Korean Job Discussion Forums

[kimchipig]

Have a look at this, boys and girls:

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2008/06/117_26607.html

They are gonna get plenty of waygooks to teach for free! I love how they hint that the 1113 victims, oops, teachers presently here are working for free.

I think I will sign up for some undergrad course and teach for free in Korea! When can I leave?

[garykasparov]

"Gyeonggi is aggressively inviting more foreigners to build up an English-friendly environment at schools. Apart from the internship project, it will employ English-speaking workers from India and the Philippines in school cafeterias and libraries as part of an ``English Zone.'' The education office aims to hire some 75 workers this year."

They might as well work at SLP. The "workers" will get paid more at a Slave Labor Program.

[Ya-ta Boy]

recruit approximately 600 university students from English-speaking countries as paid interns this year...will receive benefits such as round-trip airfare and allowances of about 1.6 million won ($1,548) per month, as well as a monthly accommodation allowance.

[aarontendo]

Damn the OP is a moron.

[yoja]

It doesn't say if they the program allows students to come for less than a year. I could see my younger sister who's still in school trying it for a semester, but I don't think she'd be as likely to do it if she had to commit for a whole year.

I think it does have a lot of potential, in theory, but in practice, I think it would be a difficult adjustment for the student interns, especially if they are placed in rural areas with little support and few-to-no other English speakers to interact with. It's hard enough in public schools in wealthy areas of Seoul, where one would *think* one might be more likely to encounter a higher level of English fluency and communication skills among one's co-workers.

Back when I was in college a few years ago, it was becoming popular for students to sign up for a semester of "cultural exchange" where they would basically teach ESL in Russia or China or wherever for 3 credits and a whole lot of life experience. Usually the cost to the student was around $5,000 per semester. I was interested in doing one of those programs myself, but I couldn't afford to pay that much for what amounted to a 4-month working vacation. I could see students choosing to come and do a similar program in Korea though, especially if it is free or allows them to come out ahead financially at the end.

I don't think it's a bad idea, I just think that these "interns" would need to be screened by people more competent than Korean immigration. Hopefully the students who decide to do it will be mature enough for it to be a positive experience for all involved. As it is, it's a struggle to find graduates who are mature enough to deal with all the, ahem, cultural differences, and for many people working here now it's a challenge to end a year in Korea with positive impressions on all sides.

[captain kirk]

When TALK was proposed and in the planning stage I said that this will be the foot in the door to bringing undergrads into the public schools to teach regular classes. TALK is only teaching public school afterschool program three hours a day, not regular pub school classes.

Kyonggi province has now invited undergrads to teach regular pub school classes. Does this mean that, in Kyongi prov, Uni grads with a Ba are now 'too expensive' for the province to hire? It sure looks like it's going that way. 1.6mil for an undergrad versus 2.3 for a grad in a level 1 pub school position (2.3 or thereabouts).

Does this mean that other provinces will follow suit and employ undergrads to teach regular public school classes? I'd expect so.

Will the hagwons then be allowed to employ undergrads? Dunno about that. But wouldn't it be 'hypocritical' of the government to allow the employment of undergrads to teach Eng and not allow hagwons to do the same. The hagwons would be very interested in employing a teacher for 1.6 as opposed to two million plus.

[pecan]

I would very much like to compare the effectiveness and impact of this program to EPIK, SMOE, GEPIK, TALK, etc. on their respective students. If the results were negligible, I would go for the cheaper alternative as well. Time will tell.

If they really want these "interns" to be future "emissaries" of Korea, let's hope they treat them better than the contract for the TALK "scholars" suggests, as it could end up having the exact opposite effect.

-Nut

[marlow]

It will just further undermine public education. I'm going to start looking at the private sector for my teaching jobs, as the public system is going to shit.

What kind of teaching do they expect from someone who has never taught and is not even done university? For that matter, what kind of teaching do they expect from someone just out of university who has never taught? They do not respect experienced foreigners, even though their experienced Korean teachers have serious weaknesses.

There is no incentive to do well in public education here. Foreigners max out in about 4 years. What kind of message does this send to a new teacher, or to one who has been here 5 or 6 years, or longer?

[Ya-ta Boy]

[cornie_man]

...and the officials at the ministry of education will complain at the low standard of these "teachers" and their classes...

...and the teachers will complain that with these inexperiences young newbies, their classes have turned into a big mess....

...and then the media will complain that these "teachers" are not qualified to teach...

...and then the parents will complain...


[sigh]

[pecan]

Marlow,

It's a catch-22. The older more experienced teachers are often times less flexible, more jaded, more expensive, etc., which create unwanted difficulties for their employers from their demands. That is why Gangwon Province has adopted an age limit, as they have had bad experiences from hiring older teachers. At the same time, younger, fresher faces come with their own set of difficulties.

As an employer, where do you put your hope for the future?

Whether one is experienced or not, young or old, cheap or expensive to employee, Korea wants people who can teach, have the ability to create their own material, and are flexible in the workplace.

I don't think it is unreasonable to expect.

-Nut

[marlow]

[captain kirk]

There's a reason Korea pays well.

Public school positions will now pay 1.6, across the board, watch what happens. Once Kyongi goes the other provinces will follow.

Then Korea won't pay so well. But it's more difficult to live and work in than other countries. The undergrad newbs won't know what's going on, anyway, and they'll do what they're told. Repeat, repeat. Then they'll leave. A fresh, cheap machine like a treadmill. Whiteys R Us. A true McJob. Congrats, the Big Brass figured it out. Truly soul-less, bright-eyed, and vacuous.

Nothing more to say. China?

[moosehead]

the ones from India will come, check out the nabe and write home to Uncle that here's a good place for his new Taj Mahal restaurant

the ones from Phillipines will come, check out the nabe and write home to Auntie that here's a good place for her new Rosa's Cafe

[sojourner1]

They're getting paid and it's a great opportunity for university students to get some international work experience as well as a paid trip to Asia.

They are getting paid less, because they're less qualified, younger, and less experienced than us who graduated and a little older now. I'm getting paid a little more than them since I have a degree and some experience. They will need guidance, support, and supervision for them to be a success as they are young and lack experience of any sort. Hopefully, they'll have a head foreign teacher who has a few years experience and knows what she/he is doing. I was lucky I had one in my 1st year who actually had an education degree and 10 years experience and was a truly professional teacher. As for them replacing us, I wouldn't think they'd be teaching for a whole year during college, but only for 3 months. If anyone could replace us, it could be Indians and Filipinos who are starting out in the cafeterias and libraries. It appears Korea is in the process of opening it's doors to the world where it's going to drastically change in the coming years.

I would had killed to get this intern opportunity during college as no one else locally in Saint Louis, Missouri were offering much of anything about 5 years ago.


I give them a firm thumbs up on the plan.

Hey Pecan, what's the age limit in Gangwondo?