Korean Job Discussion Forums

[AsiaESLbound]

A bit of a rant, but also valid in my perspective. I'm contracted for 22 hours, but teach 30 and find myself a bit too busy. Not only am I squeezing for lesson planning, I'm also being asked to rewrite lesson plans after they were taught as for them to reflect what actually occured for whatever reasons uknown. This seems to be unecessarily eating up more time and then I'm being told to do more things without ever any appreciation regardless of effort and performance. Now my little computer room has turned into an afterschool classroom for my co-teachers to use as well as a library with Touch and Play boards during the few free hours I have which leaves me with a noisy chaotic environment to do my sit down work such as lesson planning. It's getting busier in the past 2 weeks with never a quiet moment. I constantly have lots of noise and kids bugging me at my computer any time I sit which is about 1 to 2 hours a day. This leaves me growing a bit unthankful and unhappy in my work.

Sure Korean teachers have many things to do I don't have and also have small children of their own, but I find it's stupid to rewrite lesson plans that will never be used again as well as over schedule the English Zone instead of physically expanding to meet their goals.

The other issue is I can not ever predict how the Korean teachers are going to teach or what they are going to teach as they always inconsistently work so I can not effectively lesson plan nor teach what I thought to write. It's tiring and they are tired too. Probably more so than I am, but a school this large with 800 students might consider 2 Enlish rooms, 2 foreign teachers, and 4 Korean co-teachers which I suggested, but any thing I say means nothing. They do put a high priority on curriculum and are a well structured school where it's always a busy routine and no play. There isn't a playground nor recess periods so kids just go nutz in the common areas between classes and during lunch. Their kids and kids need some freedom to be theirselves and especially so since we are taking an approach to teach individualism and open thinking through teaching in a happy way rather than a strict military old school style.

Being that I was recently asked to teach American culture for afterschool classes, this leaves me scrambling to create my own lessons which takes time and just put the extra story books aside I was using.

How do you approach these issues? Just roll with it or speak up about your work related issues?

[Senior]

You probably gladly accepted more work, at least initially? You have to make a big fuss about how busy you are already, and how stressed you are from the extra work. If you are seen to be a person who works, you will get more work. It's as simple as that.

You definitely have to speak up. Noisy kids in the teachers' area is a massive gripe of mine.

[oskinny1]

Get a desk in the teachers' office.
Tell them "no" if they ask you to teach more.
Make your original lesson plans vague then fill in the gaps when you're finished.
They are only contracted to teach 20 hours but have to come in on Saturdays.
You are contracted 22 hours but also get your housing taken care of. To them you work 8 hours more a month and live for free.

[Manuel_the_Bandito]

[winterfall]

With the current contract you can refuse more than 22 hours. If they're not paying you overtime than you don't have to do it.

It is overwhelming. I'm at a tech school and I work 14 hours everyday. You teach 800, I teach a 1000. Sometimes on weekends too. But that's just all lesson planning.

School's don't have much say in FT placement.

You can be passive aggressive especially if they're trying to overload you. Say you'll do it, flash the PR smile and never do it. They won't bring it up again.

[oldfatfarang]

OP. The word is "No!'

It seems you're learning about a common Korean management strategy called 'Escalation.' That is, you agree to a request for a few extra hours (you think it's probably a one off) and then, whamo, your hours increase dramatically. Learn how to say "No," or you'll never survive here.

Good luck.

[jonpurdy]

I'm assuming you're getting paid overtime for the extra eight hours. (If not, why would you do it?)

So, you can reduce your overtime to four or so hours or just refuse it. If you're required to make these silly lesson plans (which you can't really get out of doing, realistically) then teach fewer lessons. You won't make as much overtime money but you'll be saner.

As far as kids bugging you while you work, try to get an office or desk somewhere else. If not, tell the staff that you are disturbed and can't work. If neither works, offer to go home to work early and finish your stuff there (but not putting in any more work than you would have at school, ie. work until 5pm at home).

Let us know how it goes!

[bsrosenfeld]

Do you have someone within the school that you can speak with confidentially? I have known many people who take on extra assignment after extra assignment until it becomes too much. My best advice is to find someone that you can trust or at least consult for advice and have them help you navigate through this.

Fortunately, I have an amazing co-teacher who gives great advice. She is able to provide feedback and advice or step in and help when it is warranted. This is extremely helpful when trying to avoid insulting superiors and helping them save face.

[ticktocktocktick]

They probably just want to create some extra paperwork to look like they're being productive, and they don't care about the content. This is the best idea they've come up with. Nobody is ever going to read your lesson plans in a PS (except for the open class one) so try resubmitting the original with a different file name, and see if anyone notices. Just make it look like you haven't saved your changes in word. If they don't notice, then continue.

[Goon-Yang]

Did you sign a contract saying you'd teach 22 hours? If so...tough luck.

Do you...

get free housing? Koreans don't.
have a degree in education or are you a qualified teacher back home?
have to do paperwork?
have weekly meetings?


Apples and oranges.

As for lesson plans...if nobody is going to use them/read them why not take them off the internet? This is the country of plagarism.

Most K-teachers get a laptop...why not ask them if you could get one to do your planning at home.

[tefain]

Speak up about the lesson plans and roll with the rest.

[Nester Noodlemon]

[AsiaESLbound]

[dirving]

[pkang0202]

I teach 24 class hours, the Korean teachers teach on average 18 hours.

This is why I don't complain:

1. I don't go to work on Saturdays.
2. I don't have to go to 20+ Seminars and Workshops every semester.
3. I don't have to deal with Homeroom students, or their parents.
4. I have not once stayed past my contract specified 4:30pm work day.
5. I get paid a lot more than Korean teachers my age.
6. I don't have to pay into the Teachers Discretionary Fund (pays for gifts to teachers who get married, have children, etc...)
7. I don't have to get up an hour early for morning duty (writing up students who are late, students who don't have proper uniforms, etc...)
8. I don't have lunch room duty (making sure students are standing in a proper line, making sure there are no fights)
9. I don't have to do the mountains of pointless paperwork that the Korean teachers are constantly bogged down with.
10. I come to school at 8:30, whereas the Korean teachers get there at 8. (unless they have morning duty, then they have to get there at 7:30.)
11. I don't go to school meetings.


Yeah, we have it soooo bad OP.