Korean Job Discussion Forums

[IncognitoHFX]

So, today I had a few classes. One class was all boys, the other was all girls.

The general trend is, the worst girl's classes behave, participate and learn more than the best boy's classes. Even the lowest level girl's classes seem to pick up the material and use it more effectively than the highest boy's only classes, and in the classes I have that are split (half and half), I look to the girl's side of the class for all the answers because the boys are mostly trying to sleep, making backhanded comments or rough housing with each other.

While I understand some of this because I am a guy, the divide in Korean schools is quite a bit wider than I anticipated when I started working here. Why is this? I know this is a common perception of High School kids, too.

Why do the boy's classes lag so far behind the girl's classes?

When I held summer camps with voluntary attendence, 95% of the participants were girls. When I did have boys in my summer camps, I couldn't even get them to talk to the girls and the only talking I noticed between the two groups was when one of the boys was begging a girl to buy him cigarettes in Korean.

Anyone?

[Juregen]

There is enough statistic research done that always says the same

Girls alone do well, boys alone do bad.

Girls mixed do slightly less well then girls alone.
Boys mixed with girls do significantly better then boys alone.

And still there are more men in academics then women .....

[Yu_Bum_suk]

It seems that different teachers at different schools have very different impressions of how boys do versus girls, and I suspect the catchment areas of various schools have something to do with it. You said you work at a vocational high school, right? There may be a much better boys vocational HS nearby that attracts more boys with aptitude for learning certain things. There may be an extremely low level girls technical HS nearby that takes in more of the really dumb ones.

My high school takes in most of the girls for a typical Korean hick town. We lose about half of the top 10% who go to schools in nearby cities and a few of the bottom 50% who go to nearby vocational schools that offer programmes our school doesn't. The range in ability and interest is enormous. I'd put the best classes I've taught up against any university class but I'd challenge the greatest bilingual EFL teacher in Korea to accomplish much of anything with a couple of the worst classes I've taught.

[IncognitoHFX]

I teach at a regular school, non-vocational. It's one of the top ranked in my city as well. Which is why some of the classes are more than mind boggling

[oldfatfarang]

It's been a long, long time since I visited these theories, but hopefully someone here with the latest can help us.

Isn't it widely accepted that, generally, girls' brain function helps them with language acquisition - whereas boys brain function helps with mathematical/logical stuff (i.e., mylien sheath thickness - right-side vs. left-side brain use).

And aren't boys 2 years behind girls (in cognitive developement) at some stage?????

Most Korean public school boys I taught believed they needed a second language like a fish needs a bike.