Korean Job Discussion Forums

[LydiaSarah]

Ok, quick question for all you GEPIK teachers...I'm curious how many of us have to teach classes/camps during break, how many have to go in and do nothing the whole time, and how many get the entire break off.

My school only has camps for two weeks, but is telling that I can only take 10 days of my vacation time, and have to come in the rest of break and sit around in an empty school basically.

Is anyone else in the same boat? Is there any way around this?

[politica]

There's not much getting around it. But I have four weeks of camps, so its not as big of a problem.

You can however bring up the prospect of "working from home." My coteacher actually suggested I do this. Basically just told me to go home (or stay home) and lesson prep from there.

Other than that, I'd suggest you use the extra time to get prepared for the spring semester. Some of us would kill for that amount of prep time

[Jeff's Cigarettes]

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=138853&highlight=

[Seoul'n'Corea]

[Jeff's Cigarettes]

Well, It isn't actually part of the contract, is it?

[farrepatt]

The latest contract states that you can take 20 days off in winter or in summer - there is no stipulation as to how the days are broken up. Since winter break is longer, I told my school I would take 13 days, and they were fine with it. They just wanted to make sure that I could teach a three-week winter camp.

As long as you're doing the camps they want you to, argue for as much time off as you're allowed. They're your vacation days.

[marlow]

[jellobean]

I know someone who was considering doing a TEFL over the break. If you were willing to fork out the cost of doing one in Thailand or some place (perhaps even near your hometown), you might be able to argue for the extra time since it is "professional development." Of course, some principals will buy this argument and some won't and you definitely need to meet your camp requirements to have a chance. I suppose this would only work once, but you could always try doing other TEFL add-on modules for later vacations.

[LydiaSarah]

[branchsnapper]

Don't sit around doing nothing. Sit around doing something. Learn something. It's a gift, not a torture.

[LydiaSarah]

[thomasdr]

I have been an EPIK teacher for over 3 years now and during this time I have learned a bit about the Korean education system and serving as an employee in it. We are considered government employees working in the education department - if this were not true, I would not have qualified for a car insurance discount offered to government education employees, and my visa wouldn�t be sponsored by the office of education. Because of this we are bound by certain rules that apply to almost every other government education employee. In regards to �vacation�, when school is not in session in the summer and winter, all government education employees are still technically working and not on vacation. Korean teachers sign a document and provide a schedule of their educational plan in order to not be present at school during this time. It may be thought of as a sort of home study or professional development period, but in reality it is what westerners deem vacation. As a government education employee I also fill out the same schedule and official document for the time I am not going to be at school during the winter and summer recess. During the recess while doing professional development, if I want to leave the country, then I have to use my vacation time. Again, this is the exact same for Korean teachers who also have to file a plan and make a copy of their passport showing the dates they were not working because they were out of the country. The exception to this is if you are doing professional development abroad �TEFL, class observation, training -, then it is not considered vacation.

I guess what I want to say to everyone out there that is confused about vacation is that not being at school during recess isn�t considered vacation if you are doing professional development from home, which is what all of your co-workers are doing. Vacation is only applied when leaving the country for non-educational purposes on recess or taking time off during the regular school schedule. Now if your school will not allow you to do professional development from home like all other Korean teachers during the recess then they either don�t respect you or don�t like you. My advice is to ask for an official paper to allow you to do home study on recess and have a Korean teacher help you fill it out and submit it with the other teachers at your school. Show that you should be treated as a professional like the rest of the staff. If for some reason the administration won�t approve your document, ask them to explain why. You deserve time away from school like everyone else to lesson plan effectively and improve your teaching skills. Show them that you are going to do a TEFL class or something similar.

Another issue that people seem to be confused about is doing camps during break. Unless it says you are responsible for doing camps in your contract (GEPIK?), you are not obligated to do it without payment. Again, there is an exception to this if your co-teacher is present in the classroom. You are bound contractually to teach no more than 22 classes a week. These classes legally must be co-taught because you are not licensed to teach in public schools. If there is no co-teacher present in the classroom, the class is considered an extracurricular class and is not part of your contracted teaching time. Payment should be given like it is for every Korean teacher who teaches extra curricular classes or you shouldn�t do it. I, like many other teachers in my city, make a large portion of my salary teaching extra classes and doing camps.

If you are in EPIK, you should be able to play by the rules outlined above. I wince when I read about people complaining about sitting alone at work when all of the other teachers are at home doing �professional development�. I cringe when I hear about people doing weeks of unpaid camp during recess. Become a professional and take action. Ask to read all official documents sent to your handler from the office of education- these directly concern you and your job after all. Ask to participate in meetings even though you won�t understand and make sure you have a copy of the school calendar to stay informed of coming events. Sit down with teachers and offer suggestions about the English curriculum and how it could be improved. Become active in planning and see what else you can do for your school � I have an area of the school to supervise when the students are cleaning. Most importantly, make sure you fill out official documents anytime you leave early or miss school for things like exams or meetings at the office of education. If your school says it isn�t necessary, they are absolutely wrong. Again, you are a government employee and should fill out the same paperwork as every other employee. This should help you when it comes time to fill out your plan for summer and winter recess.

[LydiaSarah]

Thank you so much thomasdr. That was the best answer I've gotten on Dave's in awhile. I will certainly take your advice and see about the camp situation.

[marlow]

[jellobean]

So what are you waiting for? Sign up for a TEFL course in the location of your choice and submit your paperwork so you can go abroad for your professional development. If you already have your TEFL, I'm sure you can find some other great educational professional development opportunity