Korean Job Discussion Forums

[I'm no Picasso]

[TheUrbanMyth]

[Manuel_the_Bandito]

[fermentation]

Kids using 반말 to you is disrespectful. A Korean kid doing it to a Korean teacher would get smacked. I suspect they do it because they think you won't understand what they're saying and they won't get as harsh of a punishment from you.

I sat in on a class once with an American woman teaching 10-12 year olds. The kids were talking about how the teacher looked like an ugly pig and laughing. The woman had no idea what they were saying.

[Kurtz]

Are we talking in or out of class here? what age? Give elementary some slack.

In class, I think it's a lack of respect for a student to say hi (well just a little bit) but out of class, annyeong is fine, as they see me as a friend.
I mean annyeong from a young child in a friendly manner, not some teenager taking the piss.

Isn't that part of the reason we are here, so kids don't feel afraid of us waegookin and to break down certain barriers? I don't believe in this heavy handed approach of demanding full respect, but then again, I only teach the little whipper snappers.

I do make them bow and say thank you teacher at the end of every class.

Have to let them know who is boss before they leave.

[asams]

[Manuel_the_Bandito]

[Manuel_the_Bandito]

[detourne_me]

I like Mateo's style.

Also if they are being disrespectful, I say "Sure! But say it in English"
It's a challenge to them, they're being disrespectful because they want a challenge. Sometimes the kids that stand up to the teacher can come up with the most inventive uses of English, and I'm not talking about cursing.

And if that's not the case, who cares? Do you really cry yourself to sleep because a student is trying to be friendly or disrespectful to you?

[I'm no Picasso]

Guys you really are missing the point here.

Them greeting you with "안녕!" is not about not being an authority figure. They would not greet a student at the same school even a few years older than them that way, nor would they call a child one year older a "friend". It's not done.

If they want to be "Western style" with you, then they can greet you in English, casually, with "hi". If they greet you in Korean with "안녕", they are showing you disrespect. As in, they are treating you lower than they would treat any other human being in the same situation.

"안녕" is disrespectful when spoken to a teacher. Period, the end. It's not the same as our culture -- you can't compare it to saying "hi".

[Bog Roll]

[steveinincheon]

First of all there is nothing wrong with greeting a teacher with hi or hello in North America. This is how most of the students here greet me too. Occasionally I get an Annyeong Haseyo, and less frequently an Annyeong (my computer cant do Hangeul ). I don't know how it is where you teach, but here the 3rd graders were taught that hi and hello mean annyeong in Korean. They were also taught to greet me with Hello Teacher! Now, if they were taught that they should say "hello teacher" when they see me, and that hello means annyeong - then why should I be upset if they say annyeong? It is rare that I am addressed in Korean by the students here, but when I am an "annyeong" is often followed by a question in the polite form with all the appropriate honorifics.

Yes, it is vitally important to have your students respect you. But to get so bent out of shape over the specific way in which you are addressed in a language that you hardly speak is really quite ridiculous.

[TheUrbanMyth]

[b-class rambler]

[themagicbean]

If you speak decent Korean, just correct them. Ask them in Korean, in a stern non-threatening tone, if they address their other teachers that way. (Tarun sonsangnim "anyongda" go haeyo?) Ask them if you're their little brother. (Na-nun namdongsang ieyo?") Then tell them to "annyong hashimnikka" ("Annyong hashimnikka" mal haseyo). Should get the point across. Smile after it's done so they know you're still cool.

My hangeul typing skills suck but you should be able to reverse-engineer what I meant.