Korean Job Discussion Forums

[retrogress]

Union Surprise Victory

The teacher�s union in Hwa Seol Myeon in Northern Gyongbuk Province was granted a small victory by the local Office of Education. For years, teachers at rural schools have complained that extra-curricular tasks have made their work stressful, without enough time for lesson planning. Rural schools often assign non-teaching work to teachers because the schools haven�t the budget to hire persons to do jobs such as trimming the hedges and saving dragonflies which have unwittingly made their way into the classroom building. In a surprise decision the Office of Education passed a new policy aimed at giving teachers more time to do work related to teaching. Though teachers will have to continue doing menial tasks, from next semester teachers will not have to teach classes which students are considered able to teach themselves. Classes which may be abandoned include: arts and crafts, computer science and health and hygiene. In addition, special classes such as wood working, cooking and sex education may be left up to the students to work out. Most teachers welcomed the change sighting that it would make their job much more enjoyable.

At Il-bum Elementary School, woodworking students were getting an early taste of the new policy. A boy who gave his name as Giho stood with one foot in a chair and one on his desk stabilizing a small piece of plywood. In his hand he wielded a 2 foot long tree saw. �I like this new freedom to create what we like.� When asked what he was building, he replied simply, �I don�t know yet.� A girl nearby expressed some frustration when a roofing nail split her plywood. �Ssitpuck!� she exclaimed. She sighed, wiped her brow and then added, �But I�m learning a lot and all on my own.�

Their teacher, sitting behind his desk seemed content as well. When asked what he thought of the new policy, he replied, �Anything that will get Naver turned back on is fine with me.�

Substance Abuse Issue Resolved

While the foreign teaching community is becoming the target of accusations concerning marijuana use, the Korean teaching community has too been facing similarly unpleasant issues.

Recently, teachers at Anoeemee Gun in Gyeongnam Province have found themselves at the heart of a scandal involving soju drinking at work. It seems that several of the teachers and local staff have come to rely on the popular Korean wine as a way of getting through the daily stresses of teaching and bowing down to the principal. When word got out that they were being pressured by the non-drinking faculty some contradictions naturally arose. To settle the matter, a new policy requires all persons employed by the school to drink on the job. Officials could only feel sympathy for those unfairly criticized for dealing with their stress in a healthy way. An official called Park was quoted as saying, �so in order to protect the identities of the original boozers, it is required that all staff become boozers.�

When non-drinking faculty and staff complained, officials said that as long as there was alcohol on their breath at the end of the work day, they would see no repercussions. Officials hinted that simply washing one�s mouth out with soju would suffice but this would be on a �no ask, no tell� policy.



Sports Day Gears Up!

This fall, sports day at Ha Yi Tek Myeon in Kang Won Do Province will see some of the first changes in more than 72 years. Local teachers decided that the student teacher relay was somewhat outdated and old fashioned.

In the competition, students start on one side of the field and race to the other side. Along the way, they pick up a piece of paper with the name of a teacher. As they arrive at the opposite side of the field, they find the teacher and then proceed back around the field to where they started, with the teacher in tow. Usually, the male teachers take part in this event, and since most are drunk the fair poorly. During a recent meeting it was the ajoshis who commanded the floor and pushed the new plan into reality.

The new event, coined Campus Rally-thon involves a high speed race though the village ending at the school parking lot. In what promises to be a thrilling event, teachers, school staff and fathers of students will reach neck breaking speeds as the swerve around tractors, bus stops, old ladies pushing baby carriages and other obstacles. The highlight of the course is a sharp right turn just inside the school gates and an immediate left near the swings. Though nobody says so openly, several people have hinted that the possibility of a rollover was high, and local area officials are hoping that some tourism revenue might eventually come out of the event.

[mysterious700]

Sources, young man, sources! Otherwise we are no better than them. Back up what you say.

[Kikomom]

[fermentation]