Korean Job Discussion Forums

[digahbleh]

im just looking for some honest advice and information on wonderland schools. i know people have said they can't speak about such and such schools but here is my situation. I have an offer from the chain. Im not planning on going until the spring and so i don't know which one they will be offering me. i know it is a chain and as such, each school is independently run. However, i would just like to know what people who have had exerience with the chain would say about it, or people who know people who have had experiences would say about it. I really would appreciate any info. I know there is some bad press about them but i do see some conflicting comments and experiences. Can you help me?
thanks

[hogwonguy1979]

2 words (actually 4)

stay away from wonderland

[garykasparov]

I don't know what chain is worse, (S)lave (L)abor (P)rostitution or Wondercrotch? Work there at your own risk. The way the crap-won industry is going, you should consider a public school job. That's my take on the matter.

[merkurix]

I was once a Wonderland vict . . . . erm . . . product and I will only say this: it really, really depends on what the owner is like. They guy I worked for was only interested in making money, but didn't treat us horribly (but there was a lot of pointless tasks). But be wary that from what I have read, I was lucky (relatively speaking); a lot of WL owners are not only interested in making money, but they can make your life miserable there.

As a whole, WL has a really bad reputation, period. The good WLs are few and far between; most of them are actually bad places to work.

Your best bet is to Google the name of the WL preceded by the city you will be working at (i.e. Seodaegu Wonderland, Mokdong Wonderland, etc.) and see if they made any blacklists (take the blacklists with a grain of salt too; just like there are irrational bosses, there are also irrational teachers too).

There is also an interesting read about the system by Jane Keeler called Prisoners of Wonderland which specifically talks about an absolute worst-case scenario WL school she experienced. It used to be available online, but it appears you have to now buy it in bookform. It's an interesting read nonetheless.

You may also want to chime in and listen to what some posters have to say about the WL franchise system. Perhaps if you give the city's name, you might have some people who may have worked there before.

[kprrok]

[merkurix]

[Chris2007]

I met someone this year who works at Wonderland somewhere in Jeongja. Maybe someone knows more about that branch? It didn't sound great, but didn't sound bad either. Still, I'd be cautious.

[pest2]

Even if u end up in a 'good Wonderland', the work you do will be frustrating. They put kids as young as 2 years old with no English skills whatsoever into classes with only a native speaker who speaks no Korean.. 12 kids running around the class like wild animals and no way to communicate with them. What do you think that kind of job will be like? From what I've heard about it (because I didnt work there but a few people I've know have), its nearly impossible to teach them anything because they're just too young to learn English formally and they're not constantly in an English speaking environment so it doesnt work as 'immersion learning' either. The school director will make you and the Korean teachers force the kids to memorize simple plays and skits -- the words of which the kids have absolutely no understanding about -- to impress the parents. The parents are mostly middle to upper middle class who have the money to spend on such a thing... Additionally, the Wonderland chain will have you doing other stuff you WONT do at other hakwons or at a public school job such as calling the kids at home -- between your regular classes, no less -- to help them practice.

OP, after all the inputs you now have regarding Wonderland, if u still decide to work there, please dont complain about it in 2 months when you are ready to quit. You have been warned!