Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rapier]

Do any of you real school teachers get roped into these farcical, disorganised mayhems?

Witnessing the local public/private school sports day from the grandstand view of the hagwon window today, I had to laff.

The 100m: the kids run dressed in full uniform, and have to stop abruptly at the end of the line to avoid ploughing into a herd of spectators crowded on the finish line.
Races have no spacing. Races are started palli palli before the last one is even finished, thus any kid that trips on the track is rapidly caught up and trampled by the competitors in the next event behind him.
There followed something of an olympic ceremony, the kids streaming onto the dustbowl parade -ground to perform a fan-waving aerobics routine. Not sure if it was meant to be synchronised, but they milled around like a crush of football hooligans.
The loudspeakers wailed to arirang tunes while some ajjoshi provided a dictatorial style commentary.
Then suddenly it was all over: aerobics being the main team sport/form of excercise i guess: and the doting families spilled out onto the dusty tarmac to scoff their kimbab, while cars trying to cram the last spaces hooted at them.
At the entrance, a fully grown man in a clown suit danced crazilly to k-pop, presumably trying to sell tickets.

Does this pass for physical education here?

[I_Am_Wrong]

well...mine is on Tuesday so we'll see. The students and staff all got t-shirts that say "We're the best team!" for the dayand the kids are pretty damn excited about it. As far as the dustbowl field goes, my co-teacher said it's too difficult to grow grass fields for schools because both the kids and general community will trample on it and kill it before it's ready. Also, the schools don't have the budget for watering systems, lawn maintenace staff, mowers and such. Personally, I'm glad they put their limited resources into new computers, books for the library, and better resources for their English program instead of into a nice field.

[crazylemongirl]

sounds about right. I evne got roped into running last year!

[peppermint]

hell, my kids missed a ton of classes practicing for the one last year.

[Koreabound2004]

Been to two sports days, one last fall, one last week.

They are all day affairs at my school....and I have had to attend the opening ceremonies of both sports days. Both times, they started almost an hour late...and I had to be present for the mic set-up, hana dul, hana dul over and over and over again(as I am sitting there bored to hell)....shouldn't this have been done before all the kids were out on the field? Then of course all of the speeches and bowing(I do not understand, hello?)

During the first one, they played the national anthem. I was new to the school...and nobody told me I was supposed to turn to the flag during the anthem. So, there I am looking at an entire field of kids lined up, hands over hearts, and I am wondering why they are all staring at me. Then I turn around and realize that I am the only one not facing the flag...Gee, thanks for helping me out guys.

Thankfully, after the "opening ceremonies" I was able to go back to playing on the computer, or "lesson planning."

[Derrek]

We have one in the Fall, and that's it. It's called, "Fall Festival."

Actually, I rather enjoyed it, even though I tore a muscle a bit while sprinting. Still managed to paste every teacher and student racing, though, despite weighing almost 70 pounds heavier than I did when I was a sprinter in high school *laugh*. My students remarked that they didn't expect a guy who weighed so much to move so fast (I way 100kgs and am 189cm tall).

I also did some funky rope pulling thing where we had to sprint across the field and grab the rope, then pull it all to our side.

All-in-all, it was an interesting experience. My co-workers and I were a little miffed that we didn't get a good schedule of events in any readable form.

[rapier]

If you judged a nation on its sports days, -perhaps as an alien visiting planet Korea for the first time- you'd have to deduce that this species
1) Exhibited clear lack of organisational ability
2) saw everything more as a social event/cause for status/posturing than any thing else.
3) Enjoyed making a lot of indecipherable noise.
4) Does not prepare properly in advance for any event.
5) Lacks co-ordination or any physical ability.


If it was up to me I'd place a higher emphasis on sport than computers.

[jar]

I got roped into running on my teacher relay team for Sports Day when I was in Japan.

Overtaking someone I tripped and went down like a sack of potatoes. The crowd which was beforehand going mad went completely silent. I was covered head to foot in blood.

[I_Am_Wrong]

I must say they're rad....just purely for the number of classes that I've had cancelled because of it! I was also told that I don't have to come in that day if I don't want to but I said I would cuz that kids want me to.

[Dispatched]

Do you get the groups of kids hanging around in bunches trying to avoid the roving teachers and trying to smoke like ya do back home?

Any event where everyone must participate is going to be a shambles regardless of the country, sounds like just an excuse for spending the day in the sun. Ahh I miss sport days, oh to be 15 again!

[Ya-ta Boy]

[Kyrei]

[canukteacher]

Our big day is tomorrow. Teachers are feverishly getting everything ready for the big event. Mom's are even here putting Christmas garland on the hoola-hoops. I averte my eyes when I go by the classroom. I see no need to add hoola-hoop decorator to my professional qualifications

I think I have had about 25 classes canceled over the last month because of this one day event. I am starting to understand why they work them so hard in high school. They have to make up all the study time they missed in elementary school getting ready for Fall Fairs and Spring Sport Days

One class missed today........no classes tomorrow.......holiday Thursday...................this is the life Now, if only there was a beach nearby.

CT