Korean Job Discussion Forums

[chaz47]

Maybe it's a winter funk/mood thing but I find lately that a lot of the newbie teachers I meet are pretty dodgy. I'm sure age plays a factor, but even with newbie teachers my own age (early 30s), it seems like most new teachers are just sort of a transient barfly culture.

I'm not saying all noobs are boozers and users. But it seems like amongst the community of first year teachers there is zero social accountability. Unless, of course the other person works at your school.

[VanIslander]

I meet a lot more Americans and South Africans these days.

[zeldalee13]

I wonder if the population will change due to the economic situation worldwide? Will the escapists rather than ambitious dominate?

[moosehead]

[MilkChocolate]

Well, I'm new to Korea, but I dont have any problem with it. I love the culture... but I mean with the economy the way it is in the US, a lot of the teachers here probably just want a job and could care less about Korea. I want to meet for veteran teachers.. so that I learn a bit, but where do you all hide??? I went to one bar but that got old really quick..

[hellakitty]

Can someone explain the logical relation between being new to a region/profession and being sketchy? Maybe you have encountered alot of boozers lately but to generalise new teachers as untrustworthy is a little out there. But then again I would classify most old timers as fat white pervs who only stick around for the low cost of living and low rent korean women. To each his/her own, I guess.

[PeteJB]

Welcome, newbies

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[cdninkorea]

What am I? I've been here 3.5 years, so I don't think I'm a newbie. But does that mean I'm a vet? I figured that status comes after 5 years.

I'm gripped by an existential panic; I need a label! Label me!

[Robot_Teacher]

You can trust the newbie robot to be a good ambassador of his country committed to the duty putting on good face for the USA and ESL teachers reputation, but grossly rude people flare my emotions just as they do everywhere else. I have a problem with the damned land lord man wearing a hat reading," DAZZLE," keying in at 7AM Monday morning without knocking. I was already up on the Skype phone so I know he didn't knock, but I hear a person keying in and walking towards my bedroom. I peek out the bedroom of my mansion sized apartment (for real) and see this man, think about grabbing knife nearby, but realize he's not a threat and is clearly up to some business matter so I approach him and question him to identity himself, but he fails to speak English or communicate. The body builder soldier man of the US Army exhibited himself for getting his castle invaded and removes said man from apartment. My abode is my castle and shall not be invaded or I'm placed in battle mode. Robot man then notices a phucked up weird key stuck in my door which then got jammed and required a locksmith to remove as I have said man cornered outside of apartment and fearing something bad might happen to warrant the police. I get mad, but foreigner Robot who comes in friendly spirit to a faraway land does not want to threaten and scare a South Korean as they already have the North imposing fear upon them, but gawd that's ridiculous to be intruded upon and grossly disrespected like this so I had every right to be angry and now feel very discontent and uncomfortable with being here.

In only underwear and tank top, Robot used 240V powered muscle to expel said intruder, loudly blasted explicatives, and called 1330 for translation to mediate the situation, before totally losing it's mind and doing something dumber than dumb. What a brilliant management strategy at such a charged moment of possible total systems failures. It was the landlord inspecting the place for they thought I was pulling a runner Saturday when they seen me pulling luggage through the town to the bus station. How silly is that considering I've expressed happiness, high respect, and excellent attitude to privilege this job opportunity? Not a deliberate hostile unfriendly invasion!!! Dumb ass thing is my main school co-teacher seen my shopping Emart late Saturday afteroon in store!!! How brilliant? What in the world am I doing buying lots of food and beer if I was seen pulling a runner 3 hours earlier?

It was a damned wheeled suitcase for my groceries on a trip to the city!!! I've not had any problems, complained, acted bad, or shown I wanted to quit, but it was reported in this small town I pulled a runner on Saturday and the landlord was coming to assess the situation without even checkin if I was here. Insane!!!! Through phone translation, he apologized and said he would deeply apologize to my school. You have to force these people to be ashamed of themselves or to do the right thing. It's the culture.

Needless to say, I called in sick since I'm nervous and need to relax as I threw up fluids last night and have diarrhea and sore throat this morning. This really is just a minor infraction if their is no more issue pertaining to this event. No biggie as long as I see or hear nothing more and my belly stops aching. I feel so bad for threatening and scaring for what probably is a gentlemen doing his job by a very different set of rules other than my own. I feel terrible, but thankful I didn't hurt him as I almost did the unthinkable at 7:05AM this mornin. The last thing I want is to scare or hurt people in another land already scared of their other half threatening to nuke them. Last thing I want or need is trouble.

[TheUrbanMyth]

[IlIlNine]

It's kind of an odd situation, really.

On one side you have the newbies, with all of their bright eyes and notions of exploring the exotic orient, and on the other side you have the grizzled veterans who aren't impressed by anything new anymore, who perhaps have grown a little cynical at best and downright strange at worst.

Seeing this transformation occur in friends is really interesting.

I will say this though: every year the newbies seem less and less like they're running from the law and more and more like normal people.

[lou2565]

[friendoken]

One thing I noticed during the year I spent in Korea was the strange interactions between foreigners. Newbies, myself included, were starry eyed and somewhat mesmerized by the newness and difference of the whole scene. But walking along a street and seeing another foreigner, who purposefully would not acknowledge you, was unnerving and definitely uninviting.

It was my impression at the time that the vets were the least friendly and least helpful of the lot. This made them, in my eyes, more suspect than the newbies.

I'm sure nothing has changed except the Korean Won.

[Yu_Bum_suk]