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pocariboy73
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
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 Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 1:12 am Post subject: ATEK's BIG news! The successful launch... |
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HOT OFF THE PRESS in today's (March 11) Korean Herald....
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Foreign ESL teachers launch association
A group of foreign teachers launched an association yesterday to support the interests of English instructors in Korea.
The Association for Teachers of English in Korea said it also aims to enhance the quality of English education and help their employers understand the specific needs of English instructors.
The first main project of ATEK is a campaign protesting a proposed revision of rules that requires drug and HIV tests for only E-2 (foreign language instructors) visa applicants.
The "Equal Checks for All" campaign calls for equal testing procedures for English instructors holding other visas such as E-1 (professorship), F-2 (spouse of a Korean) or F-4 (ethnic Korean) visas.
By Kim So-hyun
([email protected]) |
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The Cosmic Hum
Joined: 09 May 2003
Location: Sonic Space
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 3:27 am Post subject: hmm |
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isn't this old news?
or is someone having fun pointing out the checks again?
hmm...and what happened to my ATEK thread?  |
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pocariboy73
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 3:58 am Post subject: |
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A day which will go down in history...
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/03/117_41083.html
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English Instructors Start Network Against Discrimination
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter
The Association for Teachers of English in Korea (ATEK) was officially launched Wednesday to promote the interests of 25,000 English instructors here.
``We need information that helps us understand, protects our rights and gives us better access to services, improves our teaching, and makes living and working in Korea more convenient,�� its President Tom Rainey-Smith, 27, said at a press conference at the Seoul Global Center.
ATEK is the only organization of its kind in Korea and all three founding board members are working teachers, including Vice President Jason Thomas. They have worked about one year for ATEK, which legally is not a union but a volunteer-based professional association that will soon start recruiting members. Membership is open and it plans to open chapters across the country in the coming months. ``We will be accepting membership from any legally employed foreign English teacher,�� said Jason Thomas, an ATEK membership director. ``We look forward to hearing from the full spectrum of the community.��
Teachers can join by visiting the ATEK Web site where they can either contact their local chapter or leave information so the chapter contacts them.
Membership benefits include temporary accommodation assistance for teachers summarily terminated, and access to a Korean labor attorney. Its web site offers software that allows teachers who don't speak Korean to send letters to students� parents, written in Korean, to serve as progress reports. The site also has an employer rater.
``We are not a union, we are a volunteer-based, non-profit organization,�� said ATEK spokesman Tony Hellmann, 33. ``But we hope that with a unified voice, we will also be able to counter some of the negative public perceptions surrounding the profession in Korea.��
The association is promoting an ``Equal Checks for All�� campaign saying it is discriminatory for E-2 visa holders to go through drug and HIV tests. ``The government mandates that Korean public school teachers undergo a criminal background check and academic degree verification,�� said Hellmann. ``We believe all teachers should have the same standard that Korean teachers have: no drug tests and no HIV check.��
The organization has urged teachers to file discrimination complaint to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea.
It plans various projects such as partnership with the Seoul Global Center, raising funds for English teachers in need, and youth protection workshops.
ATEK will conduct a series of surveys at its web site (www.atek.or.kr) to raise awareness of the conditions of expatriate English teachers in Korea, such as about salaries and welfare.
``There are some misunderstandings and conflicts caused by cultural differences. We hope this association helps foreign teachers communicate well with the authorities and have a good experience in Korea,�� an official of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.
[email protected] |
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The Cosmic Hum
Joined: 09 May 2003
Location: Sonic Space
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 4:10 am Post subject: |
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| The Association for Teachers of English in Korea (ATEK) was officially launched Wednesday to promote the interests of 25,000 English instructors here. |
let us guess...you were misquoted again???
At least this time they wrote of...and not for...now you will be able to demand that retraction that was so obviously denied to you, despite your best efforts, when you were last misquoted.  |
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wylies99
Joined: 13 May 2006
Location: I'm one cool cat!
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 4:48 am Post subject: |
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| The Cosmic Hum wrote: |
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| The Association for Teachers of English in Korea (ATEK) was officially launched Wednesday to promote the interests of 25,000 English instructors here. |
let us guess...you were misquoted again???
At least this time they wrote of...and not for...now you will be able to demand that retraction that was so obviously denied to you, despite your best efforts, when you were last misquoted. |
Your point is...?  |
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FUBAR
Joined: 21 Oct 2003
Location: The Y.C.
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 5:03 am Post subject: |
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| Wonder when these fools will get themselves deported or worse. |
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T-J
Joined: 10 Oct 2008
Location: Seoul EunpyungGu Yeonsinnae
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 5:18 am Post subject: |
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I can understand why their web site was down yesterday in preparation for the launch of their new web site. It looks much better by the way.
What I don't understand is Tony's response yesterday as to why the site was down:
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The site crashed from the surge in bandwidth. That's probably the most honorable way to go down, so I thank the ESL community for being interested enough in the book to take us out!
Downtime was less than 24 hours.
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Really?
A true crisis of integrity is emerging. |
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Ruraljuror
Joined: 08 Dec 2007
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 7:00 am Post subject: |
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Does anyone else remember Tony saying that the big announcement would answer everyone's question about ATEK's organizational structure? He promised it would talk about why ATEK was initially set-up as a "business with a sole proprietor" and now supposedly no longer is so according to Tony.
So um...is ATEK registered as a business? Does it have a sole proprietor? If so, who is the sole proprietor? If not, what prompted the changes in organizational structure from the original plan? Is this due to Chicken's legal assault?
Considering that he pretty much answered every question posed to him about ATEK for the past two weeks with the answer: "I can't answer that right now, please wait for our big announcement which will answer everyone's questions", I'm finding this big announcement more than a little bit underwhelming. Anyone else have any questions that the announcement failed to address? |
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Dimitris Stylianos
Mod Team
Joined: 05 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 5:23 pm Post subject: |
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| Please reply on stickied threads. |
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