Korean Job Discussion Forums

[dreaming_saturn]

Hello all -

I'd like some advice from those of you out there about coming to Korea to teach. I've been getting a lot of job offers from Korea ( I'm looking to come over in December-January) which I am considering. The big question is - stick with adults, which I know quite well, or try teaching children?

About my past, I've been teaching EFL i the Netherlands for four years now and have done a couple summer stints in China. I have a B.A. in Education studies and English (from the UK) and a BEd ( The Netherlands) but am officially Canadian. Most of my experience is in the business sector in the Netherlands and I'm also a Qualified highschool EFL teacher here in the Netherlands So, quite a bit of experience with high school level and adults, but none with younger children.

My question is if I should consider teaching children? The pay, perks like an apartment and block shifts sound really attractive, but I just have no idea if it's worth the change because I really like teaching adults and feel quite comfortable doing it. Are there any of you there, teaching adults or children, who can offer me some advice on which path to take? What do you feel is the best/worst about teaching either children or adults? And also, feel free to point me in the direction of any good schools if you believe in karma

[Ya-ta Boy]

One thing to consider: adults are either self-motivated or they are motivated by a job requirement to improve their English. Either way, they know why they are in class.

Kids are there because mommy wants them there. A very different situation.

[ilovebdt]

With your qualifications, I would try for a public school position.
Or for a post at one of the foreign schools in Korea e.g Busan Foreign School or one of the ones in Seoul.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I hated / loathed / detested teaching little Korean children at hogwan - in 80% of cases anyways (I still miss Judy, Scott, Elizabeth, Vinnie, Daphne, Jenny, Caroline, Ted, and Helen, but I could count on my hands how many out of about 60-70 elementary kids I taught I actually liked - middle school hogwan wasn't so bad, with one horrific exception of a class). I'm doing public high/middle school now (not a hogwan) and really love high school / like middle school. If you're as professional as your CV sounds, you'll probably find most kiddie hogwans atrocious places to work - if you're in it for the teaching and not just making money / partying at night.

With your credentials and experience, however, I would seriously consider a public school in another Asian country - perhaps Taiwan, HK, Singapore or Malaysia. If you're set on Korea, I'd strongly recommend an adult academy, if this is something you've done before, are good at, and like.

Best wishes with the job hunt.

[Son Deureo!]

While adults are of course more fun and interesting to teach than children, most adult hogwons here have split shifts, i.e. teach in the morning (starting at 7 a.m. or earlier), have the afternoon off (if you're lucky), and teach again in the evening (can be as late at 10 p.m.).

Teaching adults was definitely easier, but the schedule left me exhausted after nearly 2 years of it. I'd love to teach adults again, but only if the hours are sane.

Best of luck whatever you decide.

[SPINOZA]

This is pretty crappy advice from me, but before I could never envisage preferring teaching kids over adults, but I do now. I work in a public Middle School, meaning obviously that I teach teenagers (rather than little kids, even though some of the 1st-graders look like little kids) and it's a really *beep*-hot do. Now it's the complete opposite to before - I cannot imagine teaching adults ever again! Perhaps unbeknownst to the OP - the kids in Korea are adorable generally. Kids in the West are often vile, right? Not the case here. It's hardly a bed of roses the entire time, far from it, but K-kids put a smile on my face generally. Worth bearing in mind IMO.

[tomato]

Hello, Dreaming Saturn!

I prefer kids over adults any day.
However, jobs teaching one age group are not as easy to find as jobs teaching the whole spectrum.
I have tried to broaden my horizons by learning to appreciate other age groups, but to no avail. In most of my past jobs, teaching older students has led to my downfall.
Next week, I start a new job teaching kindergarten and primary students only. I grabbed the job in a heartbeat.

Until I read Spinoza's post, I never heard of a teacher whose experience has led the teacher to appreciate a hitherto unappreciated age group.