Korean Job Discussion Forums

[the eye]

yesterday, one of my elementary6 students was cutting up a handout i distributed in class. it was not intended for that prurpose, which was clear as we were discussing the querstions on it.

this class has been a discpline nightmare because their english is awesome (in a positive way), yet their behavior is the opposite. it's the kind of class that can handle all kinds of highly developed conversation and concepts, yet they are still just little kids.
it's the kind of class that you just finish a one-on-one, telling a student to shut it, you turn around and they are blabbering away like you aren't even there.

anyway, that is nowhere near the problem.

so, i see the girl cutting up the paper, and i stopped talking, hoping she would wake up.
unaware, she continued.
i walked over to her and her friend tapped her on the shoulder and told her in korean that i was coming.
"what are you doing?", i asked.

in silence, she closed the knife and began to reach across her desk to return it to her friend's pencil case.
"this is a study paper, not play paper. if you want to cut things, cut your own paper, ok?"
i reached over to take the knife in order to save her from any further temptation. i was moving slow, because it was a knife.

when my hand hit her hand, somehow the knife did a backflip and popped up near her face and fell to the floor. the physcs of this movement was quite amazing. newton would be impressed. keep in mind the knife was closed.

seconds later, little switchblade sally began to cry. probably not impressed with her near disfigurement.

now she and her classmate have told their korean homeroom teacher that i tried to cut her in the face.
dirty looks abound.

the thing that gets me with these things is that most of these kids have knives for no reason. some of them use them to sharpen their pencils, but most of the kids have those lead dispending technical pencils.

why not just use pencil sharpeners anyway?
i want those knives banned in my school...what do you think my chances are???

i think I wil be banned before any knife is. bad teacher!

[turtlepi1]

After reading all of the stink about the (well you know the current controversy over the shutdown site) sex-crazed foreign teachers her parents probably GAVE her the knife for PROTECTION...

Try to get them banned and you will be accused of trying to disarm them.

You DIRTY foreigner...

[Grotto]

yup those exacto knives of death. Banned by every airport in the civilized and uncivilized world but every Korean kid has one. Perhaps its to protect their kimbap with? Maybe for those rare occasions when their omah forgets to cut the kimbap roll

It seems like an almost weekly occurance where I see a bandaged hand or finger and exacto knives are almost always the culprit.

Maybe exacto has stock in band aid?

[JongnoGuru]

[Zenpickle]

I've not had trouble with exacto-knives, but I started a ban on bringing toys and snacks to my class. The rest of the school followed my lead.

[canadian_in_korea]

I assumed the reason they all use the exacto knife is because they can "cut" things faster than using scissors....i shutter everytime i see a kid use one. I hope you can convince your school to get rid of them....and with any luck....soon after other schools will follow.

[HamuHamu]

Sometimes I think it's just a total lack of any thought whatsoever going into simple daily events.

EXAMPLE: I made a request for some additional pairs of scissors for my six-year old art class. (I teach 12 students in an art class. The initial box of supplies given to me had THREE pairs of scissors.... That was the first lack of thought....)

Anyway, three days later I received 9 more pairs of scissors. Large-handled adult scissors, with extremely pointed tips. A whole six-year old HAND fits through the handle.

My supervisor's main confusion was in why these expensive scissors weren't "good enough" for the kids.

[Grotto]

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I'm astounded by some of the knives and other potential or purposeful weapons that make their way into school. A lot of western schools have blanket no-tolerance / expulsion laws about such things. Before I came to my hogwan apparently one kid hit another in teh face with a throwing star. How hard would it be to send home a notice that all knifes and weapons are banned, and then send home any kid who brings one? Way too hard for Koreans to figure out, apparently.

[Bunnymonster]

In defense of sharpening with a knife (for adults) pencils are both sharper and hold their points longer than when sharpened with a sharpener. Also penil sharpeners cause spiral fractures in the graphite causing the pencil to just fall apart. Finally cutting stuff is fun and frankly there isn't enough fun in the world....... .I was a bit taken aback when I saw the kids with the exacto knives though, absolutely craziness.........

[the eye]

[JongnoGuru]

[J.B. Clamence]

I've been using mechanical pencils for the last 15 years. I thought every civilized person did.

[the eye]

...an update, in case anyone is interested.

i spoke with the manager about it again today. it brought a fresh scowl to her face, so that was nice.
i raised the idea of not allowing knives into the school.

i also brought up the frequency of minor cuts and scratches i have noticed on various little hands over the past few months....as well as the very occasional "teacher, no stop blood!"

apparently I am to blame for the potential danger in yesterday's occurance. furthermore, i was lucky not to have caused a visit from the little liar's parents.

in the end, she really didn't see the problem with those knives.
no surprise, i guess.

so, i'm going to give her a shiny, extra sharp one on teacher's day.

[mindmetoo]