Korean Job Discussion Forums

Goku · Joined: 10 Dec 2008

I'm somewhat humored, if not very amused that students feel like they have the power to choose.

I grew up in a very strict school. Old SKool - rulers and nuns.

Now I'm in a Korean Public School well renowned for disobedient spoiled kids. Even the TESOL classes at my school changed students because they couldn't handle it. This I find just too ironic because TESOL classes purposely pick the lowest and least attentive students to teach.... and it was "too much" for them.

I "asked" a girl to stand up. She had the gall to say no to me. This isn't a usual occurence but it has happened a few times.

To the say the least she was punished, but I'm just amazed at how bad the kids in school can be. I'm trying to change them little by little but it's proving more difficult as time passes. My rules on etiquette, behavior, it can't be etched into their heads after 1 class. I'd have to undo all the damage and then teach them proper models of behavior. An impossible task for me.

Is this just my school? I'm wondering if this is the norm, or am I just in a terrible bloody episode of the twilight zone.

(Yes I know this happens all around the world, kids are naughty, but I'm just wondering if my school just happens to be a helleva lot worse than others, I just need the comfort of complaining that Dave's can provide.

bundangbabo · Joined: 01 Jun 2008

For me - it took awhile to ge the classes behave and even then - some are better behaved than others. Then one day in around the 7th month - they just started to behave - which I think comes down to that until the kids get to know you (and possibly like you) then they will continue to test you.

I still have students trying to challenge me but it is rare - but you cannot win over every student... One thing that I think has worked for me is that everyday is a new day - if I bollocked someone over something then it is left there and then and I never ever hold a grudge... I think the Korean teachers tend to hold grudges so if you don't then the students are grateful.

Here is an excellent film every aspiring teacher should watch in my opinion...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSo95YU9XZk&feature=channel_page

Try and be like Mark Thackery! Razz

Adjumas Cheekbones · Joined: 26 May 2009 Location: director's pocket

dporter · Joined: 26 Apr 2009

Goku · Joined: 10 Dec 2008

1) Students have choices? Everyone has a choice and respect is a model of behavior they should be choosing. Those students also have choices to throw large blunt objects. Refusing a request from a teacher opens doors to complete chaos especially those are phrased politely (I requested quite politely and actually in a very motivating and friendly manner). If I allow a student to say no to my request, then all students will start saying no. In which case, I should just stop teaching and start buying daily gallons of baskin robbins to bring to class.

2) I stated my background as to do exactly that, provide a background. If I didn't no one would know what the context of my perspective is.

3) Why would you assume I beat them? I just came to her and told her what she did was improper (not really a punishment).

It's not a power struggle in this case. Rarely now a days do I try to struggle with my students I've been following the behavior of mr. Grimes from this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHzTUYAOkPM

The point thing, I've heard that works for some, but my students get excited and try to get the most points subtracted from them. Yes, they are that bizzare. In one game, I'd subtract points if they broke the rules. So they just started trying to break every single rule and lose as many points as they could.

mayorgc · Joined: 19 Oct 2008

Wow

I didn't know that writing -10 on the white board would make everything better.

I'm gonna do it more often from now on. A kid punches another kid in the face

-10 !!!!!

alphakennyone · Joined: 01 Aug 2005 Location: city heights

Nevermind dporter. I think we have a candidate for a new newbie-know-it-all.

Are you in the country yet, even?

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=155895

espoir · Joined: 09 Oct 2008 Location: Incheon, South Korea

bundangbabo · Joined: 01 Jun 2008

Countrygirl · Joined: 19 Nov 2007 Location: in the classroom

Many of the kids here are rude and spoiled.

We went out to dinner last night with a family I really like (I like the parents...not the kids). The younger brother stabbed his 7 year old sister's hand with a toothpick. Blood on the toothpick and scar on the hand. He got a 2 second hands-in-the-air time-out and then ran off again to play. You could see on his face that he didn't care.

The parents are good people, generous and kind, but their parenting style sucks. I've seen many examples like this. Toddler hitting the mother on the head with shoes and mother just shrugs her shoulders as if 'What can I do?'. Grandchild slapping grandmother when told "No".

I've seen rude kids back home but not as physically rude as they are here. I wonder if it's possible that spending your toddler years peeing in a bottle causes these deeply surpressed anger issues?

Yu_Bum_suk · Joined: 25 Dec 2004

Saying 'no' a lot is kind of an accepted part of teacher-student relations here, though regardless of how much they say no, outright defiance for certain things is not on. Yesterday my extra class was giving me the 'no, no, no' chorus over taking photos for our Thai pen-friends - that group just really hates being photographed. For stuff like that I wouldn't get too worked up, as it's a class on writing, not being photographed. However if students say 'no' and throw their pens down and flat out refuse to do something everyone is expected to do they've made a very big mistake.

For minor things instead of making a big deal out of it just learn where a few pressure-points are. There's one on the upper arm just below the shoulder that really hurst when skinny teenage arms get squeezed there. It can quickly make being defiant not worth-while.

dporter · Joined: 26 Apr 2009

ekul · Joined: 04 Mar 2009 Location: [Mod Edit]

We were playing a game involving countries and one team were called Jamaica but they refused to use the name. I asked why and they said because they were poor, which made me lol, so I told them if they answer the questions right Jamaica would get richer. After that they seemed happy.

The moral is similar to YBS, sometimes a no is harmless. I can also guess that Goku felt slighted by some kid because they said no to him which amuses me. YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!

ThingsComeAround · Joined: 07 Nov 2008

I look at them in the eye

say "Excuse me?" and repeat the command.

Then they do it Laughing

harlowethrombey · Joined: 17 Mar 2009 Location: Seoul

Deducting points is a good method if you're working with points.

I dont know about Goku, but I dont get to give or take away points from my students, they're only graded on the mid-terms and finals they take.

My students are generally quite good so I dont have many discipline problems.

But, this should be your co-teacher's forte. We are supposed to be native speaking 'experts' on the language (for whatever that's worth), but our co-teachers should carry out the discipline of students. So be real careful if you want to set your own inflexible, set-in-stone classroom rules and get into altercations when students dont follow them. You should continue leading the class while the KT deals with the problem student.