Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Smee]

Jesus Tapdancing Christ, this guy's a retard.

[thegadfly]

Um...seems like he is suggesting that foreign teachers should try to understand the philosophy underlying behavior in Korea...the fact that students may not be AWARE that their attitudes are shaped by Confucianism doesn't really matter. Ask a student about the teachings of Confucius and you may get blank stares, but start discussing the appropriate behavior in many situations and they will give answers that mirror those teachings. It helps a teacher to be effective if he or she understands his or her students...Confucianism is pretty foreign to many westerners (who have internalized the Socratic method of teaching and learning without realizing it, which can be at odds with the Confucian attitudes displayed by many students). Reading a few books about a major cultural/philosophical/moral influence seems like a good idea...using that knowledge to more effectively communicate your ideas to your students seems like an even better idea.

Retard? Naw...you just don't like some of the words that he chose to use in order to show how emphatically he believes in his message. The diction in the article is a bit...melodramatic? I will grant that, but the message is definitely valid...solid advice.

[the_beaver]

[Ya-ta Boy]

The writer might try convincing (former president) Kim Dae-Jung that Confucianism ought to stay in Korea. The prez was all for dumping it. It was never clear just how much he wanted to toss out, but he was open about reducing Confucian influence.

[The Lemon]

[mateomiguel]

can we do that for natives too? If you don't read up, onto the plane. shoo!

[RACETRAITOR]

I do a pretty good job of trying to understand how things work here, but Confucianism causes more harm than help. Confucianism is not the way to cultural understanding.

[JongnoGuru]

sig line fodder.

[SuperHero]

[billybrobby]

I think incoming teachers should read Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations



...while listening to Lee Hyori at high volumes.

[jinju]

Confuscius is one of the most evil men in history. His "philosophy" has brought nothing but pain and suffering for most.

[Jamin]

Underlying a fairly badly worded opinion is a kernal of truth.

I think it would do teachers in Korea some good to spend some time trying to understand Confucism. How many of us can say that we actually studied and understand the philosophy the underpins this culture?

To live here successfully, one of our goals must be to understand what shapes a Korean's view of the world. That doesn't mean finding what is wrong with those philosophies; doing so is simply another form of cultural imperialism. Let's face it, Koreans don't care if we agree with these cultural matrix but not attempting to intergrate into that matrix will only lead to our own frustation; Korea will simply continue functioning as it has always done so.

Take a some time and study a little. I made the effort and I can more appreciate and understand both a Koreans and my own world view that much better.

[thegadfly]

Actually, The Lemon, I think cultural literacy would be important for Koreans who are coming to teach in US schools as well, and I have no problems with your brief list...though I think that in addition, they should be passingly familiar with the Bible, Greek and Roman Mythology, some popular culture icons besides the Beatles, and probably about a few hundred other things. The thing is, a lot of Koreans HAVE studied these things...my students know a lot more about Athena and Zeus than I knew about Heung-bu and Nol-bu when I first came here...they knew that Apollo was the god of the Sun and Artemis the goddess of the moon, and that they were brother and sister, but I didn't know that the SUN is the sister and the MOON is the brother in Korea (they traded places -- initially the sister was the moon, but she became too self-conscious about being stared at, so she took the sun's place, because no one stares directly at the sun...).

Cultural literacy does NOT mean you have to AGREE with what you know, you just have to know about it...there are things with which adult Americans are expected, by society, to have at least a passing familiarity. If you have never heard of Hemingway, don't know who Romeo or Juliet were, never heard of the Ten Commandments...well, you must be living under a rock. Ya dun have to LIKE the stuff, ya just has ta know it exists.

(I said "Americans" because cultural literacy differs by country...though there may be some overlap between what Australians, Canadians, Americans, and other "westerners" ought to know, I wouldn't presume to paint 'em all with the same brush.)

So where do you start acquiring Korean cultural literacy? Korean fables and the writings of Confucius aren't a bad start, but are probably inadequate...so I would say that it would not be enough to just read the few things mentioned in the article.

[The Lemon]

The "Lonely Planet" is another one of the timeless classics.

[xtchr]