Korean Job Discussion Forums

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I met a korean teacher who has been teaching for 30 years.
She explains that hawkwons are taking over the education system. Schools don't give homework becuase off all their hawkwon work. Teachers can't punish kids becuase the parents will complain yet hawkwon instructors can beat them.

Shouldn't the main source of their education be from the school?

[Frankly Mr Shankly]

Maybe it's for the parents to decide.

[The Grumpy Senator]

[SHANE02]

[Cerriowen]

I'd say it's the other way... public schools can beat them but not hakwons.

[cazzy3]

the hagwon/public school dilemma is a problem and most teachers admit this. the biggest problem is that it causes such disparity in the levels of the students. those that attend hagwons learn the material prior to coming to class and usually more in depth, yet a student who doesn't go to hagwons will likely get left behind because the teaching style in korea doesn't have many safety nets for remedial students.

however, i disagree with the idea that most teachers believe that they are solely 'test givers' and not teachers. most of the teachers at my middle school take their job seriously and genuinely work to educate the students.

if the hagwons didn't teach the material before it was introduced at the school, the public school teachers would be better off. unfortunately, if the hagwons don't teach the material earlier/in more depth- no one will pay for their services.

it's a catch-22.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

The older kids get the more important public school tests become, but for elementary kids, parents often see hagwons as being far more important. For HS students, academies and tutors become important for trying to get them better test scores. Some kids go from middle school academies where they're actually learning some useful English to HS academies / tutors that only teach them grammar for their HS tests.

MS and HS teachers can assign homework and punish students for not doing it, but they can't realistically assign a lot because of all the other things students have to do in a day. Parents tend to work much more closely with hagwon than PS teachers when it comes to homework assignments.

[Julius]

[jeffkim1972]

The Korean public teacher's job is a [warning: big word in use] sinecure.

Every job in Korea is representative of some status and that's how they choose their craft.

The amount of time kids actually supposedly dedicate to "studying", they should all finish college by 18.

It's probably the least efficient education system in the world creating one dimensional people later in life.

It's the modern day educational gulag.

Ok, had to vent my complaints about Korean, it's been awhile, feel better now.

[Kimchi Cha Cha]

One of my pet gripes here is the amount of window dressing and band-aid cures which occurs in many facets of society. These bright little ideas are introduced with much fanfare and little thought, organization or follow through. They are seemingly incorporated just to make it look like change is occurring. The result is little changes and everyone continues about the same, worn out, tired, inefficient way shrugging their shoulders saying 'we did try to change'.

It's almost like they're resigned to the fact that the problems are insurmountable so instead of tackling this problem, let's do something small to make it look like we're trying when we really aren't.

Sure, change is difficult and creates a whole new set of challenges and sometimes problems, but it is needed. Korea could achieve so much more if they just took some difficult decisions and followed through with them. The education system is a shining example of this.

[Juregen]