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what happened with the EPiK/GEPiK program? what's it mean?
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proverbs



Joined: 28 Apr 2009

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 11:00 am    Post subject: what happened with the EPiK/GEPiK program? what's it mean? Reply with quote

so i've heard here and there that EPiK or the government program that hire English teachers, shut down. can anyone explain what this means exactly? and how will it effect us teachers?

any insight would be greatly appreciated Very Happy
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jvalmer



Joined: 06 Jun 2003

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 1:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

They are reducing the numbers in Gyeonggi and possibly Seoul soon. If you're area has a bunch of 'progressives' elected then expect drastic cuts places like Gyeonggi, Seoul, and Jeolla provinces.
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enj0i



Joined: 07 Sep 2011
Location: SXM w/o a passport

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 6:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

yay for politics.
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morningsoju



Joined: 20 Aug 2011
Location: Seoul, Korea

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 10:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

jvalmer wrote:
They are reducing the numbers in Gyeonggi and possibly Seoul soon. If you're area has a bunch of 'progressives' elected then expect drastic cuts places like Gyeonggi, Seoul, and Jeolla provinces.


so the public schools in Gyeonggi and Seoul are no longer hiring English teachers through epik. don't the schools still need English teachers though? or are they just completing cutting out the English programs in the schools? how do they choose the schools that will keep their English program?

it seems like they're backtracking here.
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jvalmer



Joined: 06 Jun 2003

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 10:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

morningsoju wrote:
jvalmer wrote:
They are reducing the numbers in Gyeonggi and possibly Seoul soon. If you're area has a bunch of 'progressives' elected then expect drastic cuts places like Gyeonggi, Seoul, and Jeolla provinces.

so the public schools in Gyeonggi and Seoul are no longer hiring English teachers through epik. don't the schools still need English teachers though? or are they just completing cutting out the English programs in the schools? how do they choose the schools that will keep their English program?

it seems like they're backtracking here.

They don't need NET's, if that's what you mean, but they will always need Korean English teachers. Not sure of the details, but they are cutting back on NET's, so expect to see a lot less NET's. I know when I first worked with EPIK, 7 years ago, I had to go to 2 schools and was only 1 of 2 NET's in a town of 50,000.
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jrwhite82



Joined: 22 May 2010

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 10:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Aren't progressives usually pro-education funding?
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jvalmer



Joined: 06 Jun 2003

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 11:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

jrwhite82 wrote:
Aren't progressives usually pro-education funding?

Usually, but I'd say in Korea they are more anti-foreigner than what Koreans consider 'conservatives'. Aside from that I'd say the main difference between the two is how they want to deal with NK.
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whanous



Joined: 31 Aug 2011
Location: Melbourne

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 11:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

jvalmer wrote:
They are reducing the numbers in Gyeonggi and possibly Seoul soon.


Do you have a source for this?
My recruiter said the changes are only affecting GEPIK, and that numbers in Seoul are unlikely to be affected.
Ps. Yes, I am aware that everything recruiters say should be taken with a grain of salt. It's not that I don't trust you. I'd just like to see a source.
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jvalmer



Joined: 06 Jun 2003

PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 11:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

whanous wrote:
jvalmer wrote:
They are reducing the numbers in Gyeonggi and possibly Seoul soon.


Do you have a source for this?
My recruiter said the changes are only affecting GEPIK, and that numbers in Seoul are unlikely to be affected.
Ps. Yes, I am aware that everything recruiters say should be taken with a grain of salt. It's not that I don't trust you. I'd just like to see a source.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2011/03/117_82296.html
http://populargusts.blogspot.com/2011/09/budget-cuts-which-hobbled-gepik-part-1.html
http://populargusts.blogspot.com/2011/09/budget-cuts-which-hobbled-gepik-part-2.html

Okay, my Seoul part is very speculative. However, don't count on the large numbers of NET's being maintained into the future. I do see NET's being around for a long time, just not in the same numbers. Also, depending who gets elected in various boards, you can either see an accelerated loss of teachers, or a more controlled one.

People in Seoul and Gyeonggi swing in voting a lot. It's places like Jeolla and Gyeongsang you basically know which party is almost guaranteed to stay in control.
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pkang0202



Joined: 09 Mar 2007

PostPosted: Sun Oct 16, 2011 12:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ask the Korean English teachers at your school how many are "TEE" certified (Teaching English using English).

For the past few years, Korean English teachers have been taking courses and getting certified to do what you do.
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jrwhite82



Joined: 22 May 2010

PostPosted: Sun Oct 16, 2011 2:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

pkang0202 wrote:
Ask the Korean English teachers at your school how many are "TEE" certified (Teaching English using English).

For the past few years, Korean English teachers have been taking courses and getting certified to do what you do.


Then do a survey of how many TEE certified teachers actually use the methodology they learned. Laughing