Korean Job Discussion Forums

[antoniothegreat]

For those of us that attended that ridiculously long friday meeting about a month ago in Suwon, and have actually had your open/demo/observation class, was it just a normal demo class? where there foreigners there? Korean english teachers?

they said it is to help us become better teachers and share ideas, yet, i have not been invited to attend anybody else's class. I really doubt Kim Jong Tae, the jack ars that thought of this (and yes, i know from personal experience, he is a stupid ahole) is really gonig to take the time to somehow make a pamphlet or something to hand out to all of us about the best ideas he saw. so if we arent watching, and he isnt going to do that, what is the damn point?

maybe it is just one of those stupid things where he got bored and wants to show off all his servants.

so what is the format of these things like? i am just going to do a normal lesson, nothing extra, i will never do any extra work for that bastard.

[JacktheCat]

I too would like to hear what went down from those who did theirs already.


Pain in the arse is what it is. It has to be a "team-teaching" demo lesson even though so many of us don't have co-teachers. So I have to spend this week training up a KT to be my co-teacher, and then I need to do a few practice classes to get the students used to the new format. All this for just one class.

[Hater Depot]

Nearly every open class I've attended has been highly scripted and the students have practiced it several times. It's a waste of time and effort all around and everyone involved understands it to be purely for show. The lone exception was when one class of our third-graders (middle school) put together presentations on space exploration. I even gave them a pop quiz and they passed with flying colors.

[thursdays child]

My open class was last week. The class went fine.... but the whole load of crap i had to deal with for the month before hand was !!##$%%^^%*

I just took the open class as an open class - i do a good job and so just let 'em see what goes on - that's cool, i don't mind. But my school got so stressed that i kinda got caught up in it too "perhaps i should take this more seriously?" i thought... Main problem was the korean teacher took the open class as a test of his english so insisted on writing a script of the most complicated and long winded english that he was to lecture in........

Anyway.... eventually after some heavy duty uncharacteristic 'hissy fitting' from me - the 'script' went and the lesson planned returned to the one i wrote a month previously and was universally trashed and edited.... just for there to be a process i think? The class happened - the two 'on-lookers' didn't know they were coming until that day - didn't really know why they were there and were Korean teachers from the neighbouring high school who doesn't even have a native english teacher.

There was no feedback.

Waste of time.

[crazylemongirl]

Dog and pony shows. I gotta go to one next week. Fourtantly I weasled out of mine for the year Our local inspector got sick of going to one of my friends' classes (as she's been here for four years) so he decided that the foreign teachers don't need to do one once they've been there a year.

[changmee]

I had my "open class" yesterday. In attendance were the English teachers from my high school, a representative from the Foreign Language Department at the Board of Education, and a volunteer from the Board of Education. My co-teacher insisted on having a Powerpoint presentation even though we never use it during regular classes. Other than that the class was unscripted and was representative of what we actually do. That is, with the exception of what my co-teacher does. She rarely speaks English in class, however for the demo she did.

After the class there was a short meeting with the representatives. The volunteer asked me to fill out a survey, then asked a few questions regarding working/contract/living conditions (she said that they are making a website for teachers in Gyeonggi to discuss teaching, etc.). The other representative talked about what our teaching strategy should be. She emphasized speaking "activities" and cultural lessons.

It was pretty uneventful.

[trigger123]

yeah, its a load of pony all right...
treat them with the contempt they deserve, (the demo lessons, not your korean co-teachers), and you will pass through the experience unscathed. depsite the fact they don't resemble real lessons, that co-teachers behave in an unusual way, that children are coached and virtually receive a script to follow, and that you could employ a performing monkey for all the educational value the whole experience has, you still have to do them for the man.
its a real shame that all involved, (pupils, staff, the education board and us), can't have a more useful method of measuring the effectiveness of our actual teaching and giving constructive feedback.
still, keeps your principal happy. and we did get a plate-full of lovely biscuits and enough green tea to keep us going.

[sarahsarah]

I never understand why people insist on scripting all of these things. It definitely isn't a reflection of what really goes on in a classroom. I guess it isn't as much the teachers as it is the principals that insist upon it though. Oh well...

I am lucky. The only thing the principal of my school is a stickler for is paperwork so I didn't have to rehearse my lesson and the only thing I had to pre-teach was how to play a card game we were going to play in class.

The head guy in charge of it all and an English teacher from a school in Suwon were the only ones to show up. The lesson went off without a hitch and even without rehearsal the kids shined like the stars they are ... non-english speaking stars, but stars nontheless.

We had a small meeting afterwards at which I was praised for incorporating mini-cultural lessons and use of computer type stuff into the big lesson. I imagine there were probably a few criticisms, but if there were that was talked about in Korean and not translated to me.

Overall there was nothing to be afraid of. Just go in and teach. It's not as though your job is on the line.

[I_Am_Wrong]

Last years was a big deal at my school because our school is the model. There were about 150 visitors to the school to watch open English classes and attend a conference. I had about 50-60 people watching the class as a demonstration of effective team-teaching.

In two and a half weeks we will have the same type of thing again. The school is expecting anywhere from 150-200 elementary school principals and teachers. They are also expecting the Minister of Education and representatives from the gyeonggi and local education offices. It's a big deal.

[jaderedux]

Yeah I have done a pot load of them. I won't and do not script them. Our class is usually pretty representative of what happens. Now I am not stupid I choose one of my better classes.

The school gets all freaked out and does hours and hours of cleaning decorating and making flash handouts for participants.

They hate that I won't script but I get really good comments on the class so everyone is usually pretty happy.

I got out of it this year because I have been here since moses was a boy and they are tired of hauling there butts all the way out here to see someone they have seen 3 other times.

I am amazed at how scripted the classes are...I mean why bother if you are going to script them???? My favorites are where they had out an activity that should take 10 minutes to 15 minutes and the students miracously finish in 3!!!!!

Hate to go to them anymore cuz I hate seeing people passing off scripted rehearsed classes as original and fresh. I hate missing a my classes to watch these loads of crap. uh but I am not bitter.

Jade ranting mood today

[bourquetheman]

Well I too had mine just yesterday and I was very pleased with how the students did, and no I didn't script it out for them. The one I saw a couple months ago from one of our own teachers was very scripted and so utterly fake that I refused to ever have such a lesson, even if the judges thought it was very good.
Our school is also a model school and so we had 150-200 people yesterday show up to check our facilities and watch both the Chinese lesson and my English lesson. Four foreigners came and we all had a nice talk afterward and I got feedback from them about the classroom and suggestions they had.
I must say that I thought the lesson wouldn't be that interesting because the topic was a little bland in my opinion but the students surprised me and they blew the socks of the judges with their answers, discussion and debate. I will show them a movie next week to show my appreciation, I'm so proud of them. The Education board sent a camera team to video our class (3 cameras!) and I'm told it will be streamed on the internet website so other teachers can watch it.
It was a lot of stress and headache to prepare but now the stress is gone. At dinner last night I heard the principal wants to sign me for another year. Doubtful that I'll stay though as 2 weeks vacation a year is pitiful. Still I enjoy the school..................good luck to anyone else doing their open class.

[TheUrbanMyth]

Doing mine in a month or so. Before that I have to go to about four other schools in my area with a Korean co-teacher and watch some open classes. Then I am supposed to have a discussion with the teachers about teaching methods or some other such stuff. And no, I do not script my classes, the only reason I even know I have an open class is that I asked. No-one at my school seems to care.