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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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runthegauntlet
Joined: 02 Dec 2007
Location: the southlands.
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 Posted: Tue Dec 15, 2009 7:52 pm Post subject: |
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| frankly speaking wrote: |
Linky what is a real job?
The problem that I see is that the majority that are posting have never taught in their own country and therefore aren't actually teaching here. Standing in front of a classroom reading exactly what is written in a book or doing every single lesson from a book without addressing individual problems that students might have. Some lessons in texts only focus on comprehension, so if you don't amend the lesson students will only have passive language. Or the book is purely focused on communicative language development that has its own weak points also.
Those that think teaching in Korea is a piece of cake, that requires less energy and devotion that a factory job, isn't teaching. |
Perhaps they're doing the job the way their bosses are mandating that they do it. Therefore, 'teaching' is subjective in this context. After all, most of us aren't 'teachers' anywhere except here anyway.
So, in the context of most "teacher's" roles here, it's an easy job. |
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I'm no Picasso
Joined: 28 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Tue Dec 15, 2009 8:24 pm Post subject: |
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| Burndog wrote: |
| I worked in domestic violence counseling and victims trauma support for 4 years...teaching in Korea is like a vacation compared to that job. Honestly. |
Now that I'll buy. |
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I'm no Picasso
Joined: 28 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Tue Dec 15, 2009 8:34 pm Post subject: |
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| frankly speaking wrote: |
Linky what is a real job?
The problem that I see is that the majority that are posting have never taught in their own country and therefore aren't actually teaching here. Standing in front of a classroom reading exactly what is written in a book or doing every single lesson from a book without addressing individual problems that students might have. Some lessons in texts only focus on comprehension, so if you don't amend the lesson students will only have passive language. Or the book is purely focused on communicative language development that has its own weak points also.
Those that think teaching in Korea is a piece of cake, that requires less energy and devotion that a factory job, isn't teaching. You are just a pronunciation monkey or an edutainer at best.
I am interested in how any of you evaluate how effective you are as teachers. Just because the schools that you may work for don't know what or how to teach EFL doesn't mean that you shouldn't. Just because students like you or enjoy your class isn't proof that you are a good teacher. Yes building a rapport is essential and is a part of classroom management skills, but that is only 10% of teaching.
Learn how to teach EFL before you start bragging about how easy it is here.
I don't like complainers either but to be a effective teacher takes a lot more than just standing in front of a class and keeping their attention, that is only the first step. |
Precisely.
And it's not about complaining. I don't see anyone here claiming that our job here is too hard and requires too much work. But it would be nice if the people who are clearly reading out of a book for 30 hours a week to ten kids who already speak English would stop devaluing other people's jobs.
Linky: Some of us did have real jobs back at home. Real jobs like teaching ESL. Real jobs that we took seriously and continue to take seriously here in Korea, where we are continuing our career and not just pissing around for a year to make easy money.
You don't consider what you're doing here in Korea to be a real job. I do. Perhaps that's what makes up the difference in how much easier your job apparently is compared to mine. |
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nomad-ish
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Location: On the bottom of the food chain
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| Posted: Tue Dec 15, 2009 10:11 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
| frankly speaking wrote: |
Linky what is a real job?
The problem that I see is that the majority that are posting have never taught in their own country and therefore aren't actually teaching here. Standing in front of a classroom reading exactly what is written in a book or doing every single lesson from a book without addressing individual problems that students might have. Some lessons in texts only focus on comprehension, so if you don't amend the lesson students will only have passive language. Or the book is purely focused on communicative language development that has its own weak points also.
Those that think teaching in Korea is a piece of cake, that requires less energy and devotion that a factory job, isn't teaching. You are just a pronunciation monkey or an edutainer at best.
I am interested in how any of you evaluate how effective you are as teachers. Just because the schools that you may work for don't know what or how to teach EFL doesn't mean that you shouldn't. Just because students like you or enjoy your class isn't proof that you are a good teacher. Yes building a rapport is essential and is a part of classroom management skills, but that is only 10% of teaching.
Learn how to teach EFL before you start bragging about how easy it is here.
I don't like complainers either but to be a effective teacher takes a lot more than just standing in front of a class and keeping their attention, that is only the first step. |
Precisely.
And it's not about complaining. I don't see anyone here claiming that our job here is too hard and requires too much work. But it would be nice if the people who are clearly reading out of a book for 30 hours a week to ten kids who already speak English would stop devaluing other people's jobs.
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completely agree. so often people on here brag about how easy it is, which probably means they're doing little to nothing in their classes.
there was a poster last year who suggested that i just play a youtube video in every class and have the kids discuss it afterwards. that might be alright for one special video lesson, but seriously, every class?? |
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linky123
Joined: 12 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 12:56 am Post subject: |
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| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
| frankly speaking wrote: |
Linky what is a real job?
The problem that I see is that the majority that are posting have never taught in their own country and therefore aren't actually teaching here. Standing in front of a classroom reading exactly what is written in a book or doing every single lesson from a book without addressing individual problems that students might have. Some lessons in texts only focus on comprehension, so if you don't amend the lesson students will only have passive language. Or the book is purely focused on communicative language development that has its own weak points also.
Those that think teaching in Korea is a piece of cake, that requires less energy and devotion that a factory job, isn't teaching. You are just a pronunciation monkey or an edutainer at best.
I am interested in how any of you evaluate how effective you are as teachers. Just because the schools that you may work for don't know what or how to teach EFL doesn't mean that you shouldn't. Just because students like you or enjoy your class isn't proof that you are a good teacher. Yes building a rapport is essential and is a part of classroom management skills, but that is only 10% of teaching.
Learn how to teach EFL before you start bragging about how easy it is here.
I don't like complainers either but to be a effective teacher takes a lot more than just standing in front of a class and keeping their attention, that is only the first step. |
Precisely.
And it's not about complaining. I don't see anyone here claiming that our job here is too hard and requires too much work. But it would be nice if the people who are clearly reading out of a book for 30 hours a week to ten kids who already speak English would stop devaluing other people's jobs.
Linky: Some of us did have real jobs back at home. Real jobs like teaching ESL. Real jobs that we took seriously and continue to take seriously here in Korea, where we are continuing our career and not just pissing around for a year to make easy money.
You don't consider what you're doing here in Korea to be a real job. I do. Perhaps that's what makes up the difference in how much easier your job apparently is compared to mine. |
One of the major flaws we have in forum posting is that people intend to assume too much about people they are quoting. As matter of fact, I do have 3 years of high school teaching experience and 3 years of ESL teaching expereince back in the 90's. I had been involved as a head teacher, curriculum development, and ESL seminals for the department of education. I also worked as a software engineer for 9 years before deciding to come to Korea to start teaching again because I enjoy it.
And, no, I don't consider this as a real job because I enjoy it too much. Whenever I step into a class room, i don't feel I'm actually working but actually teaching. Soon, I'll start my own hwakwon because I consider this my last parachute. |
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Old fat expat
Joined: 19 Sep 2005
Location: a caravan of dust, making for a windy prairie
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| Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 1:08 am Post subject: |
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Yeah, learning a language is easy as. Teaching it is a real breeze.
They say it takes 7 years, but you can cut that in half with hang-man.
And just as speaking is natural to humans, reading and writing are also so easy to pick-up I am left to wonder why they even measure literacy. I mean, duh.
In fact, teaching a second language is so easy I am glad I have to do it in a language the children do not understand. Without this challenge, why even bother?
Don't forget doing this work in a different cultural setting creates a level of pleasure that most would do for free given the opportunity. Hell, it's like vacation really.
Now, we are not grammar teachers, so don't bother with understanding it, or even worry about your loss of face. Face is over-rated and not important here in Korea.
"Just because" is an adequate answer when a student asks why things are a certain way in English.
And don't worry about what is age appropriate cognitively (developmental psych stuff-Vygotsky is just another damn foreigner really). Cognitive conceit makes teaching adolescence a blast. Really easy stuff. And fun!
Classroom control, another one of those problem areas ... HA. Nothing a stick or slap to the face can't cure. If your classes are so boring the kids act out, make them hold up chairs. Really, classroom control is over-rated anyway. Besides, it is not really punishment, it's exercise!
Besides, kids aren't really here to learn. That's why they sent them to you.
Yeah, easy stuff.
Really, if you think this is easy, you are not teaching ESL.
But being a monkey is easy. |
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I'm no Picasso
Joined: 28 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 1:24 am Post subject: |
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| linky123 wrote: |
| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
| frankly speaking wrote: |
Linky what is a real job?
The problem that I see is that the majority that are posting have never taught in their own country and therefore aren't actually teaching here. Standing in front of a classroom reading exactly what is written in a book or doing every single lesson from a book without addressing individual problems that students might have. Some lessons in texts only focus on comprehension, so if you don't amend the lesson students will only have passive language. Or the book is purely focused on communicative language development that has its own weak points also.
Those that think teaching in Korea is a piece of cake, that requires less energy and devotion that a factory job, isn't teaching. You are just a pronunciation monkey or an edutainer at best.
I am interested in how any of you evaluate how effective you are as teachers. Just because the schools that you may work for don't know what or how to teach EFL doesn't mean that you shouldn't. Just because students like you or enjoy your class isn't proof that you are a good teacher. Yes building a rapport is essential and is a part of classroom management skills, but that is only 10% of teaching.
Learn how to teach EFL before you start bragging about how easy it is here.
I don't like complainers either but to be a effective teacher takes a lot more than just standing in front of a class and keeping their attention, that is only the first step. |
Precisely.
And it's not about complaining. I don't see anyone here claiming that our job here is too hard and requires too much work. But it would be nice if the people who are clearly reading out of a book for 30 hours a week to ten kids who already speak English would stop devaluing other people's jobs.
Linky: Some of us did have real jobs back at home. Real jobs like teaching ESL. Real jobs that we took seriously and continue to take seriously here in Korea, where we are continuing our career and not just pissing around for a year to make easy money.
You don't consider what you're doing here in Korea to be a real job. I do. Perhaps that's what makes up the difference in how much easier your job apparently is compared to mine. |
One of the major flaws we have in forum posting is that people intend to assume too much about people they are quoting. As matter of fact, I do have 3 years of high school teaching experience and 3 years of ESL teaching expereince back in the 90's. I had been involved as a head teacher, curriculum development, and ESL seminals for the department of education. I also worked as a software engineer for 9 years before deciding to come to Korea to start teaching again because I enjoy it.
And, no, I don't consider this as a real job because I enjoy it too much. Whenever I step into a class room, i don't feel I'm actually working but actually teaching. Soon, I'll start my own hwakwon because I consider this my last parachute. |
I agree whole-heartedly on the enjoying the job thing. I feel extremely, extremely lucky to have found something I love doing so early on. So if your point is that our jobs are not miserable, than I agree 100%. However, I still feel tired after a day of six classes because that was six hours I spent being loud and energetic (no matter how crappy I actually feel), straining to find impromptu ways of explaining vocabulary and dialogue in a way that my students can understand in English (in addition to the planning I did before class even started), and literally running around the room answering to 40 teenage boys at a time shouting out, "TEACHER!" for assistance with their work.
It is a real job and it's not a vacation. However, at this moment, it's the most rewarding job I can think of. On that count, you're right. |
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Luvlykylady
Joined: 01 Dec 2009
Location: Currently South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 9:10 am Post subject: |
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Really, 30 hours a week is a cake walk for me. I had small classes but we were energetic. I too agree that classroom control is over rated. Sometimes, its just fun to let them run with things and then go along for the ride. I learned so much about my students and I believe they learned a lot from me. In some of my middle school classes, we just had some really good conversations about world peace and why it was okay for boys to cry. I left all of my students knowing how to order a pizza, book a hotel room, buy groceries, return items to a department store and how to basically live in an all English speaking environment. I thought it was important to teach them something practical. Plus, playing restaurant and department store was way fun!!
I did prep time and graded papers and all of that. My favorite lessons was where I showed them a picture and then had them tell me what they thought was going on. I heard some of the funniest stories. One kid actually told me about his mother running over a pedestrian with a car.
It doesn't take a lot of prep time to come up with something new and exciting every day. It just takes a bit of creativity. I got a bit burned out at first....teaching 30 plus classes per week....but for the most part, I managed my time and got stuff done. |
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Khenan
Joined: 25 Dec 2007
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| Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 11:15 am Post subject: |
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| frankly speaking wrote: |
Yes building a rapport is essential and is a part of classroom management skills, but that is only 10% of teaching.
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Haha, you might be right, but one of my old grad school profs always put the number closer to 50% |
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