Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Otherside]

I've been thinking this for a while, and often seen other posters echoing similar views over the years in threads where it has come up.

Before this year, the system had some balance. On the one side, you had notoriously dishonest employers who ripped off teachers, left and right and basically ignored the contract (or tried to, in the case of many public schools) coupled with extremely restrictive visa laws which made transferring jobs an expensive, DIFFICULT, time-consuming hassle.

HOWEVER, on the other side the supply of jobs far outstripped demand, thus jobs were always available, teachers who were willing to jump the hoops could find new employment and there was an incentive (beyond the obvious) for employers to keep good staff.

Recently, with the Western Economies in the toliet, there has been a surge of applications, so much so, that your even the old standby's such as GEPIK (who ALWAYS had jobs, throughout the year) have become increasingly picky. The net result is, the pendulem has swung completly against the ESL teacher. Employers will be more prone to screwing their teacher (let's face, it's almost a national sport here, with only the potential harm to their business keeping most in-check), knowing that after Joe teacher finally quits after not being paid for 2 months, he'll be able to have a replacement here on Monday morning and poor Joe teacher, won't be able to get another job as what school will want to go through all those hoops to hire a teacher with a bad reference, when they can cherry-pick from the mass if mis-informed applicants.

So, in a nutshell, working conditions are going to get worse (just look at the public schools, more camps etc - and I reckon the 22 hour/week clause will be bumped up soon enough), salaries will remain stagnant (thus decreasing year on year thanks to inflation), and more and more teachers will be screwed.

Not to mention, with many of these new English teachers coming out of economic necessity rather than an interest in, teaching, living abroad, travel, Korean culture etc, you are going to have alot more disgruntled foreigners and runners, leaving with a pile of bad debt (minor observation I've made reading these forums) and disappointed Koreans Once Samsung Card (as an example) starts having a large number E-2 visa holders defaulting on their payments, it will be next to impossible to get a credit card. This can apply to phone, internet and other services too. (Whose services for foreigners have been SLOWLY improving).

All in all...it's a pretty bleak picture, hope you had fun while it lasted.

[soviet_man]

I think the study abroad programs are taking the biggest chunk out of the private hagwon market currently.

Parents do realize that sending little Kim to LA is probably going to give them a more authentic experience than an after-school program, a hakwon, an English village or summer camp, which are characterized by varying degrees of failure and disorganization.

There is also a rising and unhealthy obsession with TOEIC/TOEFL. This culture of constant testing and preparing for tests is really becoming a distraction from genuine language learning at a cognitive level. I think perhaps symptomatic of parents who themselves are only 1 generation away from the plow and who have this intrinsic need to get ahead at any cost. I know I would accomplish more if we didn't spend so many lessons doing practice tests.

The university admissions system also causes an artificial level of interest in English, that wouldn't exist otherwise.

Bottom line, I think the hagwon generation are growing up. Koreans in their 20s and 30s having babies today are basically old enough to of gone to hagwons in the 1990s. They are as demanding and compulsive now as they were then, constantly chopping and changing as they go if things don't suit them. Ultimately, we are beholden to what they want and what they are willing to pay.

[Suwon4AGT]

Let me add to your list

The decline of the Western economies will ultimately lead to a decline in the demand for English in Korea, IMO. I look/read/think about this kind of stuff all the time (who doesn't?). Besides all of the crude features of Korean culture and the barriers that go with it, here you have a country that probably should focus more of their educational resources towards the other Asian economies. I.e. in this part of the world, it amazes me that with China having the world's fastest growing economy (even with a global recession), why a country like Korea wouldn't make learning Chinese its top priority. That would make more economic sense.

In any event, it's clear to me that for most Korean kids and the parents, English amounts to little more than an academic subject or a yuppie sport. It reminds me of those lame "My kid is an honor student at XYZ high school" bumper stickers that were so popular 10-15 years ago in America.

All I know is that I don't plan on being around when the ESL fad is over in Korea. Sooner or later, it'll die out.

[artunltd]

As a Survivor from 9/95...says.........
Experience is: What ya get, when ya Don't get what ya want.
Money in Zurich. House on the beach in Thailand.
Motorbike has a full tank of gas............

Been a GooD ride..............


Cheers

[Otherside]

[kiwiduncan]

Not to mention the huge numbers of Chinese also learning English. Some Korean International Business graduate can use English with some New Zealand trade representatives one day, an Indian software developer the next and then, when he or she flies into Shanghai it'll probably be an English-speaking Chinese business person anyway.

On top of that, in some hypothetical situation where a bunch of Korean, Japanese and Chinese academics meet to discuss disagreements over history textbooks or whatever, English offers a great level of neutrality.

[Suwon4AGT]

[skeeterses]

There's no question that Koreans are spending too much time and money learning English.

With the recession taking a toll on the Global economy, Koreans may possibly realize that they should devote their limited English resources towards teaching English to the kids who want to learn it. No matter how strict the TOIEC tests are, it will never be possible to get the lazy students fluent in English. Trying to make everybody fluent in English is a waste of educational dollars.

[cj1976]

The EFL meal-ticket can't last forever. One day the bubble will burst and Koreans will realize that the money spent on English education is often not worth it.
Koreans themselves are partly to blame for the failures. Poor educational ethics and practices, unprofessional recruitment and management of the NSETs, the general overworking of their kids, and so on.
I give it another 3-5 years here before we see the end of the free airfare and apartments.

[roadwork]

[nicam]

The gig is up IMO. With the won in the crapper and the market flooded with desperate "teachers," the gain in Korea just isn't worth the pain.

It was barely worth it before the scales tipped in favor of the employees and the vile won tanked. I'd rather be happy (Korea is NOT a happy country), and now I don't have to sacrifice happiness for money.

[harlowethrombey]

[skeeterses]

After being in Korea for 3 years, and spending another year in America taking some classes towards teacher certification, I've come to the realization that Education, and not just ESL, has become a Modern Day Gold Rush.

My mother has been pressuring me to get certified for teaching while I've been telling her that I'd like to do something different like auto repair or electrical wiring. The reason that she, and many other parents are pressuring their kids to pursue teaching is because Education, Healthcare, and Government jobs are the only fields holding up in this recession. Construction, Automaking, Retail, Banking, and many other fields are in the dumpster.

The reason that many ESL teachers want to give every youngster the "opportunity" to learn English is because their incomes are dependent on this mandatory English crap. For a lot of foreign ESL teachers in Korea, going back home to America means a choice between a homeless shelter or signing up for the Army.

[nyenglish]

[bundangbabo]

In the 1990s - Taiwan was the place to make your ESL fortune. I never know anyone who went to Korea but plenty who went to Taiwan.

I think wages will stagnate to around 2.4 million. The English craze might slow down (and I don't see any siogns yet) but it isn't going to disappear.

What will keep the ESL workforce mobile here is a few things.

a) Koreans will never have a clue how to treat their waygook staff
properly which will always result in a high turnover rate.

b) If they didn't include flight, free place and last month severance -
who'd come and stay 12 months? - one reason I have have completed this
contract is because of the last month or else I would have gone long ago.

c) Sure - many are coming now - but when a lof of them get burned, depressed and run - that word will travel fast - I don't think Korean employers are now thinking 'hey - we have a glut of teachers - lets treat them well so they can stick around' they are thinking 'hey - we can cherrypick - and if who we choose doesn't like the shit we give them - we can get rid of them and get someone else in'

Sure - in a normal country - this recession would spell doom for the high life of ESL teachers in Korea - trust Korean employers though to chimp it up for themselves bigtime by not treating their employees decently.