Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Beezo44]

I was wondering what some of the differences are for Public and private schools in Korea as it would pertain to us. Also, what are their schedules yearly? I noticed Public schools start in March and private school is year-round I assume. But what I am most curious about is how the kids who attend the english language schools schedules are put together. Do they go to public school during the day and then at night go to the language school?

[spliff]

I say ole chap do have a go w/ the search function, what?

[nobbyken]

Public schools are Govt. funded and may be covered in bureaucracy.
Elementary Principal could have been chosen by parents, and not on management skill.

Private schools are businesses, parents pay for good education. Private schools generally offer more vacation.

There are also private schools, which are called hagwons (academies). They can be attended by kids after school, adults, or kindergarden.

Go where your giftings lead you, and enjoy the trip.

[jvalmer]

Hagwons are not private schools.

Public and private schools are basically the same as far as a foreign teachers are concerned.

[blonde researcher]

Private schooling in Korea is nothing like we know it in my home country of USA

[bassexpander]

I worked for a private high school. It was still well over 90% government-funded, but owned by a family.

The basic difference for you, as a teacher, is that in privately-owned schools, the principal is King. They have the power, and teachers are fully at their whim. If the principal is good, then it's a good school. If the principal is bad, then it's a bad school.

I believe that unions are virtually non-existent at private schools (no union at mine, for sure, and if a Korean breathed such a thing, they were gone).

Korean Teachers must pass a very difficult test to teach at public schools, and no matter how well they do, only a certain number are accepted as public school teachers from that batch of test-takers. The ones who don't make it end up working at private schools or hagwons.

Now, you may immediately think that this means public schools provide a better education than private schools. Yes and no. Here's why:

Once a teacher secures a public school job, they are set. Many become complacent and don't work hard. Their classes, and the education level of the school, suffer as a result. They have the power of the almighty Korean Teachers Union behind them, allowing them to be lazy like everyone else. It's very difficult to remove a public school teacher from their position. In fact, in the case of the student beatings caught on cell phone, which have made national news in the past few years, none of them that I can remember have ended with the teacher losing their job.

At private schools, the rest of the teachers have to continuously work their butts off to prove their worth. They are in constant fear of not being renewed, or being fired. Removal of a teacher is easy. If they don't like you -- you're gone. Parental complaints can get a teacher fired quickly. Younger private school teachers also get stuck with lots of odd, stupid duties that school teachers shouldn't be forced to do so much of. I'm not sure that public school teachers have to put up with that.

I have also heard that people have to "buy" a private school job -- as in give the school several million won (15 million, last I heard) to secure a position at a private school. I'm not sure if this is true everywhere or not.

[nobbyken]

In public elementary schools, the principal is also to be viewed as king or queen.

I spoke with one Korean private high school teacher, and she said they go home after classes are done for the day; as opposed to sitting in class till 4:30.

[jvalmer]

[nobbyken]

At our public elemtary school, Korean teachers can ask the education office for a transfer every 3 years.

[normalcyispasse]

I work for a private elementary school. I find it vastly inferior in many situations to a public school.

Basically, while we don't have to teach the inane national elementary curriculum we do have to create our own curricula. We get less vacation on average than the public schools. The administration is absolutely terrible and is always, always, always concerned about money and how they can save money (read: get teachers to work overtime without paying overtime wages).

It's a pretty crappy gig, but that's only due to the administration. The school has a great reputation; if it were well-managed it would be a much nicer place to work, but since there's little government oversight wrt the foreigners here it's not so hot.

[Snowkr]

I work in a public high school and I can honestly say it's probably the easiest job I've ever had in my life in terms of "real work" aside from back in 1996 when I was paid a fortune to be a dinner pianist...

Anyway, public schools vary from region to region I'm sure, but in most public high schools, the students take so many exams that you will surely have cancelled classes every time you turn around.
Some places let you go... others, like mine, require you to stay until 4:30 (you can do whatever you like during this time).

Next week I'm teaching one 50 minute class. That's it.

Out of a forty hour work week with 22 contracted teaching hours, I'm teaching less than one hour and getting paid to sit around, play on the computer, watch movies, eat snacks and gossip with my co-workers or go out to lunch with the principal and his "pals" and take naps if I so choose.

Granted this will be finals week and not every other week will be this "eventful" but still... I truly feel that the amount we get paid to do what we do here is scandalous.

When I worked at a hogwan, I actually earned my salary. I also saw way more results with students...

[blonde researcher]

All Korean students are equally balloted into schools. They have no choice in what students they receive from the government ballot. The students are then balloted into classrooms as well. and Korean parents hate it as they have no choice for their children.

[jvalmer]