Korean Job Discussion Forums

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

I work at an after-school programme at an elementary school.

I've noticed something very frustrating and mind boggling about my elementary students from grades 1 - 3 at both this school and my previous school.

For a whole 4 months now EVERY CLASS I have to remind the kids that they actually have to LOOK at the book when we are studying.

For example - We're doing a listen and repeat exercise. Exercise A. Pictures of various characters pointing to themselves.

"Number 1." - "I'm Annie, I'm a girl. Number 2. 'I'm Digger, I'm a dog."

etc.

Well common sense tells you that you listen, whilst looking at the picture and that helps you understand what you're talking about.

But around 90% of the kids will just stare off into space or at the wall, poster, out the window and move their mouths up and down and make 'some sort of sounds' that don't respond to what they're hearing.

Likewise when we sing a song - the words are in the book and they CAN READ (I've even ran it through with them 4 or 5 times even before we attempt to sing it) instead of looking at the page and singing the song whilst looking at the words on the page - they'll stare into space and just make sounds up as they go along / or look at my mouth and try to imitate the sounds I'm making but as they're not actually reading the words they're mearely immitating sounds NOT COMPREHENDING what those sounds actually mean....

Now I run a good, happy classroom, maximum ten to a class and have been teaching 5 years and am a pretty good and fair teacher imo.


I have even spent the last 3 months making sure they point to the corresponding pictures (even teaching them what 'point' means by drills such as 'point to the door, point to the window, point to __________ teacher etc.)

So I'll say ok exercise A (whilst holding up my book and showing them where it is. Point to number one. 'Cat, cat.'

And of course they'll look anywhere but the book and some will say 'cat' and some will say Lord Knows What.

Is this universal amongst elementary students the world over??? I seem to remember I had much better study skills at this age....

Unique to Korea? Is it because of how they're taught by TV in the classroom these days so they have no attention span to look at books as they're less stimulatiing...?

What is going on here??? I mean 4 bloody months of trying to train them how to study 5 days a week - AND THEY STILL DON'T GET IT!!!!!!!!!

[Rusty Shackleford]

I've spent whole lessons just on "Turn to page.....".

One week later, "OK, everyone TURN.......TO.....PAGE.........FORT.....TY.......FOUR". Net result, stunned silence.

[crossmr]

So apparently you've never interacted with a group of children age 6-9 prior to now?

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I sometimes have to go down the row pointing to every other student 'fill in number one, fill in number one, number one, number one' pointing at the spot on the page ... in my third-year high school classes. So it never really ends.

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

[blackjack]

I find I have to write it on the board and point to the word on the board. If they can read it helps not to say the word first, just point at it

[crossmr]

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

[mayorgc]

i think that guy is just angry cuz you are putting Koreans down.

anyways, yes, my Grade 3 and grade 4 kids are pretty much the same. Tell them to turn to a page and you get them staring into space. The only way to get them to do anything is to go to each of them one by one and instruct them.

But to be fair, I do have some really good kids in the class, mixed with the kids who really don't want to be there.

Is it the same in Canada? Probably not, because in Canada, the kids understand english. In korea, it just sounds like gibberish to them, so they don't turn to the page or pay attention.

But some understand english and still act half retarded, so who knows.

[Zantetsuken]

[crossmr]

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

[crossmr]

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

[mld]