Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Catullus]

First of all, I think that being a tattletale shows a weakness in character. I think that children most often tell on each other because they think that they will appear as a really well-behaved student, and therefore feel that they have reaped some benefit from seeing someone else get into trouble. This is a bad attitude. Do Koreans generally share this sentiment?

How do you handle tattletales in your classroom? I want to dissuade children from being tattletales, but I also feel that I can not simply overlook the actions of the student who has broken the rules. How do I admonish the tattletale and still uphold the rules of the classroom?

[Kikomom]

Let Virgil be your guide:

[cruisemonkey]

I punish both the tattletale (they know why) and the wrongdoer (if there's more than heresay evidence).

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I think it's cute. Sometimes students will just point at someone who's doing something naughty or sleeping. For really serious things, however, they'll usually stay mum.

[Tjames426]

I only interfere when it disrupts the Teacher/ Student learning process.

Student pointing a finger, "Teacher, he hit me!." I look at the offending student and asked, "He did?" Student yells, "Yes!" I answer, "Good!"

"Teacher, Jungwu hit me!"
"Hit him back, you whimp"

[kittykoo]

I have found this to be one of the major cultural differences between Westerners and Asians. Just like the cheating phenomenon, tattling is something that seems normal and natural to Korean kids and I even find it holds over into adulthood. Western children on the other hand, learn early that tattling is very much frowned upon and it is a matter of pride and dignity to resist the temptation to do so. Past the age of 10 or so very few Western children, in my experience, would be caught dead ratting out a friend, or even an enemy, and those who do are promptly labeled scum.

[Scott in Incheon]

I have always thought that this is one of the biggest problems with our culture. This idea is betting to let the guilty go free than 'rat' on someone. This code of silence is a major reason so many crimes go unsolved and neighbourhood crime is so high.

You don't want people 'ratting you out', don't go breaking any laws.

I saw a piece on this on 60 minutes once. In many neighbourhoods, everyone knows who did it, but no one talks to the police. It just seems wrong.

[Hanson]

Even worse for me is the student who, at the end of class, says:

"Teacher, you forgot to give us homework."

Buddha, how I dislike that.

[A2Steve]

[moosehead]

I totally sympathize with the OP on this one - chronic tattlers bug me no end but sometimes they are the best ones to ask when you need to know what's going on - why someone is crying or not in class, whatever.

I try to discourage the unimportant and emphasize its ok to tell if it's important, like someone is fighting, who started it.

if I'm writing on the board, or otherwise not looking and someone pipes up "Su bin Korean talk" I look dead on at the tattler and tell them to "Stop Tattling!!" then very nicely say "Su bin English please" and everyone is ok with that.

if a girl complains someone is bothering her too much I teach them to say "Don't touch me" or "Don't bother me" and it's great to hear them assert theirselves in English !!

I think if it's anything really important, they will decide amongst themselves whether to tell the FT or not - I honestly don't think they are doing more than trying to show off their E ability for the most part.

try not to let them manipulate you, they are children and they will definitely try!

[aka Dave]

If a student is hectoring you over trivial things another student is doing, that's one thing. However, if a student assaults another student and all the students keep quiet, that's another, and it's unnacceptable.

Cheating occurs in Korea, and in fact the students will not tell on their classmates, even very otherwise honorable students. I've had my Uni. students tell me that cheating is occuring in classes and they could never tell on their collegues.

That's reprehensible. I mean, I don't necessarily think they should "rat them out" (a mafia expression, used by murderers) right off the bat. I think they should go to them and discuss why they're compelled to cheat, but to also say they if they do it again they'll anonymously alert the professor.

Cheating at the University lvl is indefensible. My first year of Uni, the first thing they did was put us in a big room and told us if we cheated, not only would we be expelled but we could never attend Uni. again.

These Korean kids told me they were cheating via text messages, etc.

If they can't bring themselves to turn in the cheater, at the very least they should confront them and say "in the long run, you're only cheating yourself". Most of them have to past tests to get whatever job they're aiming at.

[Col.Brandon]

A recent scientific study found that kids who tell tales are almost always telling the truth and that the tale-teller has usually suffered at the hands of the offending party several times before they can't stand it anymore, snap, and complain to an adult.

The study concluded what has already been mentioned above - that kids soon learn that they can't rely on adults to back them up when they're told not to tell tales.

Kind of a sad lesson to learn.