Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rok_the-boat]

I have taught in Japan and Korea and have a friend who has taught in all three - presently in China, at a middle-high school. He says that while the money is not as good, the students, his at least, are ten times better. They study hard and remember what they learn. Result: Many can speak good, but broken English, even middle school kids. Simply, they are keen and they succeed. He says he will not return to Japan or Korea because he feels like his work has value in China - that is, value not in money, but the fact that his students learn what he teaches. I think he feels he can succeed as a teacher there: As he told me, "Teachers teach, students learn, result = speak English - not so in Korea or Japan = it has no value to him."

What do you think? Has anyone else experienced this? Or is his case a one-off? I know little about China.

[turtlepi1]

I can't speak for English or children, but I have plenty of experience teaching international adult students in university/college computer science courses (in Canada) and I have always found the Chinese students to be the least cooperative when it came to communicating.

They were fine at memorizing the technical theory but had little interest/confidence in communicating it.

My experience is with large numbers of students from Eastern Europe/China/Korea/Japan & the Middle East.

I've enjoyed teaching students from all of these backgrounds, but like I said the language & attitude was the biggest factor with Chinese students.

Maybe with a new generation of English in the schools things will be different, but that is my experience to date.