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Yu_Bum_suk
Joined: 25 Dec 2004
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 Posted: Thu May 05, 2005 8:51 am Post subject: |
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| Alias wrote: |
The best thing you can do is get the word out to Korean parents. Hagwons are a scam!
I think I posted this here before but I'll tell it again. During my first year working at a hagwon in Seoul I became friends with an adjuma at a nearby restaurant that I attended frequently. She spoke pretty decent English and had often inquired about the Kids Club that I taught at as she was interested in sending her two sons there. I tried to avoid the topic as best I could because I did not want to be in the awkward situation of promoting a product which I new was garbage.
Finally she told me that my supervisor from work had been eating there for lunch and convinced her to enrole her sons. Since I was in my final month of my contract I felt that it was safe enough to spill the beans. I told her not to waste her hard earned money and that she would be better off getting a private tutor if she wanted.
A month later I was back in Canada and received a not so pleasant e-mail from my supervisor. She found out what I told adjuma Park and informed me that I would not be getting a letter of recommendation from her (although I never asked for one and already secured a position elsewhere)
I know. Telling parents the truth will only hurt us. The less students means less jobs. That is why I teach business English! So get out of hagwon hell while you still can. |
I tell every Korean I meet what a joke hogwans are. One told me that his kids' hogwan regularly expells bad kids. I told him to keep his kids there, as he was probably getting his money's worth. |
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Cheonmunka
Joined: 04 Jun 2004
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| Posted: Thu May 05, 2005 2:56 pm Post subject: |
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Maybe you should learn punctuation and learn to read. Nowadays it seems we copy and paste quotes into big white boxes, but originally quoation marks were used for this purpose.
As for the idea, well the quote was from somebody who said teaching kindie was for unprofessional people and obviously a low class occupation coming with, quote, "low" pay.
I disagree as it doesn't always work out to match those generalisations. |
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agraham
Joined: 19 Aug 2004
Location: Daegu, Korea
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| Posted: Thu May 05, 2005 10:28 pm Post subject: |
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| Yu_Bum_suk wrote: |
| agraham wrote: |
| yu_bum_suk wrote: |
| ... Say that's a poor attitude if you want but in a country where 90% of people have sh*t for brains when it comes to educating it's about the only way to get any learing done if you work at a hogwild. |
That's excactly what I'm talking about. This comment is totally pompous. |
What, I can make most of the kids in most of my classes learn by doing things my way and that's pompous? |
No.
What's pompous, yu_bum_suk, is your assertion that
| yu_bum_suk wrote: |
| 90% of people [in Korea] have sh*t for brains when it comes to educating |
You are surrounded by idiots. You're trying to spoon out an ocean of corruption and madness with your civilizing superior teaching. Those students are so lucky to have you. Those parents don't appreciate the pearl they have in you. Those money-grubbing bosses are too blinded by the desire for flthy lucre to take part in our grand project.
Bah. |
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agraham
Joined: 19 Aug 2004
Location: Daegu, Korea
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| Posted: Thu May 05, 2005 10:43 pm Post subject: |
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| Paji eh Wong wrote: |
The OP saw hagwons as a way to protect kids from "violent video games", ie "bad" aspects of childhood. Unfortunately Korean kids spend so much time studying that they get protected from all aspects of childhood. I don't know where you teach, but I've had 10 year olds so exhausted that they can't stay awake for class, and one very memorable 6 year old burnout.
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That's not what I said at all. In fact, I said almost the opposite.
I said _as long as_ they are in my class, and given that they work SO hard all time, I don't feel bad about shooting the breeze, having a relaxed conversation in English with them. I don't feel the urge to get some serious teaching accomplished in that forty-five minutes.
Because of that, I feel that almost anyone with a BA could do my job just as well as I do.
[Also, I preemptively lashed out at those who would accuse me of being insufficiently professional.]
I said something about dragging them away from the violent video games, but that was totally peripheral to the point.
I think kids should have time to play and socialize, for sure. |
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Alias
Joined: 24 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Fri May 06, 2005 5:54 am Post subject: |
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| I tell every Korean I meet what a joke hogwans are. One told me that his kids' hogwan regularly expells bad kids. I told him to keep his kids there, as he was probably getting his money's worth. |
Wow. A hagwon with standards.
I only saw one student expelled from a hagwon that I was working at during my two years in hell. She basically told the boss to go f*!k himself in front of everyone. Making the owner lose face in front of others is probably the only way a kid can get expelled. |
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Yu_Bum_suk
Joined: 25 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Fri May 06, 2005 3:42 pm Post subject: |
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| agraham wrote: |
| Yu_Bum_suk wrote: |
| agraham wrote: |
| yu_bum_suk wrote: |
| ... Say that's a poor attitude if you want but in a country where 90% of people have sh*t for brains when it comes to educating it's about the only way to get any learing done if you work at a hogwild. |
That's excactly what I'm talking about. This comment is totally pompous. |
What, I can make most of the kids in most of my classes learn by doing things my way and that's pompous? |
No.
What's pompous, yu_bum_suk, is your assertion that
| yu_bum_suk wrote: |
| 90% of people [in Korea] have sh*t for brains when it comes to educating |
You are surrounded by idiots. You're trying to spoon out an ocean of corruption and madness with your civilizing superior teaching. Those students are so lucky to have you. Those parents don't appreciate the pearl they have in you. Those money-grubbing bosses are too blinded by the desire for flthy lucre to take part in our grand project.
Bah. |
I'm still learning myself; one of the things I'm learning very quickly is that things go much better in the classroom if I take the initiative rather than relying on ambiguous advice from management. My co-workers exhibit varying degrees of helpfulness but I wouldn't brand them idiots on the whole, especially not one wonderful KT in particular. Comments from parents have proven time and time again what utter idiots most of them are. The boss has proven time and time again that he only wants things to look good and for the cheques to keep coming in.
Perhaps if I could actually sit down and talk with the parents and a KT about what exactly they want and expect, I'd have a different attitude. But that would be just far too logical for Korea, wouldn't it? |
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Yu_Bum_suk
Joined: 25 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Fri May 06, 2005 3:46 pm Post subject: |
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| Alias wrote: |
| Quote: |
| I tell every Korean I meet what a joke hogwans are. One told me that his kids' hogwan regularly expells bad kids. I told him to keep his kids there, as he was probably getting his money's worth. |
Wow. A hagwon with standards.
I only saw one student expelled from a hagwon that I was working at during my two years in hell. She basically told the boss to go f*!k himself in front of everyone. Making the owner lose face in front of others is probably the only way a kid can get expelled. |
One of my girls basically openly defied the boss' wife (supposedly the assistant director) in front of her class. She's still around, and considering that she has a brother in grade four whom the director views as millions of future won, I'm sure she'll still be running around our hogwan teaching all the younger kids to be naughty for the rest of her middle school years. |
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guangho
Joined: 19 Jan 2005
Location: a spot full of deception, stupidity, and public micturation and thus unfit for longterm residency
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 4:56 am Post subject: |
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| I had at least 3 kids telling me to beep myself. Future vice-presidents all. |
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rapier
Joined: 16 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 8:43 am Post subject: |
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I'm definitely in my last hagwon phase now.
I look forward to a uni or public school job next. But will it be that much better? |
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JongnoGuru
Joined: 25 May 2004
Location: peeing on your doorstep
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 9:23 am Post subject: |
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| rapier wrote: |
I'm definitely in my last hagwon phase now.
I look forward to a uni or public school job next. But will it be that much better? |
Well, if you're leaving a hagwon for a university, then judging from the recent experience of one acquaintance, you can look forward to long paid vacations, far (far, far, far) fewer hours in classrooms repeating things over and over, and nourishment for the mind & soul from interaction with people who not only can discuss the works of Hermann Hesse in some cases, but can actually wash themselves. (to paraphrase Coolsage) |
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Hwajangsil Ajumma
Joined: 02 May 2005
Location: On my knees in the stall
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 10:45 am Post subject: |
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Quote: Fewer hours in the classrooms
Yes, and we all know what that means: more time in the hwajangsil beating off into the soapdish.
Heaven is here on earth, people, you just need to know where to look for it. |
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guangho
Joined: 19 Jan 2005
Location: a spot full of deception, stupidity, and public micturation and thus unfit for longterm residency
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 4:14 pm Post subject: |
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| Hwajangsil Ajumma wrote: |
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Yes, and we all know what that means: more time in the hwajangsil beating off into the soapdish.
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I prefer to call it professional development. |
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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee
Joined: 25 May 2003
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 4:56 pm Post subject: |
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| The hogwons are all right- for the owners |
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peppermint
Joined: 13 May 2003
Location: traversing the minefields of caddishness.
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| Posted: Sat May 07, 2005 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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| Despite the best efforts of hagwon admin to make it otherwise, Hagwons are where the students actually learn the most. Small classes, and seeing the teacher a few times a week are conditions that make language learning a lot more effective. |
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