Korean Job Discussion Forums

TOGirl · Joined: 16 Jan 2006 Location: Seoul

I have been at my preschool/kindy for about 7 weeks now. I teach a class of 5 years old and one of them has complained that my class is boring.

This lead to a discussion with the other Korean English teachers as apparently my director was too chicken to tell me. So one kid complains that he's bored and then all of a sudden it goes to some of the Korean teachers that have complained too. Apparently my classes need to be more fun and games which is completely fine except one of the teachers told me no games and nothing that involves getting up from their chairs.

I have no problem doing as they request but I was reminded that the ballet teacher has been replaced 3 times for not being up to par. I realize that if my teaching is not good that I should be replaced but it just feels like a hasty comment since its only been 7 weeks and this is the first I have heard of anything being wrong.

I am also the only foreigner in a school where 99% of the teachers don't speak English and so no one talks to me. I guess now I just feel like I'm being ganged up on since the Korean English teachers insisted that their classes are perfectly fine.

I just think since its only been a short period of time and there is no curriculum to follow, I have had to design my own, that they could allow a little room for error and not jump down my throat at the first sign of a problem.

Maybe I'm just being sensitive!!

krisinkorea · Joined: 16 Mar 2006 Location: Not too far from Seoul

Maybe, I am just cranky with Korea given my current situation. Words of advice....Koreans never know what the hell they mean. One day, it's this way and the next day it's this. If it's anything like our school, no curriculum, will take it's toll on your mind after 4 months. Oh and don't worry, cuz they'll probably change your classes around like every second week so that bored kid will be replaced.

My biggest advice. Do what I did? Research better jobs right now and prepare for the day you either want to leave or you're made to leave the school. That's what I did. So you're not completely surprised by anything.

And I feel for you. I'm the only foreign girl in this whole city. Just be thankful your in Seoul. When those Korean teachers tick you off, atleast you can go find more foreigners to go blow some steam off after work.
Wink

TheUrbanMyth · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Location: Retired

alabamaman · Joined: 25 Apr 2006

Dan The Chainsawman · Joined: 05 May 2005

Yo! Keep it Real!!

Kickem in the JUNK!

TOGirl · Joined: 16 Jan 2006 Location: Seoul

Thanks for the reply and I will look into the book. I got quiet a few ideas from the teachers discussion forum for games and songs and stuff so hopefully these will improve my classes.

The person that told me about the parent is the head english teacher. There are about 10 korean teachers and I am unsure which ones complained about me...the head teacher seemed unwilling to share specifics which makes things difficult (it may or may not have been the korean teacher who said no standing up activities??).

I am thinking that I will change the format of my classes around and then next week go back to the head teacher and ask for some feedback.

It just feels like i'm working in the dark since no one provides any specific details or has any input, and I hate feeling threatened!!! Confused

philipjames · Joined: 03 Feb 2003

Get used to the nonsense. I had a hogwan owner come to me one day with a parental complaint. It was basically that I was 'eating in class.' I was actually teaching the children to ask and order food. So I had bought a few tangerines for the children to offer each other.

Two days later the same hogwan owner came to me with another parental complaint. A parent was upset with me for "not letting their children eat snacks in class!" And he delivers this second complaint to me qwith a straight face. In other words, I must let children eat potato chips ion class and distract every other student; but under no circumstances bring food into class for educational purposes.

I swear that Korea's five thousand years of inventing nothing whatsoever has estroyed milions of their brain cells. Do NOT expect logic or reasoning from them.

That way you'll be much happier in Korea.

TheUrbanMyth · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Location: Retired

Lizara · Joined: 14 Apr 2004 Location: Seoul

Without knowing the specific nature of the complaint, it's hard to know how to improve your classes. If one kid complained of boredom and all the others are happy, then you're doing just fine. If by "some teachers" they meant one disgruntled Korean teacher, then you're most likely still doing just fine.

My school does this to us too. I think the last one was, "Some parents have been complaining that their kids don't understand the homework, so make sure everybody understands the homework." Yeah, because we don't already do that Rolling Eyes

If they'd say something more specific, like, "Lizara Teacher, Sam's mother called and said he doesn't understand the homework" then I could do something about it, but since they didn't, all I can do is exactly what I have been doing all along. Really, I know I'm not the world's best teacher and I know I could improve in a lot of ways and I'm quite happy to receive constructive, helpful criticism, but something like, "Someone said your class is boring" is not very enlightening.

Anyway, my advice is to try to find out more specifically what the complaint was about. If they won't tell you, then don't worry about it. I doubt they'll fire you... and if they do... well, I hear a lot of schools are having trouble finding teachers these days...

I'm not that good with five year olds. I've noticed ours have an attention span of about five minutes (ten on a good day) so that, for me, means I need at least four or five different activities for them per class. So, if possible and if you're not already doing so, make sure you have enough planned for far more time than you have to teach them, and then if they're not interested in something you can move on to something else.

Dan The Chainsawman · Joined: 05 May 2005

5 minute attention span is pretty much true for most males up to the age of 35.

The Bobster · Joined: 15 Jan 2003

rothkowitz · Joined: 27 Apr 2006

Parents don't even know what they're complaining about....and when the school starts presenting these to you instead of dealing with them themselves...it can potentially get a bit iffy,as korean mums are hardcore about their kids education...yet totally whimsical about the best way to do it.

I don't envy you.Perhaps.....just keep the kids happy and make education secondary to some degree.

ie,don't impose your will on them in terms on what you think they should be able to do...just go with what they're comfortable with and try to slip in some extra details/material here and there.

I don't know...I despised hagwons.

Big_Bird · Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 4:39 pm Post subject:

philipjames · Joined: 03 Feb 2003

Urban Myth, no question the last part of my comment was rediculous. Me was drunk last night and in an unpleasant mood. Feeling stupid.

Anyway, back to the matter of hogwan complaints. Grrr. That's why I left hogwans. Owners would bring every teeny, tiny complaint to the teachers' attention. Have they no idea what this does to the teachers' morale? The problem is that hogwans are businesses and money driven. I'm at a public school now and haven't had a single parental complaint brought to me. Parents can't exactly pull their kids out of public school.

After you finish your contract you should look into the public school system. No parental complaints. Great c;lassroom. Half the hours. I'll never set foot in a hogwan again. I loved the kids, hated the petty complaints.

I hope things work out for you. Being in a bad hogwan situation can be a terrible experience.

Jameson

C.M. · Joined: 02 Dec 2005 Location: Gangwondo

Agreed. The owner brought to my attention the complaint of a student (read: customer) a while ago. He treated the matter quite seriously. I pressed for specifics, and when told it was how I conducted a recent game of Scrabble, I almost lost it. Keeping my temper and incredulity in check, I advised him that this matter was not worth discussing. Such is the case, I think, with most complaints; not worth serious attention from anyone. He treated it seriously because it represented a possible threat to his bank account. I try and let "complaints" slide right off me. Nine times out of ten they are pointless and groundless, no matter if they are lodged by a student or a parent.