Korean Job Discussion Forums

[peppermint]

1. What textbooks do you use and what supplies are available?
(even if you don't know the names of any ESL textbooks, it's a good way to make sure they're using something)

2. What hours am I expected to be at the school?
( Watch out for split shifts and extended prep time)

3.How many classes will I teach a week, and how long will they be?
( beware of classes more than an hour long, or schools expecting more than 30 fifty minute classes a week)

4. Can I speak to/get the e-mail addresses of some teachers at the school?
If they let you speak to the the teachers at the school- be aware that the director might be listening in. If you get their e-mail addys, make sure the e-mail looks like that of an English speaker. A few schools have been known to fake these things, but they're generally easy to spot.

[prosodic]

5. What's the average tenure of teachers at your school? In other words, how long do most teachers stay?

If they say that teachers never leave except to go back to their homecountries, then confirm with teachers and sign. If they say 3-5 years, sounds like a good situation. 1 year, probably a lie and they really mean a few months so you should run for the hills.

[Grotto]

How far is it from the apartment to the school?

Vacation time? How much? When can it be taken?

Is there a movie theater? Swimming pool? Spa? Foriegn community?

Sick days?

How many students per class?

Own classroom?

[paperbag princess]

what's your definition of a "furnished apartment"?

[fandeath]

If asking other teachers (which you should), always ask:

"What is the boss like?"
"Is he/she reasonable?"

[just because]

-What is the accomodation like (apart, studio, one-room)?
-What pyong is it?(anything below 8 is unbearable, above 12 is ok)
-Is it shared or single accomodation?(can make a big difference)

-How many vacation days do i get?
-Can i take these days when i choose or is it decided by the school?

-What about medical insurance, is it the national plan?
-What is the tax rate?(should be about 3.5%)

[DirtySanchez]

Do I have "carte blanche" to arbitrarily strike the students with a meter-long stick?

[some waygug-in]

Will I get paid every month?

[Grotto]

is the meter long stick provided or do I have to bring my own>?

[Sage Monkey]

This one builds on peppermint's third point:

What is the definition of "one teaching hour"?

A good school will consider one teacher hour as the time that you teach plus the break time between classes. For example, you teach 45 minutes and then have a 15 minute class break and this is considered one hour of teaching. On a 30 hour/week contract, your actual teaching time would actually work out to 22.5 hours/week with 30 classes. Now, if they don't factor in the break times into what is considered a teaching hour, your actual teaching time for a 30 hour/week contract would work out to be exactly 30 hours comprised of 40 classes, thus giving you a longer day to day schedule, more classes, and a longer wait period until you are eligible to receive overtime.

Lots of schools try to leave out mention of formulas like this so that they can get more bang for their buck so it is VERY worth finding out exactly how they calculate paid teaching hours.