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Allthechildrenareinsane
Joined: 23 Jun 2011
Location: Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain
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 Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 3:34 am Post subject: Curious: How Many Classes Do You Teach Per Week? |
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I'm kind of curious as to what other hagwon teachers' schedules look like.
At my current hagwon, I teach 58 classes per week, M-F. Each class is 30 minutes long, w/ no breaks in between classes.
I get 30 minutes of prep time from 2-2:30pm when I come in for the day, a 30 minute dinner break from 5:30-6pm, and then a 30 minute break either from 6:30-7pm or 9-9:30pm on alternating days. I'm done by 10pm every night.
I don't think my schedule is all that bad, but I feel as though I'm teaching a lot of classes compared w/ other hagwon instructors (all of my friends work for PS's, so I can't really compare). |
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thegadfly
Joined: 01 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 3:42 am Post subject: |
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At my school, the basic schedule is 23 class-hours of teaching, and we have 55-minute and 85-minute classes. The 85-minute classes count as 1.5 hours, and the 55-minute classes count as 1 hour. Anything over that 23 hours is OT.
You are working a lot. Three 30-minute classes are NOT equal to one 1.5 hour class -- the time in class may be the same, but for me, the prep would be double or more. I hate short classes, and they are educationally less sound than longer sessions.
I am glad you can manage your schedule, but yeah, that is a lot.... |
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Allthechildrenareinsane
Joined: 23 Jun 2011
Location: Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 4:21 am Post subject: |
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| thegadfly wrote: |
At my school, the basic schedule is 23 class-hours of teaching, and we have 55-minute and 85-minute classes. The 85-minute classes count as 1.5 hours, and the 55-minute classes count as 1 hour. Anything over that 23 hours is OT.
You are working a lot. Three 30-minute classes are NOT equal to one 1.5 hour class -- the time in class may be the same, but for me, the prep would be double or more. I hate short classes, and they are educationally less sound than longer sessions.
I am glad you can manage your schedule, but yeah, that is a lot.... |
This is one of the reasons why I'm not renewing. Like I said, it's not terrible, but some days here it does feel more like a meat grinder taking in as many fresh student bodies as possible and churning out profits than anything resembling a school where things are actually taught and learned. |
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Bruce W Sims
Joined: 08 Mar 2011
Location: Illinois; USA
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 4:30 am Post subject: Re: Curious: How Many Classes Do You Teach Per Week? |
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| Allthechildrenareinsane wrote: |
I'm kind of curious as to what other hagwon teachers' schedules look like.
At my current hagwon, I teach 58 classes per week, M-F. Each class is 30 minutes long, w/ no breaks in between classes.
I get 30 minutes of prep time from 2-2:30pm when I come in for the day, a 30 minute dinner break from 5:30-6pm, and then a 30 minute break either from 6:30-7pm or 9-9:30pm on alternating days. I'm done by 10pm every night.
I don't think my schedule is all that bad, but I feel as though I'm teaching a lot of classes compared w/ other hagwon instructors (all of my friends work for PS's, so I can't really compare). |
Just for my own information......
How much actually gets done in 30 minutes?
My own experience with very short periods of instruction is that such modules are usually a sub-set of a larger constellation of activities with the same group in in "camps". There are also those high-functioning groups whivh are highly-motivated and only need minimal oversight. These are the students who come into the classroom having done the "grunt work" on their own and only meet for brief assessment.
The way you describe it, it sounds as though 30 minute classes are your standard teaching method. Thoughts?
Best Wishes,
Bruce |
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Allthechildrenareinsane
Joined: 23 Jun 2011
Location: Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 5:48 am Post subject: Re: Curious: How Many Classes Do You Teach Per Week? |
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| Bruce W Sims wrote: |
| Allthechildrenareinsane wrote: |
I'm kind of curious as to what other hagwon teachers' schedules look like.
At my current hagwon, I teach 58 classes per week, M-F. Each class is 30 minutes long, w/ no breaks in between classes.
I get 30 minutes of prep time from 2-2:30pm when I come in for the day, a 30 minute dinner break from 5:30-6pm, and then a 30 minute break either from 6:30-7pm or 9-9:30pm on alternating days. I'm done by 10pm every night.
I don't think my schedule is all that bad, but I feel as though I'm teaching a lot of classes compared w/ other hagwon instructors (all of my friends work for PS's, so I can't really compare). |
Just for my own information......
How much actually gets done in 30 minutes?
My own experience with very short periods of instruction is that such modules are usually a sub-set of a larger constellation of activities with the same group in in "camps". There are also those high-functioning groups whivh are highly-motivated and only need minimal oversight. These are the students who come into the classroom having done the "grunt work" on their own and only meet for brief assessment.
The way you describe it, it sounds as though 30 minute classes are your standard teaching method. Thoughts?
Best Wishes,
Bruce |
@ Bruce: You are correct -- 30 minute classes are the standard teaching period as dictated by the hagwon director. All of the curriculum is provided, and almost no deviation from it is allowed. I tried to make the best of it for the past year, but most days my job feels like glorified baby sitting. I've put up w/ it for long enough, so come the end of July, I'm out and on to another, better job. |
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Allthechildrenareinsane
Joined: 23 Jun 2011
Location: Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 5:54 am Post subject: Re: Curious: How Many Classes Do You Teach Per Week? |
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| Bruce W Sims wrote: |
| Allthechildrenareinsane wrote: |
I'm kind of curious as to what other hagwon teachers' schedules look like.
At my current hagwon, I teach 58 classes per week, M-F. Each class is 30 minutes long, w/ no breaks in between classes.
I get 30 minutes of prep time from 2-2:30pm when I come in for the day, a 30 minute dinner break from 5:30-6pm, and then a 30 minute break either from 6:30-7pm or 9-9:30pm on alternating days. I'm done by 10pm every night.
I don't think my schedule is all that bad, but I feel as though I'm teaching a lot of classes compared w/ other hagwon instructors (all of my friends work for PS's, so I can't really compare). |
Just for my own information......
How much actually gets done in 30 minutes?
My own experience with very short periods of instruction is that such modules are usually a sub-set of a larger constellation of activities with the same group in in "camps". There are also those high-functioning groups whivh are highly-motivated and only need minimal oversight. These are the students who come into the classroom having done the "grunt work" on their own and only meet for brief assessment.
The way you describe it, it sounds as though 30 minute classes are your standard teaching method. Thoughts?
Best Wishes,
Bruce |
My last reply only obliquely answered this, so to be more direct: Abso-friggin'-lutely nothin'. I lose 5 to 10 minutes each class just trying to get the kids to settle down and settle in so I can check homework and answer questions. |
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Porksta
Joined: 05 May 2011
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:03 am Post subject: |
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| I teach about 25 50-minute classes a week. I have to be at work from 2-10, even though school doesn't start until 3:30. |
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Allthechildrenareinsane
Joined: 23 Jun 2011
Location: Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:22 am Post subject: |
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| Porksta wrote: |
| I teach about 25 50-minute classes a week. I have to be at work from 2-10, even though school doesn't start until 3:30. |
I hate you. 
Seriously, though, your schedule and workload is about the norm for most smaller to mid-sized non-chain hagwons, isn't it? Or is there a lot of variation? It'd be interesting to get a sense of what the industry standard might be. |
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Bruce W Sims
Joined: 08 Mar 2011
Location: Illinois; USA
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:58 am Post subject: Re: Curious: How Many Classes Do You Teach Per Week? |
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| Allthechildrenareinsane wrote: |
| Bruce W Sims wrote: |
| Allthechildrenareinsane wrote: |
I'm kind of curious as to what other hagwon teachers' schedules look like.
At my current hagwon, I teach 58 classes per week, M-F. Each class is 30 minutes long, w/ no breaks in between classes.
I get 30 minutes of prep time from 2-2:30pm when I come in for the day, a 30 minute dinner break from 5:30-6pm, and then a 30 minute break either from 6:30-7pm or 9-9:30pm on alternating days. I'm done by 10pm every night.
I don't think my schedule is all that bad, but I feel as though I'm teaching a lot of classes compared w/ other hagwon instructors (all of my friends work for PS's, so I can't really compare). |
Just for my own information......
How much actually gets done in 30 minutes?
My own experience with very short periods of instruction is that such modules are usually a sub-set of a larger constellation of activities with the same group in in "camps". There are also those high-functioning groups whivh are highly-motivated and only need minimal oversight. These are the students who come into the classroom having done the "grunt work" on their own and only meet for brief assessment.
The way you describe it, it sounds as though 30 minute classes are your standard teaching method. Thoughts?
Best Wishes,
Bruce |
@ Bruce: You are correct -- 30 minute classes are the standard teaching period as dictated by the hagwon director. All of the curriculum is provided, and almost no deviation from it is allowed. I tried to make the best of it for the past year, but most days my job feels like glorified baby sitting. I've put up w/ it for long enough, so come the end of July, I'm out and on to another, better job. |
Thanks... no offense intended, but I had a suspicion that what you have described was probably what was happening. For me, I really hate that feeling of only being able to "baby-sit". Hope you find that better position.
Best Wishes,
Bruce |
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marsavalanche
Joined: 27 Aug 2010
Location: where pretty lies perish
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| Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 8:27 am Post subject: |
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I teach 28 classes a week.
8 50 minute classes and 20 40 minute classes
My hours are 12:45-5:45 M-Th and 2:00-5:45 F
I love my schedule. The breaks are only 5 minutes but it pays dividends because the days here just fly by as opposed to my last 9:30-6:30 hagwon.
I work at an after school program and love it. |
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