Korean Job Discussion Forums

Robot_Teacher · Joined: 18 Feb 2009 Location: Robotting Around the World

She is a beautiful well dressed, but kind and sincere young woman educated at Seoul National University of Education who speaks nearly fluently, is very optimistic, happy, highly intellectual, professional, and is damned good at teaching English, but I find there is not the teaching work I was expecting that I'd be performing as it's her class so standing around and passively participating is all that's asked of me for her 6th grade classes. I want to participate and contribute more. This school has the EPIK national English curriculum which is design for Korean teachers while my other school has no curriculum so it's all on me to teach at the other school.

This K teacher who stayed a year in the states is such a genuine sweetheart I'm looking forward to working with, but she's not interested in involving me much nor working me very hard at all and is giving her best effort to have good relations with me which is a situation I'm happy to receive. She even gave me invitation today to go hiking on a weekend with her and her friends when the weather warms up which is very kind and thoughtful of her. I'm all for getting involved with some nice English speaking Korean people as I really have no one out where I'm at and want to experience what makes them happy. She's the 1st and only person in my local area I can converse with. I know of a doctor that speaks, but trying to converse is spotty at best. No one else just comes up and speaks English with me in a small town. I'm pleased to have gotten someone talanted from Seoul to work with.

How do you fit in where the K teacher uses the EPIK national curriculum not designed for foreign teachers and does all the teaching?

kiknkorea · Joined: 16 May 2008

I'm not sure what the problem is here. You said she is a damn good teacher so it may be she wants you to observe the classroom environment so you can follow her teaching style if need be. Otherwise you seem to be in great shape.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 11:51 am Post subject:

I have an EPIK contract... WTF is the "EPIK National Curriculum?

D.D. · Joined: 29 May 2008

If she can speak very well and do her job by herself then you are not really needed. How is her accent? Sounds like she has not learned how to work with others.

It would be great if Koreans improved to the level that we were not needed. Instead I get co-teachers who say that they don't speak English well because they didn't major in English. So I assume that they have just taught a few years but find out it is over 20 years just teaching English.

I find it difficult to understand if they have been teaching 20 years of a subject why they still can't speak very well.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 2:03 pm Post subject:

Xuanzang · Joined: 10 Apr 2007 Location: Sadang

They can teach anything in elementary school from science to English without majoring in it.

Big Mac · Joined: 17 Sep 2005

Wow, your co-teacher is a great representation of what the Korean government would like to have some day. They would love it if enough Korean teachers could speak English well enough that they no longer need any more foreign monkeys to corrupt the minds of their children.

I'm surprised they actually made the one who speaks English well the co-teacher though. In my school, the mentality seems to be to put the low level English teachers who have potential to learn English with the foreign teacher in the hopes that after a year working with a foreign teacher they will be fluent. The ones who can speak English are made homeroom teachers.

What my school is trying to do is train as many teachers to speak English as possible so that one day foreign teachers will no longer be needed.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 11:00 pm Post subject: