tried to duplicate the sense of loss and disenfranchisement. |
The book we had to read for the unit was Sonia Nieto's The Light In Their Eyes which is full of bleeding-heart apologetic drivel.
Required reading and writing assignments include why white people have an unfair advantage because they are "on the winning team," how the American education system is inherently racist and requires cultural assimilation, and how to even the playing field. |
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Saxiif
Joined: 15 May 2003
Location: Seongnam
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| Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 9:44 pm Post subject: |
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Newsbreak: English teacher teaches students to speak English!
News at 11! |
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nicholas_chiasson
Joined: 14 Jun 2007
Location: Samcheok
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| Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 11:05 pm Post subject: |
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Isn't stuff like this a major insult to eastern-european non-jewish immigrants of the early 20th century? I mean look how much they went through so their kids could fit in, and now we expect asians and hispanics to get a free ride? They need to show Mind of Mencia in ESL class.
"Hey, you're kids don't speak English? You know why? Cause they're staying up all night watching Telemeundo all night watching bad soaps when they should be watching Mr. Rodgers!" It really is normal to 1)not lose your first language and 2)learn the language of where you're at. Most educated africans are tri-lingual at least, and they don't complain about it. |
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 1:47 am Post subject: |
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| I agree she overdid it. She spoke Korean at home. Maybe her Korean didn't progress to a university-educated level, and if not, it's for lack of trying. I'm sure her parents read Korean language newspapers and probably magazines and books. She could have, too. |
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pkang0202
Joined: 09 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 1:58 am Post subject: |
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Here's another theory and it happened to me back home.
I partied too much and I had a paper due in 1 hour. So, I BSed and wrote stuff that I sure didn't believe, but knew the professor would really like so that I would get a decent grade.
Of course, I didn't do that all the time. There were a couple occasions where I half-assed some assignment and the professor lauded it in front of the entire class. |
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steroidmaximus
Joined: 27 Jan 2003
Location: GangWon-Do
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 2:03 am Post subject: |
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I partied too much and I had a paper due in 1 hour. So, I BSed and wrote stuff that I sure didn't believe, but knew the professor would really like so that I would get a decent grade.
Of course, I didn't do that all the time. There were a couple occasions where I half-assed some assignment and the professor lauded it in front of the entire class. |
Touche. But didn't we all do that at least a dozen times?  |
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steroidmaximus
Joined: 27 Jan 2003
Location: GangWon-Do
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 2:12 am Post subject: |
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| Required reading and writing assignments include why white people have an unfair advantage because they are "on the winning team," how the American education system is inherently racist and requires cultural assimilation, and how to even the playing field. |
Ouch.
While I do believe some accomodations need be made for immigrants, growing up a part of the majority ain't always some picnic. With a topic like that for writing, no wonder she produced the paper she did. |
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Wisconsinite
Joined: 05 Jan 2007
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 6:16 am Post subject: Re: A Korean-American's Take on ESOL in the states |
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| htrain wrote: |
So I'm in the middle of getting my teacher's license right now. We have a Korean American in the class and this is her take on American public school ESOL. It basically stole her culture.
What's your opinion? The professor said this woman's quote is very moving and worthy of being passed on to other teachers. Is it?
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�Inequality in education also has been apparent in how students� languages and dialects are perceived and treated in the school.�
When I first entered into elementary school in the United States, I spoke only one word in English. It was �no.� It was like being in a Charlie Brown cartoon, except everybody, not just the adults were saying, �whaa, whaa, whaa.� However, for a few hours of the day I was placed in an ESOL class with others who knew limited English. There I found solace in a girl who knew how to speak my native language. I distinctly remember the ESOL teacher �encouraging� us to use English when we were together not just during study times but also during free playing times so that we would learn English faster. She had the best of intentions; however, I believe she contributed to the degradation of my native language by making me feel ashamed to speak my own language and practice my own culture. I would have learned how to speak English regardless of the instruction I received in the ESOL class sooner or later. However, because I was told to abandon my language and assimilate, I have slowly lost the ability to communicate with my parents. They don�t know enough English and I don�t know enough Korean to effectively have deep, meaningful conversations with the elders in my family. I went through my entire educational career, including elementary, high school, college and graduate school without any help or support doing any of my assignments. I never had the �unearned privilege� of having parental support that most of my fellow student had. |
This is a very difficult balance for a teacher of ESL. I teach in a high school and have mostly Korean students. We have a rule that during the academic day (classes) they must speak in English, even to each other. Here is why:
1. It is painfully obvious that students who are not Korean at this school learn English MUCH faster and are able to be MUCH more successful than their Korean counterparts because there are only 2 Germans, and 1 Chilean (hence not another person to talk to). When it comes to important administrative stuff, we allow for translation. We are working very HARD to find a balance to being acculturated into the American culture but recognizing their native culture and language.
2. There are issues of respect. At this point, our students CAN converse in English very comfortably but how rude is it to speak in a language that other people can't understand right in front of them when they can speak the second language? How many of us hated it when Korean co workers who can speak in English well refused to do so and spoke in Korean? We are teaching them the importance of making sure they are not EXCLUDING people when there is no reason to.
Acculturation is very important in order to be succesful in school. The only way to do it is to get in and participate as much as possible. To say a teacher was the "death" of a first language and culture, that is putting a very heavy burden on a teacher. It is as much, if not more, the responsibility of the parents and family to preserve as they see fit. It is not the schools job to preserve the first culture of their students but it is their job to understand, respect, and allow students to feel comfortable as a representative of their first culture. For example, at our school it is not our job to teach Korean or to teach Korean culture to Koreans but we make sure that when Chuseok rolls around, we celebrate as a community. |
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Miles Rationis
Joined: 08 May 2007
Location: Just Say No To Korea!
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 7:00 am Post subject: Re: A Korean-American's Take on ESOL in the states |
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| htrain wrote: |
So I'm in the middle of getting my teacher's license right now. We have a Korean American in the class and this is her take on American public school ESOL. It basically stole her culture.
What's your opinion? The professor said this woman's quote is very moving and worthy of being passed on to other teachers. Is it?
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�Inequality in education also has been apparent in how students� languages and dialects are perceived and treated in the school.�
When I first entered into elementary school in the United States, I spoke only one word in English. It was �no.� It was like being in a Charlie Brown cartoon, except everybody, not just the adults were saying, �whaa, whaa, whaa.� However, for a few hours of the day I was placed in an ESOL class with others who knew limited English. There I found solace in a girl who knew how to speak my native language. I distinctly remember the ESOL teacher �encouraging� us to use English when we were together not just during study times but also during free playing times so that we would learn English faster. She had the best of intentions; however, I believe she contributed to the degradation of my native language by making me feel ashamed to speak my own language and practice my own culture. I would have learned how to speak English regardless of the instruction I received in the ESOL class sooner or later. However, because I was told to abandon my language and assimilate, I have slowly lost the ability to communicate with my parents. They don�t know enough English and I don�t know enough Korean to effectively have deep, meaningful conversations with the elders in my family. I went through my entire educational career, including elementary, high school, college and graduate school without any help or support doing any of my assignments. I never had the �unearned privilege� of having parental support that most of my fellow student had. |
I didn't know Koreans even bothered having deep and meaningful conversations. Let's see; work, money, shopping....anything else? |
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bogey666
Joined: 17 Mar 2008
Location: Korea, the ass free zone
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 7:58 am Post subject: Re: A Korean-American's Take on ESOL in the states |
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| htrain wrote: |
So I'm in the middle of getting my teacher's license right now. We have a Korean American in the class and this is her take on American public school ESOL. It basically stole her culture.
What's your opinion? The professor said this woman's quote is very moving and worthy of being passed on to other teachers. Is it?
-------------------------------------------------------
�Inequality in education also has been apparent in how students� languages and dialects are perceived and treated in the school.�
When I first entered into elementary school in the United States, I spoke only one word in English. It was �no.� It was like being in a Charlie Brown cartoon, except everybody, not just the adults were saying, �whaa, whaa, whaa.� However, for a few hours of the day I was placed in an ESOL class with others who knew limited English. There I found solace in a girl who knew how to speak my native language. I distinctly remember the ESOL teacher �encouraging� us to use English when we were together not just during study times but also during free playing times so that we would learn English faster. She had the best of intentions; however, I believe she contributed to the degradation of my native language by making me feel ashamed to speak my own language and practice my own culture. I would have learned how to speak English regardless of the instruction I received in the ESOL class sooner or later. However, because I was told to abandon my language and assimilate, I have slowly lost the ability to communicate with my parents. They don�t know enough English and I don�t know enough Korean to effectively have deep, meaningful conversations with the elders in my family. I went through my entire educational career, including elementary, high school, college and graduate school without any help or support doing any of my assignments. I never had the �unearned privilege� of having parental support that most of my fellow student had. |
COMPLETE and unmitigated BULLSHIT.
what did she speak at home with her parents?
WHO told her to "abandon" her language?
I came to the US when I was in fifth grade from Poland. Took me a year to basically master English (they had me in an ESL type class for a couple of months when everyone else had "English" class) and in 6th grade I was one of the top kids in Reading and English classes. (math was a joke, I was 2 years beyond everyone else)
as others noted there are Saturday schools for certain languages (including mine, though that was a joke for me too, for the most part)
I'm going to guess the lunatics in the US educational establishment nodded their heads and said poor baby - because nothing is anyone's own fault, other than the "white man's"
(had my parents heard that someone told them to abandon their language, they would have chewed the ass off this idiot.. the point was to learn English) |
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JustJohn
Joined: 18 Oct 2007
Location: Your computer screen
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 8:05 am Post subject: |
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| Sounds to me like it's the parents fault. They talked to her so little that she forgot how to speak Korean? Serious issues there. |
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bogey666
Joined: 17 Mar 2008
Location: Korea, the ass free zone
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 8:21 am Post subject: |
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| JustJohn wrote: |
| Sounds to me like it's the parents fault. They talked to her so little that she forgot how to speak Korean? Serious issues there. |
actually this is correct.. she was probably too young , the bulk of the blame goes to the parents..
I'm just curious how much talking/communication was at home period.
If the communication was half way decent and she talked to her parents.. she would have retained at the very least a basic level of Korean (or whatever other language)
btw.. I was initially FORCED to watch shows like Electric Company.. and Mr. Rogers (especially Electric Company!) by my parents! |
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PRagic
Joined: 24 Feb 2006
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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Nice sob story for the teacher. Here's another story:
A young girl is moved to America. Once there, her parents tell her that she needs to learn English to assimilate. School is tough, and kids make fun of her for not knowing English. Even when she hangs out with people from her own county, they try and speak some English; slang, useful expessions, they share information about what they've learned in English that will make their lives easier. Kids are tough, and the desparately want to fit in.
And sad to say, being kids, they start to look down on their parents for not knowing English. They get embarrassed when the American kids visit their house, and their mom and dad can't talk to them. Sure, she can understand their parents, but it gets more and more difficult to relate to them in their language.
And then the little girl get older, and regrets severing her link to her own culture. For whatever reason - sentimental, professional, or personal, she wishes she could speak the language of her ancestors.
That little girl was my grandmother, who came to the U.S. from Germany. |
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OiGirl
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Location: Hoke-y-gun
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 4:28 pm Post subject: |
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| She plagiarizes from Richard Rodriguez and it's moving? |
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Miles Rationis
Joined: 08 May 2007
Location: Just Say No To Korea!
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| Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 5:28 pm Post subject: |
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| PRagic wrote: |
Nice sob story for the teacher. Here's another story:
A young girl is moved to America. Once there, her parents tell her that she needs to learn English to assimilate. School is tough, and kids make fun of her for not knowing English. Even when she hangs out with people from her own county, they try and speak some English; slang, useful expessions, they share information about what they've learned in English that will make their lives easier. Kids are tough, and the desparately want to fit in.
And sad to say, being kids, they start to look down on their parents for not knowing English. They get embarrassed when the American kids visit their house, and their mom and dad can't talk to them. Sure, she can understand their parents, but it gets more and more difficult to relate to them in their language.
And then the little girl get older, and regrets severing her link to her own culture. For whatever reason - sentimental, professional, or personal, she wishes she could speak the language of her ancestors.
That little girl was my grandmother, who came to the U.S. from Germany. |
Kannst Du denn auch Deutsch? |
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