Korean Job Discussion Forums

PatrickBateman · Posted: Thu Sep 30, 2010 10:35 pm Post subject: Student calling.

This isn't a huge gripe, but it's gradually spiraled into a pain in my CENSORED.

Recently, our company decided it was a good idea to call and chat to our students. Granted, this isn't a terrible idea, but it has snowballed into a monster. At first it was just to appease the parents, but now we're having to have serious conversations with our students. Mind you, some of our students are 7-8 and their levels of English are not very efficient.

I would just like the opinion of others about this situation. I would say that 80% of the time the students do not even want to speak with us. As it stands, we're supposed to call three students daily and have some sort of conversation with them and report with some feedback.

Thoughts?

tanklor1 · Joined: 13 Jun 2006

Did it for a year; never had any trouble with it. It's mostly put in place if teachers have too much free time. Some people will scream bloody murder but in all honestly it ain't that bad.

Kaypea · Joined: 09 Oct 2008

Ohhhh god. What do you talk about? In which culture or society do adults call 8 year old kids they aren't related to?

"So, Jinho! Uh, you have dinner?"

"Ne.. yes."

"What did you have?"

"mumbles some korean food you never heard of"

"Oh! Yeah, yummy! Uh, so, uh..."

How long do you have to spend on the phone?[/b]

tanklor1 · Joined: 13 Jun 2006

PatrickBateman · Posted: Thu Sep 30, 2010 10:52 pm Post subject:

It varies depending on the levels, but you usually ask what they're planning on doing during their upcoming weekend.

Just typical, worthless, drivel. It's not helping them in any way to speak with us for 2-3 minutes on the phone. Almost all my students do a fair amount of speaking in class.

What can you say to a student that can barely put together a complete sentence? Not to mention you're in a loud office with 15 other people on the phone speaking loudly.

oldfatfarang · Joined: 19 May 2005 Location: On the road to somewhere.

How much of this nonsense is credited towards your weekly teaching hours??

I'd just tell them you're developing a phone phobia .

PatrickBateman · Posted: Thu Sep 30, 2010 11:08 pm Post subject:

Zero.

It's just busy work before we head home. We usually have to do it during our break, or the thirty minutes in the office before we go home.

Sometimes what makes it more hectic is if we call the parents and we just get hung up on.

Ramen · Joined: 15 Apr 2008

PatrickBateman · Posted: Fri Oct 01, 2010 12:06 am Post subject:

Troglodyte · Joined: 06 Dec 2009

If it's only 2-3 minutes, here's a possible solution (or partial solution). Make up a script for a 2-3 minute phone conversation. Show it to all the kids in your class. In class, have them memorize their half of the conversation. Then take the paper away from them. When you call them at home, they have something to say, they don't feel as nervous about thinking of an appropriate reply, the parents are impressed at how fluent their kid has become under your expert tutelage, and you just have to keep to your side of the exact same script for the hour or so that it takes to call all the kids. Just don't let your co-workers know what you're doing.

youtuber · Joined: 13 Sep 2009

Sound like telemarketing.

What company is this?

Radius · Joined: 20 Dec 2009

methdxman · Joined: 14 Sep 2010

northway · Joined: 05 Jul 2010

For low level kids it's really stupid.

shifty · Joined: 21 Jun 2004

It's not stupid at all. The parents hear their kid speaking English within the confines of four very Korean walls.

Ask 'colors of the rainbow'. Then 'what color is a strawberry?'
Insist on full sentence replies, viz 'it is red'.

Ask where the mother is and what she's doing. The student is then refreshed on 'rooms in the house' and present continuous activities.

When you suss that the parents are always out when you call, scratch that particular student from the list, since there is no marketing value to be had with that one.