Korean Job Discussion Forums

[plato's republic]

why do some public schools offer lots of paid or unpaid holiday whereas others offer only around two weeks in a year?
if you work at a public school, do you have to teach at summer/winter camps aswell?
what's the average day of a native-English speaker at a korean public school like?
besides the teaching what are your other responsibilities?
is it generally better to work at a public school or at a hagwon? what are the advantages/disadvantages?

the reason i ask is because i am currently evaluating whether to go teach at a public school or private institute, so any help or advice you could give me would help a lot.

[Grotto]

Public schools offer the 2 weeks Private schools sometimes offer more but the government is trying to force them into following the government policy for public schools.

I am supposed to be in the school for 40 hours a week.

I get there at 8:30 and my classes usually run from 9:00 or 10:00 to 1:00 or 1:30. The classes are 40 minutes long and usually fly by.

After 1:30 I am free to surf the net and/or prepare for the next day. The prep is minimal.

I teach 4 extra classes a week for which I get paid overtime. The money is good 2.4 base salary(for working in a rural area) + 320,000 overtime a month for a total of 2.72.

The only thing is that 40 hours a week at the school. The time from 1:30-4:30 passes very slowly.

During camp time Winter, Spring and Summer the time really drags 3 hours of camp and 5 hours of sitting around. Although I just leave and no one has said anything to me about it.

The biggest complaint from me is the sitting around doing nothing for 3 or more hours a day. Some days I only have 2 classes so I am finished by 11:30 so to sit around for another 5 hours sucks big time. Although you can sign out.

Good things: pay is on time, my apartment is a 2 bedroom that is huge and you get alot of respect from the students.

Bad things stupid moronic government, demands for paperwork out of the blue and surprise inspections.

[jaderedux]

My school is trying to fly under the radar with Gyeonggi do right now. They want no part of this program.

They would have to give up a teacher (me) that teaches saturday and teaches a club activity. I teach more classes than is on the Gyeonggi contract.

That being said...I get days off during semester tests if I want/need. I get at least 2 or more weeks in the summer. At least a month in the winter. I don't teach during the spring vacation. I can go in if I want but they don't insist.

I teach alot of classes but then I do get compensated in vacation and some flexibility of time off.

Jade the lucky

[pauly]

I'm also trying to make a decision about accepting a public school position. I've read the three threads in the FAQ's on public schools, and they have nothing but good things to say. Mind you, those posts were from last year. There are two current threads that make hagwons look like dream jobs compared to the public school jobs.

I have an offer from a public school in Incheon city. It isn't part of the GEPIK style school jobs. There are 25-35 students per class, and I would teach up to 22 classes per week, but need to put in the 40 hours/week (8:30-4:30). There is a set curriculum with text books. There is a settlement allowance of 300,000. 14 vacation days are included, with a possible extra two weeks, if I renew my contract. The pay is a little less, at 1.9 million/month, but from what I read in the FAQs, the public school teachers didn't seem to mind accepting a salary that was smaller than those offered at hagwons. The rest of the contract is pretty straight forward.

Is this a reasonable offer?

[Grotto]

Pauly except for the salary that is the exact same that GEPIK teachers get.

[pauly]

I asked the recruiter and he said it wasn't. Hmmmmmmmm...anyhow, is it still a reasonable offer, Grotto?

[Grotto]

I would definately try to talk to them about the 40 hours a week in school. If you can leave once your prep and classes are done that would be alright. Let me tell you though if your last class is finished at 1:30 and you have to sit around the school for 3 hours everyday doing nothing it gets really boring really quick.

OR

Ask them if you can teach privates at the school That way you could make some extra cash in those 3 hours.

GEPIK Contract

Mon-Fri 8:30-4:30 22 forty minute classes a week if you teach more you get paid overtime of 20,000 a class

15 sick days a year.

14 days vacation + another 2 weeks if you resign your contract

Its a decent offer.

The GEPIK payscale starts at about 1.9 2.2 if you have a BED or a bachelors and at least 2 years experience. 2.3 if you have a BED and teaching certification or Masters and experience.

100.000 won monthly bonus for working in rural areas.

[Kenny Kimchee]

[zappadelta]

[Derrek]

I'm with a private high school.

I was a little disappointed, because the Kyunggi guy was supposed to come last week, but sent an assistant instead. And he showed up during my class and I didn't get a good chance to talk.

His second question to me was, "Are you upset that you have to work during vacation?"

Many teachers have voiced their opinions that they are upset about the vacation working time and camps, which were sprung on them. DUH!!

Consider the posts you read last year as nothing special.... they were posted by people in the early days of the program before they started to restrict vacations to two weeks a year, etc. Old news. New news is that you're basically working a hagwon job with 35 students and 2 weeks vacation per year, plus being stuck in the school for hours you're not working. By the way, we lost a teacher because she wouldn't sign the contract even though they promised. She wanted it in writing. I normally would too, but I figured I'd know by summer if they're lying to us, so that gives me a few more months to work before i'd quit due to them lying. Law is 1 month notice. I'd give them at least that, but I think my contract says 2. Not sure I'd give them 2, because I don't know if that's legal. Am going home with no plan of returning within a year anyway, so I don't care about having to get another E-2. The other foreigner says he'll walk out on the same day.

In an elementary or middle school situation, unless they can guarentee you vacation time over and above the 2 weeks, look elsewhere. That's my opinion. Why the heck would you want so many of those ratty little brats in one class? Pure hell.

I was told by my school that we'll still get the same vacation as last year, but they had to do a contract that said only 2 weeks. I put in a request for next year's vacation schedule. Both myself and the other foreigner will put in our notice if they renig on their promise. No reason to stay working there, and i'll just go home and start my masters degree.

Another thing -- some schools are trying to get teachers to pay a 500,000 won security deposit to be held if you are planning a "run." Screw that... plenty of indication that you DON'T want to work there.

Don't sign that crap.

[zappadelta]

I agree with you Derrek. I got 5-6 weeks with my new public school, I think that is okay.

[Grotto]

Well its not all peaches and cream. There isnt even a gym in the village I live in. No swimming pool, no movie theater, no foreign restaurants, no shopping (unless you are looking for farm utinsels), no foreign community, very very few English speaking Koreans and zero nightlife.

When you get dragged to a waste of time meeting that takes 2 hours to get to, you sit around for 3 hours as the Koreans ooh and ahh at the foriegner and then you face another 2 hour or more trip back where you arrive at 7:00Pm or later and absolutely nothing was accomplished. Yeah it wears thin.

The teaching part is great. I love my students and enjoy teaching them 90% of the time. I just dont like the beurocracy and the stupidity. Why make a teacher sit in the classroom for 3 hours a day doing nothing? When I have classes its not too bad as I can keep pretty busy.

But when you have some beaurocrat sitting at the head office who gets it in his head that he wants to have a meeting with the foriegners(he cant speak English) or they decide that you must produce paperwork the next day or supply your documentation for the third or fourth time it gets to be a pain in the ass.

Example. When I first arrived at my school they were not ready for me. No place for me to work or anything. Eventually they gave me a classroom and a month after I arrived they gave me a computer and desk and whatnot. Then three days after my computer was set up and working they told me that I had to produce daily, weekly, monthly and year plans for all the classes I would be teaching AND they wanted them all in 3 days Now at this time I had not even met the students, chosen books or taught any of these classes that they were demanding paperwork for.

[Derrek]

[Grotto]

Whats really funny though is that for the last month and a half I have been writing:

"Its not like you guys read these things anyway" at the bottom of every lesson plan.

I have to stamp them, sign them, take them to my coteacher who has to sign them, then the vice principal and finally the principal. They pretend to read them, then they sign them and hand them back.

[Derrek]