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CarolinaTHeels
Joined: 07 Apr 2011
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 Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 6:58 am Post subject: Pre School 9am-5pm or Elem 1pm-9pm |
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Before I learned about Slingbox I was dead set on the 1pm-9pm kind of schedule as It would allow me to watch my fav sports team early in the morning. But now with the Slingbox I will be able to watch them anytime I choose eliminating that initial need for the night schedule.
So now i need to decided between the two.
Generally speaking id prefer the 9am-5pm schedule as it would give me more time in the day and night to have a "normal life/schedule".
With the pre school kids I would have to teach various subjects other than English. Does the Hagwon provide these lessons generally?
Im pretty laid back and flexible when It comes to my working conditions. I dont take anything to serious and understand its a job. So I feel like I would do fine with pre school and elem kids.
Plus side to the 1pm-9pm is that id get to sleep in, but on the flip side im not going to be staying out extremely late during the week.
What are your guys thoughts on this?? |
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Skippy
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Daejeon
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:40 am Post subject: |
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Good points and bad points debated endlessly here on the board. My general opinion is go 1 to 9. Why? Because unless you have the specific something - Kindergarten and preschool kids drive me mad. I just can not do it. I can teach grade 1 and up - no problem but give me 15 4 years with the a minute attention span and I will be drinking heavily within a week.
Other little benefits - You actually get a better chance to do things during the day like hit the bank, get groceries, etc. With the 9 to 5 it gets a little harder to get to the bank or visit the dentist. Next, - afternoon is more block time. Meaning you work straight 1 to whenever. 9 to 5 sometimes ends up all over the place. With lunch breaks and extended hours till maybe 7, etc. Schools can really dickr about hours worked and that. And during those in between times you can be expected to wait at school.
Some basic advice is be careful not to fall into the afternoon hagwon culture of teaching till 9pm, drinking to till late like 4am or 5am and then dragging your self to class at 1am - hungover.
Good Luck |
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CarolinaTHeels
Joined: 07 Apr 2011
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 8:02 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for the reply.
Extended hours?!? If I take the 9:30am - 5:30pm gig I will have to make sure there wont be any "extended hours". I aint working no more than 8 hrs in a given day. |
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Skippy
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Daejeon
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 8:30 am Post subject: |
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| CarolinaTHeels wrote: |
Thanks for the reply.
Extended hours?!? If I take the 9:30am - 5:30pm gig I will have to make sure there wont be any "extended hours". I aint working no more than 8 hrs in a given day. |
Of course not! But you have to understand how Korean schools and bosses calculate hours! You have to be in the office at 8:30 for prep. It can be an hour or half an hour if you are lucky. But remember this is not paid but your are required to do it. Okay now you start teaching. Lets say 3 classes each 50 minutes with a 10 minute break in between. So you think 3 hours - Nope you just taught 2 and half hours. Sorry in between break times do not count as work hours. Now it is lunch time - You are off the clock and boy your are hungry - that Japanese restaurant looks goods. Umm where are you going? Sorry you have to stay here you can not leave the school. We will order lunch for you - OH you wanted Doncass(pork cutlet) sorry all the teachers are getting Bibimbap we will get you some too. Oh by the way can you please watch the kids and help feed them - oh can you cook too. Wow lunch is over was that not restful. What do you mean for you that was working no you do not get paid for that that was break time. Back to class. Oh sorry umm no class ready yet for you. You have to wait. Where are you going - no you can not go to the ATM you have to mark these tests aka sit on your hands. Okay now you have 3 classes again. But they only count as 2 and a half hours. So finally it's 5 o'clock. Umm hold on this school also teaches Elementary school students too. They are not here yet they will be here at 5:30 and then you have to teach one more class. So finally around 6:30 you are finished. You think I have worked from 8 to 6:30 that is 10 and half hours at the school but in reality you taught 6 hours opps sorry actually you taught 5 hours and 50 minutes. Times that by 5 days and 5 weeks you have a typical 120 hour contract. Never mind about that 10 minutes break they will get that extra class some other time maybe on a Saturday.
Remember things are not always 9 to 5. There will be other duties and responsibilities. Things like breaks and lunch time and preparation MAY repeat MAY not count towards any final pay or total of hours. Each school is different. Just be aware things are done differently here in Korea. An example in Korean work ethic it is expected that workers stay until the boss leaves. So if your boss is there till 9pm they have to wait ill 9 pm even if they have no work to do. You as a foreigner may get leeway and be able to go. But bosses/owners might expect that of you.
You can get similar crap with afternoon hagwons but some of the preschool and Kindergarten schools can be very restrictive. Me I found less hassles and that with afternoon and evening.
Public school is similar to Kindergarten with some minor differences.
Last edited by Skippy on Thu Jun 02, 2011 8:50 am; edited 1 time in total |
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CarolinaTHeels
Joined: 07 Apr 2011
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 8:48 am Post subject: |
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Interesting! Im not down for all that. What ever needs to get done can get done in the 8 hr time frame of me being on school/hagwon grounds. Im not working from 8-6:30. I can deal with a 30 minute prep time before work but come 5:30 im gonna be ready to bounce.
I guess I will have to thoroughly check with the teacher im replacing and current teachers of these conditions as well as other aspects of the job. |
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kardisa
Joined: 26 Jun 2009
Location: Masan
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 1:53 pm Post subject: |
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| Skippy wrote: |
| CarolinaTHeels wrote: |
Thanks for the reply.
Extended hours?!? If I take the 9:30am - 5:30pm gig I will have to make sure there wont be any "extended hours". I aint working no more than 8 hrs in a given day. |
Of course not! But you have to understand how Korean schools and bosses calculate hours! You have to be in the office at 8:30 for prep. It can be an hour or half an hour if you are lucky. But remember this is not paid but your are required to do it. Okay now you start teaching. Lets say 3 classes each 50 minutes with a 10 minute break in between. So you think 3 hours - Nope you just taught 2 and half hours. Sorry in between break times do not count as work hours. Now it is lunch time - You are off the clock and boy your are hungry - that Japanese restaurant looks goods. Umm where are you going? Sorry you have to stay here you can not leave the school. We will order lunch for you - OH you wanted Doncass(pork cutlet) sorry all the teachers are getting Bibimbap we will get you some too. Oh by the way can you please watch the kids and help feed them - oh can you cook too. Wow lunch is over was that not restful. What do you mean for you that was working no you do not get paid for that that was break time. Back to class. Oh sorry umm no class ready yet for you. You have to wait. Where are you going - no you can not go to the ATM you have to mark these tests aka sit on your hands. Okay now you have 3 classes again. But they only count as 2 and a half hours. So finally it's 5 o'clock. Umm hold on this school also teaches Elementary school students too. They are not here yet they will be here at 5:30 and then you have to teach one more class. So finally around 6:30 you are finished. You think I have worked from 8 to 6:30 that is 10 and half hours at the school but in reality you taught 6 hours opps sorry actually you taught 5 hours and 50 minutes. Times that by 5 days and 5 weeks you have a typical 120 hour contract. Never mind about that 10 minutes break they will get that extra class some other time maybe on a Saturday.
Remember things are not always 9 to 5. There will be other duties and responsibilities. Things like breaks and lunch time and preparation MAY repeat MAY not count towards any final pay or total of hours. Each school is different. Just be aware things are done differently here in Korea. An example in Korean work ethic it is expected that workers stay until the boss leaves. So if your boss is there till 9pm they have to wait ill 9 pm even if they have no work to do. You as a foreigner may get leeway and be able to go. But bosses/owners might expect that of you.
You can get similar crap with afternoon hagwons but some of the preschool and Kindergarten schools can be very restrictive. Me I found less hassles and that with afternoon and evening.
Public school is similar to Kindergarten with some minor differences. |
Wow, that's completely opposite from the experience I have with my kindergarten. My first class is at 9:30am and I generally show up at 9:15 since I prep the afternoon before. I teach 6 30-min classes, have an hour lunch break (where I NEVER help cook or deal with the kids), and then teach another two 30-min classes. I have from 2:30-5pm to prep, study Korean, or watch a movie on my laptop. I can't even fathom being asked to work late.
My old hagwon, on the other hand, had me show up an hour early for unpaid "prep" time, we weren't allowed to leave the building during our 10 min between classes to grab a snack (there was a Family Mart across the street), and I had to help clean the building ever night before I could leave (usually around 9:30pm).
To the OP: Just do your due diligence and get the full info on both schools' teaching schedule, break schedule, expectations, etc. Not every hagwon or kindy is the same. |
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northway
Joined: 05 Jul 2010
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 2:22 pm Post subject: |
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| Generally with kindergartens the contracted hours are the hours you actually work, as your prep is built into the day. I've never heard of anyone having to show up at 8:30 for a 9:00 start. More often, I've actually heard of people being able to show up later than their contracted start (this applies to my case, as well as that of some of my friends). With a kindergarten, if it says 9-5:30, you're very likely to be working 9-5:30. |
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CarolinaTHeels
Joined: 07 Apr 2011
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 2:59 pm Post subject: |
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Kardisa
That is great to hear. Would love a situation like that. Did the hagwon provide lesson plans and activities or did you have to make all that on your own? |
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dumpring
Joined: 06 Apr 2010
Location: Auckland, NZ
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 6:53 pm Post subject: |
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You really need to speak with former teachers from both schools to get accurate information.
If you know the name's of your prospective employers (Jungchul, E-Bo Young, iSponge etc) then perhaps someone can give you a better general idea, but even the chain schools vary greatly. |
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kardisa
Joined: 26 Jun 2009
Location: Masan
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| Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:56 pm Post subject: |
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| CarolinaTHeels wrote: |
Kardisa
That is great to hear. Would love a situation like that. Did the hagwon provide lesson plans and activities or did you have to make all that on your own? |
We're given a set of books (reading book, workbook, and phonics workbook) every 5 weeks that we have to complete. In addition, we're provided with flashcards and access to a few online teaching sites where we can find worksheets and whatnot. The actual lesson planning is up to us, though for 30 min classes, it's a pretty simple process.
If you're interested, we need another NET to start in August. You can PM me for details. |
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TheUrbanMyth
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Location: Retired
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| Posted: Fri Jun 03, 2011 7:39 pm Post subject: |
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| Skippy wrote: |
| CarolinaTHeels wrote: |
Thanks for the reply.
Extended hours?!? If I take the 9:30am - 5:30pm gig I will have to make sure there wont be any "extended hours". I aint working no more than 8 hrs in a given day. |
Of course not! But you have to understand how Korean schools and bosses calculate hours! You have to be in the office at 8:30 for prep. It can be an hour or half an hour if you are lucky. But remember this is not paid but your are required to do it. Okay now you start teaching. Lets say 3 classes each 50 minutes with a 10 minute break in between. So you think 3 hours - Nope you just taught 2 and half hours. Sorry in between break times do not count as work hours. Now it is lunch time - You are off the clock and boy your are hungry - that Japanese restaurant looks goods. Umm where are you going? Sorry you have to stay here you can not leave the school. We will order lunch for you - OH you wanted Doncass(pork cutlet) sorry all the teachers are getting Bibimbap we will get you some too. Oh by the way can you please watch the kids and help feed them - oh can you cook too. Wow lunch is over was that not restful. What do you mean for you that was working no you do not get paid for that that was break time. Back to class. Oh sorry umm no class ready yet for you. You have to wait. Where are you going - no you can not go to the ATM you have to mark these tests aka sit on your hands. Okay now you have 3 classes again. But they only count as 2 and a half hours. So finally it's 5 o'clock. Umm hold on this school also teaches Elementary school students too. They are not here yet they will be here at 5:30 and then you have to teach one more class. So finally around 6:30 you are finished. You think I have worked from 8 to 6:30 that is 10 and half hours at the school but in reality you taught 6 hours opps sorry actually you taught 5 hours and 50 minutes. Times that by 5 days and 5 weeks you have a typical 120 hour contract. Never mind about that 10 minutes break they will get that extra class some other time maybe on a Saturday.
Remember things are not always 9 to 5. There will be other duties and responsibilities. Things like breaks and lunch time and preparation MAY repeat MAY not count towards any final pay or total of hours. Each school is different. Just be aware things are done differently here in Korea. An example in Korean work ethic it is expected that workers stay until the boss leaves. So if your boss is there till 9pm they have to wait ill 9 pm even if they have no work to do. You as a foreigner may get leeway and be able to go. But bosses/owners might expect that of you.
You can get similar crap with afternoon hagwons but some of the preschool and Kindergarten schools can be very restrictive. Me I found less hassles and that with afternoon and evening.
Public school is similar to Kindergarten with some minor differences. |
I'm at my third public school (in six years) and never had anything like the above happen. One class has ALWAYS counted as a teaching hour regardless of whether it's 40, 45 or 50 minutes long. It doesn't matter how Korean schools or bosses calculate hours (unless you sign with them directly). But go through an agency like EPIK or GEPIK and your contract is with the POE not the school. And the contract generally states that one class is considered one hour. And lunch time is included in the 8 hours per day. As for waiting until the boss leaves...no. Teachers at all three schools I have been at have left many times before the Principal has. So have I. I know many other FTs who are in the same boat as far as those working conditions go
On the other hand what you are describing sounds more like a hakwon minus the staying until the boss has left part. |
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