|
Korean Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Teachers from Around the World!"
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
atwood
Joined: 26 Dec 2009
|
 Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 3:18 am Post subject: |
 |
|
| weso1 wrote: |
| atwood wrote: |
Good post, world. I sometimes think many Koreans believe there is some sort of virtue gained in doing things the hard way rather than the smart way.
Even at the highest levels here, Korean professors are teaching students to memorize key phrases in English and quizzing them on them weekly. The problem is they don't know what some of the phrases mean or how to use them correctly. |
This^
I was talking to a Korean friend one day. She began talking about, almost boasting, about how she spends nearly 70hrs a week at work. She then said she wondered how great America could be if they worked as hard as Koreans do.
I then tried to explain the concept we have in America called "Don't work hard, work smart." I gave her the example that, it would be hard to grade 50 tests all by myself. It might even take days. But it's smarter to have the smart class grade the lower classes tests with me. Now I can grade 50 tests in about 10 mins. I can move on and get more things accomplished in the day. The smarter class gets to see the reasoning and logic behind the test questions and answers being what they are. I turn in my tests earlier than my coworkers and get praise from my boss for doing so. It's a win on all fronts.
My friend looked perplexed. I then explained that research has been done on people working more than 40 hours a week. After a while, the quality of the work decreases. Stress increases. Accidents and mistakes rise as well. Working an excessive amount hours will actually cause your performance to less than that of your coworkers, who only pulling 40hrs. *On a side note, most of these studies show that ideally, a 35hr work week is the most optimal.*
"But it isn't working hard" she replied. "We work hard" she continued.
I calmly performed a facepalm and walked away. |
Quantity is given precedence over quality.
Ask her to do a little experiment at work. Have her keep track of how much time she actually spends working. I doubt it will be 40 hours, if that. |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
joelove
Joined: 12 May 2011
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 5:07 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Eight months? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 9:49 am Post subject: |
|
|
| atwood wrote: |
| Steelrails wrote: |
| fermentation wrote: |
You're just wasting your breath their weso. Koreans can't grasp the concept. I've seen so many people work hard and long, but acheive very little. Seen in a company office, seen in schools, seen it in the military. People here are very inefficient with their time and effort. I think despite the advances in IT technology and internet use, people don't really use the resources available to them (such as new research on these matters).
I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech.
Some people may say training hard is important, and it is to a large extent, but simply "training hard" can only get you so far in the highest levels. Along with the balant corruption, I think this is one of the reasons there are no Korean male world champions. Unless Korea can keep up with the technological advances, it will fall behind other nations in the realm of atheletics. |
Korea's baseball team seems to be doing pretty well. Has done better than the U.S. team.
Golds in Judo, weightlifting, swimming, speed skating, archery, etc.
As well as dominating the LPGA.
Meanwhile in U.S. professional sports, time and time again you hear how American born players are "lacking fundamentals" and you saw it in the decline in U.S. Basketball dominance, baseball dominance, USA hockey underperforming, U.S. futility at the Ryder Cup. etc. etc.
Basically their coaches are saying they need to go out there and work harder and do some boring repetition.
Now of course, too much of anything is not good. That's not to say Korea's system is any better. Korea flubs the play at many a thing. But it isn't as feeble as you are making it out to be.
They finished 7th in the world in medals in 2008, ahead of Italy and France. Must be more to it than culture.... |
Baseball is obviously not a good example. In team sports, Korean players lack basic fundamentals, in baseball egregiously so as they routinely go for the flashy play and end up with an error instead.
In sports that require learning a routine or doing one thing very well, they have been very successful.
Swimming-they've got one guy right? That's not much of an example.
As for finishing 7th, good job, but why not when the government is funding and running a sports factory? And a lifetime pension from the government is great motivation. |
And public universities handing out scholarships for athletes is what exactly?
Which country has the billion dollar university sports industry?
Sounds to me like the U.S. has government funded sports factories as well. Unless you seriously believe that the starting wide receiver at the U-M is there because of his SATs and GPA... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
atwood
Joined: 26 Dec 2009
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 3:51 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Steelrails wrote: |
| atwood wrote: |
| Steelrails wrote: |
| fermentation wrote: |
You're just wasting your breath their weso. Koreans can't grasp the concept. I've seen so many people work hard and long, but acheive very little. Seen in a company office, seen in schools, seen it in the military. People here are very inefficient with their time and effort. I think despite the advances in IT technology and internet use, people don't really use the resources available to them (such as new research on these matters).
I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech.
Some people may say training hard is important, and it is to a large extent, but simply "training hard" can only get you so far in the highest levels. Along with the balant corruption, I think this is one of the reasons there are no Korean male world champions. Unless Korea can keep up with the technological advances, it will fall behind other nations in the realm of atheletics. |
Korea's baseball team seems to be doing pretty well. Has done better than the U.S. team.
Golds in Judo, weightlifting, swimming, speed skating, archery, etc.
As well as dominating the LPGA.
Meanwhile in U.S. professional sports, time and time again you hear how American born players are "lacking fundamentals" and you saw it in the decline in U.S. Basketball dominance, baseball dominance, USA hockey underperforming, U.S. futility at the Ryder Cup. etc. etc.
Basically their coaches are saying they need to go out there and work harder and do some boring repetition.
Now of course, too much of anything is not good. That's not to say Korea's system is any better. Korea flubs the play at many a thing. But it isn't as feeble as you are making it out to be.
They finished 7th in the world in medals in 2008, ahead of Italy and France. Must be more to it than culture.... |
Baseball is obviously not a good example. In team sports, Korean players lack basic fundamentals, in baseball egregiously so as they routinely go for the flashy play and end up with an error instead.
In sports that require learning a routine or doing one thing very well, they have been very successful.
Swimming-they've got one guy right? That's not much of an example.
As for finishing 7th, good job, but why not when the government is funding and running a sports factory? And a lifetime pension from the government is great motivation. |
And public universities handing out scholarships for athletes is what exactly?
Which country has the billion dollar university sports industry?
Sounds to me like the U.S. has government funded sports factories as well. Unless you seriously believe that the starting wide receiver at the U-M is there because of his SATs and GPA... |
Not even close. Korean university athletes don't even go to class. Even in high school. American scholarship athletes have to meet academic requirements and have to go to class to stay on their teams.
US. athletics is paid for by ticket sales, student fees, television and radio, and donations. Not the government. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 4:22 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| atwood wrote: |
| Steelrails wrote: |
| atwood wrote: |
| Steelrails wrote: |
| fermentation wrote: |
You're just wasting your breath their weso. Koreans can't grasp the concept. I've seen so many people work hard and long, but acheive very little. Seen in a company office, seen in schools, seen it in the military. People here are very inefficient with their time and effort. I think despite the advances in IT technology and internet use, people don't really use the resources available to them (such as new research on these matters).
I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech.
Some people may say training hard is important, and it is to a large extent, but simply "training hard" can only get you so far in the highest levels. Along with the balant corruption, I think this is one of the reasons there are no Korean male world champions. Unless Korea can keep up with the technological advances, it will fall behind other nations in the realm of atheletics. |
Korea's baseball team seems to be doing pretty well. Has done better than the U.S. team.
Golds in Judo, weightlifting, swimming, speed skating, archery, etc.
As well as dominating the LPGA.
Meanwhile in U.S. professional sports, time and time again you hear how American born players are "lacking fundamentals" and you saw it in the decline in U.S. Basketball dominance, baseball dominance, USA hockey underperforming, U.S. futility at the Ryder Cup. etc. etc.
Basically their coaches are saying they need to go out there and work harder and do some boring repetition.
Now of course, too much of anything is not good. That's not to say Korea's system is any better. Korea flubs the play at many a thing. But it isn't as feeble as you are making it out to be.
They finished 7th in the world in medals in 2008, ahead of Italy and France. Must be more to it than culture.... |
Baseball is obviously not a good example. In team sports, Korean players lack basic fundamentals, in baseball egregiously so as they routinely go for the flashy play and end up with an error instead.
In sports that require learning a routine or doing one thing very well, they have been very successful.
Swimming-they've got one guy right? That's not much of an example.
As for finishing 7th, good job, but why not when the government is funding and running a sports factory? And a lifetime pension from the government is great motivation. |
And public universities handing out scholarships for athletes is what exactly?
Which country has the billion dollar university sports industry?
Sounds to me like the U.S. has government funded sports factories as well. Unless you seriously believe that the starting wide receiver at the U-M is there because of his SATs and GPA... |
Not even close. Korean university athletes don't even go to class. Even in high school. American scholarship athletes have to meet academic requirements and have to go to class to stay on their teams.
US. athletics is paid for by ticket sales, student fees, television and radio, and donations. Not the government. |
Yes, because we all know American college athletics is free of corruption and that grades are NEVER tampered with.
| Quote: |
| US. athletics is paid for by ticket sales, student fees, television and radio, and donations. Not the government. |
So Corporate Athletic farms are morally better? Billions of dollars that would otherwise have gone to students who paid those student fees instead going to college sports is better?
And the Public Universities still receive state funding and because of that funding are able to develop their athletics programs.
What about High School sports? What about Texas High School football programs that are given carte blanche over a school and a town? That isn't a taxpayer funded sports factory? Taxpayer funded Rec&Ed teams? Pressure filled parents and coaches and programs? Illegal hours training?
I went to a school where the National USA Junior Hockey team (full of future NHLers) was based. Sure they "attended" classes and had to get "decent grades" but it was all one big wink wink nod nod. Our school got prestige and they got a nice suburban setting within minutes distance of the best NCAA and NHL teams in the nation. Do you think our school would seriously uphold academic standards on them?
And to throw out this Godwin's Law-esqe bomb, I think any athletics program that features what went down at Penn State must be a massively corrupt one and therefore cannot be placed on a moral pedestal. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Swampfox10mm
Joined: 24 Mar 2011
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 5:22 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Yet another thread where Steelrails' defense of Korea is merely a comparison swipe at the USA.
 |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
DejaVu
Joined: 27 Jan 2011
Location: Your dreams
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 6:40 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Steelrails wrote: |
| fermentation wrote: |
You're just wasting your breath their weso. Koreans can't grasp the concept. I've seen so many people work hard and long, but acheive very little. Seen in a company office, seen in schools, seen it in the military. People here are very inefficient with their time and effort. I think despite the advances in IT technology and internet use, people don't really use the resources available to them (such as new research on these matters).
I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech.
Some people may say training hard is important, and it is to a large extent, but simply "training hard" can only get you so far in the highest levels. Along with the balant corruption, I think this is one of the reasons there are no Korean male world champions. Unless Korea can keep up with the technological advances, it will fall behind other nations in the realm of atheletics. |
Korea's baseball team seems to be doing pretty well. Has done better than the U.S. team.
|
That's funny to me.
I watch Korean baseball when I get a chance to but I'll never watch MLB. Korean leagues are just more entertaining- it's like watching a game of Tee-ball. There are so many errors and bad plays; not like watching those boring machines in the MLB.
BACK ON TOPIC- I'm happy that there are casualties from this form of education. Maybe if the body count gets high enough, things may change. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
atwood
Joined: 26 Dec 2009
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 7:20 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Steelrails wrote: |
| atwood wrote: |
| Steelrails wrote: |
| atwood wrote: |
| Steelrails wrote: |
| fermentation wrote: |
You're just wasting your breath their weso. Koreans can't grasp the concept. I've seen so many people work hard and long, but acheive very little. Seen in a company office, seen in schools, seen it in the military. People here are very inefficient with their time and effort. I think despite the advances in IT technology and internet use, people don't really use the resources available to them (such as new research on these matters).
I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech.
Some people may say training hard is important, and it is to a large extent, but simply "training hard" can only get you so far in the highest levels. Along with the balant corruption, I think this is one of the reasons there are no Korean male world champions. Unless Korea can keep up with the technological advances, it will fall behind other nations in the realm of atheletics. |
Korea's baseball team seems to be doing pretty well. Has done better than the U.S. team.
Golds in Judo, weightlifting, swimming, speed skating, archery, etc.
As well as dominating the LPGA.
Meanwhile in U.S. professional sports, time and time again you hear how American born players are "lacking fundamentals" and you saw it in the decline in U.S. Basketball dominance, baseball dominance, USA hockey underperforming, U.S. futility at the Ryder Cup. etc. etc.
Basically their coaches are saying they need to go out there and work harder and do some boring repetition.
Now of course, too much of anything is not good. That's not to say Korea's system is any better. Korea flubs the play at many a thing. But it isn't as feeble as you are making it out to be.
They finished 7th in the world in medals in 2008, ahead of Italy and France. Must be more to it than culture.... |
Baseball is obviously not a good example. In team sports, Korean players lack basic fundamentals, in baseball egregiously so as they routinely go for the flashy play and end up with an error instead.
In sports that require learning a routine or doing one thing very well, they have been very successful.
Swimming-they've got one guy right? That's not much of an example.
As for finishing 7th, good job, but why not when the government is funding and running a sports factory? And a lifetime pension from the government is great motivation. |
And public universities handing out scholarships for athletes is what exactly?
Which country has the billion dollar university sports industry?
Sounds to me like the U.S. has government funded sports factories as well. Unless you seriously believe that the starting wide receiver at the U-M is there because of his SATs and GPA... |
Not even close. Korean university athletes don't even go to class. Even in high school. American scholarship athletes have to meet academic requirements and have to go to class to stay on their teams.
US. athletics is paid for by ticket sales, student fees, television and radio, and donations. Not the government. |
Yes, because we all know American college athletics is free of corruption and that grades are NEVER tampered with.
| Quote: |
| US. athletics is paid for by ticket sales, student fees, television and radio, and donations. Not the government. |
So Corporate Athletic farms are morally better? Billions of dollars that would otherwise have gone to students who paid those student fees instead going to college sports is better?
And the Public Universities still receive state funding and because of that funding are able to develop their athletics programs.
What about High School sports? What about Texas High School football programs that are given carte blanche over a school and a town? That isn't a taxpayer funded sports factory? Taxpayer funded Rec&Ed teams? Pressure filled parents and coaches and programs? Illegal hours training?
I went to a school where the National USA Junior Hockey team (full of future NHLers) was based. Sure they "attended" classes and had to get "decent grades" but it was all one big wink wink nod nod. Our school got prestige and they got a nice suburban setting within minutes distance of the best NCAA and NHL teams in the nation. Do you think our school would seriously uphold academic standards on them?
And to throw out this Godwin's Law-esqe bomb, I think any athletics program that features what went down at Penn State must be a massively corrupt one and therefore cannot be placed on a moral pedestal. |
No one is placing it on a moral pedestal. You're just creating a strawman, per your SOP. Bringing up Godwin just makes it that much worse.
Sounds like you were jealous of the hockey players at your HS. No matter your accusations, they did a lot more academically than ANY Korean athletes do.
You're wrong about public universities and athletic funding. As for Texas, and football isn't an Olympic sport which is where you started (and failed so went off on this tangent), that's a community decision, not a federal government one, and is in no way comparable. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
The Floating World
Joined: 01 Oct 2011
Location: Here
|
| Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 8:06 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Swampfox10mm wrote: |
Yet another thread where Steelrails' defense of Korea is merely a comparison swipe at the USA.
|
No, he has some valid points but he has derailed the thread.
THIS THREAD IS ABOUT THE TRAGEDY OF KIDS BEING PUSHED SO HARD AND HAVING TO STUDY SO MUCH (ALBEIT OFTEN NOT OPTIMAL) THAT THEY KILL FAMILY MEMBERS OR JUMP FROM ROOFS AND DIE AROUND TESTING TIME.
And steel, if you've taught kids here, you will know as well as I do that they spend too many hours studying, they study sub optimaly (In english at least) and that they are exhibiting indicators of being over stressed in classes.
Another example of the apologists derailing threads. How the hell do we get from studying 80 words a week (hell I study Spanish and couldn't remember 80 damned words a week and I'M self motivated, love the language and it in my own damned alphabet) being a poor study technique compared to actually learning in detail ten keywords and actually remembering what they mean 2 weeks later (instead of after 5 yrs of eng study, only being still able to say hi and talk about the weather) pretty much summing up a quantity is better than quality approach to studying trait that Koreans have - to corruption in USA colleges?
How the hell is corruption in US colleges relevent to these poor stressed out kids killing their family members and commiting suicide anually?
Let's try to keep it on track.
Steel, what are your thoughts on the issue without any comparison to the us, if possible. Do you agree it's a problem issue and quite sad? What are your suggestions for some sort of eventual sollution? Do you really think the 10 hrs of day study with extreme workoads is an optimal way of studying ie- my 80 words per week example? Going to school all day and then going to hakwans for multiple hours afterwards, sometimes until 10pm etc?
I see it's good points, students get to really respect education and are kept off the streets. But they are having a heavy burden (some, not all of them) placed on them and I truly believe the methods are suboptimal.
I was private teaching a 13 yr old boy for sat english prep. His father was making him take the test in 8 weeks although he was clearly nowhere near ready. After my class his father made him go to the library for long hours to study for this sat test. I told the kid to take breaks every 50 minutes, go for a walk, eat an ice cream etc before studying again for another 50 minutes, to reward himself and stop once he felt overworked and tired and leave it for the next day. He said it was impossible, his father wouldn't have it. Now I CAN see the father's train of thought (I think) that this could leave to bad habbits and could turn into a break every 30 minutes and he could get lax etc. That's why Korean push studetns and employees so much, that they believe it keeps them on their toes. And whilst I agree, it does have it's developmental upsides inthat sense, I still believe more can be less if it's well supervised under the wing of a good, well motivated teacher.
EDIT - seems the mother was very abusive, hitting him with baseball bats and golf clubs if his grades weren't up to par, making him kneel for ten hour stretches etc.... Not so much a Korea issue more a pyscho Mom makes kid snap dealio.... Poor kid. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 4:00 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
| Yet another thread where Steelrails' defense of Korea is merely a comparison swipe at the USA. |
The thread is full of comparisons to the US!!!
| Quote: |
| I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech. |
| Quote: |
I was the class clown all through high school. Psycologically bullied from age 11 - 14 also. Did drugs, drank, stole, got arrested etc. Pulled down only 4 grade d, one grade c and one grade e in my final high school exams. By Korean standards I was a write off, a failiure. Went to collge, got kicked out as I didn't like the accounting classes of the vocational (non university) business course I was taking and went to the arcades during that time instead. Lived in social security paid shared houses, went to juvie for 6 months aged 17 for gbh on a guy who was ten years older and who started the fight in the first place.
Upon release, got my act together and worked in insurance sales, did very well. Went to college, excelled. Started uni at age 23 and again, excelled.
Had I grown up in Korea it is highly likely I would've jumped off a building or ended up with zero mobility.
Now I have a degree, have worked for my government in a manangement position (hated it though and got fired after 8 months, but still, I got the opportunity, which is what matters) have travelled the world (only 11 countries, but hey, I'm partially there) and have much better prospects.
My point being - things and people can work themselves out in time. Just because Minsoo didn't get into college straight away at age 19 and is working in piuzza hut, doesn't mean he has failed his parents. Just means |
| Quote: |
| I then tried to explain the concept we have in America called "Don't work hard, work smart." I gave her the example that, it would be hard to grade 50 tests all by myself. It might even take days. But it's smarter to have the smart class grade the lower classes tests with me. Now I can grade 50 tests in about 10 mins. I can move on and get more things accomplished in the day. The smarter class gets to see the reasoning and logic behind the test questions and answers being what they are. I turn in my tests earlier than my coworkers and get praise from my boss for doing so. It's a win on all fronts. |
So its okay to compare Korea to the US when bashing it, but not when defending it?
The initial posts comparing Korea to elsewhere were not by me. You guys opened that can of worms, and once you make those claims, well they should be scrutinized.
If you can't even be fair in this manner, it's kind of throws into question your ability to be objective. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
The Floating World
Joined: 01 Oct 2011
Location: Here
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 4:05 am Post subject: |
|
|
I'm from England.
I was making a Comparison of how I would have neded up possibly in Korea if i were a Korean kid - based on the realities of the average Korean kid's lifestyle here.
So I was relating it to korea, plain and simple, not bringing in my home country to bash or defend korea. Also my post was relevant to the Op, unlike a discussion about sports teams...
Anyhow.
And how does pointing out that korean kids commit murder and suicide anually at test time and saying that it's due to too much pressure and too much studytime which is suboptimal study anyway - be read as BASHING Korea.
It's just fact. Korean kids are worked hard and have immense pressure to pass those tests. Facts have no moral / value judgement attached, they just are the way they are. You should try to detach your emotions from it.
Anyhow, again what are your thoughts on that, without any reference to the US? Just your thoughts on the long hours and the pressure and the anual suicides? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 4:13 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
THIS THREAD IS ABOUT THE TRAGEDY OF KIDS BEING PUSHED SO HARD AND HAVING TO STUDY SO MUCH (ALBEIT OFTEN NOT OPTIMAL) THAT THEY KILL FAMILY MEMBERS OR JUMP FROM ROOFS AND DIE AROUND TESTING TIME.
And steel, if you've taught kids here, you will know as well as I do that they spend too many hours studying, they study sub optimaly (In english at least) and that they are exhibiting indicators of being over stressed in classes.
Another example of the apologists derailing threads |
I didn't bring sports up at all. It was one of the "bashers" who brought it up.
| Quote: |
| I also see it in sports as well. I see boxers train their butts off for hours and hours a day then go home and eat a bowl of rice and kimchi or ramen to cut weight. It boggles my mind. Even some of the basic knowledge possessed by highschool wrestlers in the US are unknown to professional athletes in Korea. Korean boxers also don't incorporate modern polymetric exercises that are internationally accepted by other boxers/trainers as a conditioning method. It's strange how backwards Korea seems in so many aspects despite its huge advances in tech. |
No one objected to this being "off-topic". Of course no one did because it was supporting "their" viewpoint.
Take Fermentation to task, not me. He brought it up. Or is it not about being on or off-topic, but about agreeing with an anti-Korean viewpoint? Frankly the record would indicate that.
| Quote: |
| Sounds like you were jealous of the hockey players at your HS. No matter your accusations, they did a lot more academically than ANY Korean athletes do. |
What do you know about this? Evidence? You know what kind of academics Korean athletes are involved in?
The Hockey players were great, they brought prestige to our school. I wasn't in classes with too many of them. But let's be real about things and what was going on there.
| Quote: |
That's funny to me.
I watch Korean baseball when I get a chance to but I'll never watch MLB. Korean leagues are just more entertaining- it's like watching a game of Tee-ball. There are so many errors and bad plays; not like watching those boring machines in the MLB. |
The depth is not there in the KBO, it is sometimes painful to watch.
But the national team is solid, as evidenced by its record in the WBC.
Japan has won it both times, with its fundamental disciplined approach. Time and time again people would comment on the failure of the U.S. team to play "the right way." Happened with USA Basketball too, the players lacked teamwork and fundamentals. That's why the championship team this team was created with fundamentals in mind, not just superstars.
| Quote: |
| You're wrong about public universities and athletic funding. As for Texas, and football isn't an Olympic sport which is where you started (and failed so went off on this tangent), that's a community decision, not a federal government one, and is in no way comparable. |
Public Universities receive money from their state governments. Public Universities spend money on having top-flight athletic programs.
Yeah that's right, we have our own government sponsored athlete mills.
College scholarships are given to athletes in many sports- Football, Baseball, Basketball, Hockey, Swimming, Tennis, Gymnastics, Track & Field, etc. etc.
And do you really think the athletes are doing the studying themselves and not taking blow off classes and having their grades massaged?
As for Texas Football, so if a local government decides to turn its taxpayer funded school into an athletics mill that's okay, but it's wrong for the Federal government to do so?
This smacks of the subtle American bigotry that manifests itself in sports. You see it in Little League Baseball when they'll list the match as Copa Blanca, FL vs. Japan. Implying that it's some little town in America vs. the best kids in Japan. When in fact the Japanese team is another team from a town who competed against a bunch of other Japanese Little League teams. You see it in the Olympics too. Whenever their athletes win its because they are from athlete factories and pumped full of steroids. Never mind that our athletes are also roided out concoctions too. There is some sort of subtle bigotry going on here. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
The Floating World
Joined: 01 Oct 2011
Location: Here
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Modernist
Joined: 23 Mar 2011
Location: The 90s
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 4:32 am Post subject: |
|
|
Hah, you don't actually think old Steelrails here is capable of engaging in a discussion related to critiques of Korea and Korean cultural norms WITHOUT finding some way to inform us all that while it isn't necessarily ideal or perfect, things could be worse. They could relate to AMERICAN cultural norms and behaviors, which are far worse and suspect in every circumstance.
He's just got it in his head that poor, poor Korea, having done SO MUCH for us ungrateful FTs, is unfairly beat upon and mocked and trashed [especially its DISGUSTING, VILE, SICKENING food] by all of us and it just isn't fair, especially when so many of us come from the heathen land of the devil America and how could ANYONE think that Korea is inferior in any way to THAT place? I mean, do you SEE what those people do/say/think/know/eat?
He gets some kind of psychological kick out of trashing his home country while abroad. I know a few people like that, can't really figure them out but I think part of it is a need, a desperate yearning, to be seen and understood as 'sophisticated' enough to NOT be a native-country-lovin' redneck fool. They think insulting--oops, I meant 'critically analyzing'-- their homeland to foreigners somehow makes them come off as cosmopolitan and advanced in their multicultural, globalized thinking. Plus it aids with acculturating themselves with the locals ['you hate the American president/military/foreign policy/music/foods/cultural imperialism/etc? Me too, and I'm American! It's a disgrace, let me tell you!' And he's off and running, loving all the while the 'you're not like most Americans' vibe he gets for his arguments. 'No' he thinks. 'I'm not like THOSE people. I have a wider perspective.'
It's hopeless dealing with him, but he is amusing in his consistency. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
The Floating World
Joined: 01 Oct 2011
Location: Here
|
| Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 4:40 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Nah he's not an American hater at all. Just has emotional blinders at times when it comes to Korea I think and takes it a tad too far, gets oversensitive and sees critisizing as bashing (sometimes it is, but I certainly wasn't bashing in my first post in this thread.) |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
