Korean Job Discussion Forums

[afsjesse]

OK So today is my official first day of teaching in my PS! I'm doing Intro's this week but what do YOU do after that? I'm sitting here pondering ideas of food, culture, games etc.... but how do you all corelate it together? Do you teach by topics such as "noun" or "food"??? Any ideas would be appreciated!

[hari seldon]

Are you teaching at a PS in Busan?

[afsjesse]

A small town in northern Gyeongsangbukdo.

[Cornfed]

[TheChickenLover]

Ah crap. Another person walking into a classroom totally unprepared & asking a public board on what to do.

NEVER SIGN A CONTRACT UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING!!!!

Yes, your classes after awhile may turn out ot be an epic fail, but wtf are you doing asking for classes after an intro class???? ALWAYS have your full semester of classes already prepped beforehand so you don't have this problem and you can get right into it.

Too much work? Find another profession.

Chicken

[TheChickenLover]

Ah crap. Another person walking into a classroom totally unprepared & asking a public board on what to do.

NEVER SIGN A CONTRACT UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING!!!!

Yes, your classes after awhile may turn out ot be an epic fail, but wtf are you doing asking for classes after an intro class???? ALWAYS have your full semester of classes already prepped beforehand so you don't have this problem and you can get right into it.

Too much work? Find another profession.

Chicken

[Cornfed]

[Otherside]

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[thatwhitegirl]

Honestly, I can't believe how many people get jobs at public schools with absolutely no experience or idea of what teaching is like.
I think it should be required to have TEFL training before teaching!

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[Easter Clark]

^

I'd been teaching for years (but never at a high school) before coming over here. And I did a lot of reading and planning before I even left the US. While it did help me to feel better prepared, there is a lot that you can only get by being here. Not only do you have to do your job in the classroom, but simple things like remembering where the cafeteria is, who is in charge of what department, who you can go to for help, who controls the heat or aircon, what your coteachers' expectations are...and a host of other things...

The first priority should be finding out what level your students are at. And the best way the do that is to aim wide then narrow your focus depending on whether your material was too easy or too hard.

So OP, while you'd get more specific advice if you told us what age group you're teaching, the best advice I can give you is take a couple of weeks to gauge their ability by doing some generic lessons like greetings, numbers (like birthdays or prices), family, and shopping. Find out what they're capable (or incapable) of, then buy a book that's targeted at that level. Use that as a basis for what you'll teach, but don't be afraid to supplement it with activities from the internet. And don't be fooled by what they're doing in their Korean teacher's English class. The stuff they read is usually light years beyond their level of spoken English.

[thatwhitegirl]

Ok, last post was hurried.

What we do at our PS (academic high school), is teach in topics. That way you have a theme/subject to base conversations, vocab and grammar points on.
For example, we've recently done:

- Music
- Crimes
- Natural Disasters
- Traveling (Airports/Immigration/Rental cars/Hotels)

We use Powerpoint in every class, because it helps to hold their interest. Pictures, short clips, etc.
We also make worksheets to go with the topic. Our school didn't provide books, so we've had to create our own syllabus. Helps that we have a lot of teaching books to take things from. The internet is also a great source. There is so much out there.

Your students will benefit from some sort of routine as well. Helps them to see your class as more 'real', even if you don't grade them. My routine is quite simple: I start each class with a tongue twister (review last one, start a new one). Warms them up, and it honestly helps their pronunciation. Then onto the Powerpoint lesson: review, then new stuff (which is mostly showing pictures and eliciting words/conversations, while asking them comprehension questions). If we've made a worksheet, we do a section of that. Sometimes I end with a 'fun' activity based on the lesson.

It takes a few weeks for us to go through a topic. At the end of the topic, I have them do a quiz and a dictation. Even if there is no submitted 'grade', the fact I take the class seriously makes them take it seriously too.

Good luck.

[ttompatz]

[Dances With Wolves]