Korean Job Discussion Forums

shawner88 · Joined: 01 Feb 2003

Got a job offer for a public elementary school. What are these jobs really like? Anyone working in one? How many kids in a class? I'm used to 10 r less...I can't imagine more than 30???

phaedrus · Joined: 13 Nov 2003 Location: I'm comin' to get ya.

Depends on if you have a co-teacher. It is not very fun trying to get thirty eight year olds that don't understand you to listen.

schwa · Joined: 18 Jan 2003 Location: Yap

Youre the give them wordsearch puzzles & dont care guy, right? Give it a pass & do them a service. You also seem to have trouble holding a job. What is it exactly you offer?

shawner88 · Joined: 01 Feb 2003

shawner88 · Joined: 01 Feb 2003

phaedrus · Joined: 13 Nov 2003 Location: I'm comin' to get ya.

Thunndarr · Joined: 30 Sep 2003

Friend of mine has an excellent elementary job. I think it's the new fad of hagwon style education at public schools because her classes are only 15 students each. She teaches four 40 minute classes a day. Anyway, she enjoys it tremendously.

peppermint · Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2004 1:50 pm Post subject:

I teach at a regular public elementary school, so does adventureman. Class sizes are huge, my smallest class is 41, and you really have to be at the top of your game for these classes to keep them in line.

Check this thread for a couple of perspectives.

The curriculum for the elementary school is ungodly bad and it's written in around 85% Korean, so be prepared to ask for translations and have lots of activities to fill in the rest of the time.

There's a lot of prep involved for each class- say at least an hour or two each, but ideally, you'd only have to prep for four classes a week.

It probably sounds very negative, but I love my job. It really is a case of getting what you earn.

peppermint · Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2004 8:25 pm Post subject:

Some questions to ask:

What neighborhood is this school in? Rich or not can make a big difference.

How well do your co-workers speak English? Lots of mine dont speak nearly as well as the kids.

Are you the first foreign teacher there? Dealing with past expectations/ mistakes, or being the guinea pig. .

For yourself:

How well do you handle the hello chorus? Most of my students feel the need to say hello and good bye as individuals before and after each class. Laughing

How well do you deal with Korea? You'll be the only foreigner, and be expected to play by Korean rules.

adventureman · Joined: 18 Feb 2003

shawner88 · Joined: 01 Feb 2003

Thanks for the input. I decided no way in hell am I fit for such a job.

P.S.

Attitude about working depends on where you're working. I've worked at places I was happy about teaching and others I was just trying to get through the contract. I was thinking the public school and professional aspect of it and not worrying about pay would be more motivating...but after reading about what it's really like, forget it. It sounds like more of the same crap but worse.

Flex Bulkchest · Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2004 11:43 pm Post subject: really?

dude, i don't know, i might have to disagree. i work in a public middle school and the job is fantastic. the classes are big, usually about 35, but the co-teachers are excellent. that and i only teach 3 classes a day, makes it more than manageble. wouldn't that job give you the benefit of huge vacations?

Zyzyfer · Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2004 2:46 am Post subject:

Public school jobs can be quite nice, but you have to be able to handle the larger number of students, and you really need to ask a lot of questions about everything. You should find out their expectations of you, the curriculum, number of other foreigners, stuff like that. If you just walk in like you're hot shit on a shingle, it won't be nice at all.

When I look back on the sum total experience of my time at a hakwon (a franchise ECC no less) and a middle school, I realize that I enjoyed my life overall more when I was at the hakwon, short vacations and Saturdays and being overworked while missing overtime pay and all.

peppermint · Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2004 3:55 am Post subject:

own_king · Joined: 17 Apr 2004 Location: here

What is all this talk about 8 - 12 weeks holiday in a public school? I got offered a teaching job at a public school and they are only offering 4 weeks vacation time - 2 in the summer and 2 in the winter. Shouldn't all public schools be the same? I know this is still more holiday time than the normal 10- 15 days in a hagwon. But am I getting screwed? Now I am not too sure.