Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Chopstix]

thought I should finally say something! POLY MOKDONG IS A JOKE- not because of the students - they are great! The staff was pretty good as well except for one teacher whose job was to basically report (ratt) any negative news to the Director.. (in USA and CANADA this would result in possible suspension and loss of job!!!) The management SUCKS! I was let go due to a bunch of discrepencies with an unfit assistant Director who is learning the ropes and losing teachers fast- six in the last two months have left without notice!! I was then offered a job at another POLY a week later- GO FIGURE!! Anyways just a heads up- POLY has some great schools and the kids are good in most places- but AVOID this one!!!

[seoul'd out]

My girl friend worked at that school last year and she said the medical 50/50 is a load of crap- you don't know if they will pay half or not- she finshed her year but couldn't wait to leave- I guess the married Director has a couple gf's- I agree stay away- she said they had over 1000 students in a really small one floor building where I guess they hid attendence forms when immi came by-no wonder so many people quit!

[enchoo]

Is this the original POLY Mokdong or the new branch??

[Gideon]

"six in the last two months"

You sure about that.. I just called my friend that works at the school you are talking about. She told me of 1 guy that left... but SIX damn thats a lot of teachers within a 2 month span!!!

[Chopstix]

correction 4 Korean teachers left without giving notice and one male Kindergarten teach in last three months.

[fidel]

Korean teachers leave all the time. They are usually uncontracted staff and go in search of better conditions, just like everyone else. As for the kindergarten teacher, there could be a thousand reasons why he left. Posting lies and insinuations does nothing for your credibility.

From

[mindmetoo]

[fidel]

[seoul'd out]

my girlfriend said the Korean staff are constantly harrassed....guess contract said work until afternoon - not to 7pm! So probably the reason they took off.

[mary_73]

I have worked at Mokdong Poly for over a year, and I feel a responsibility to respond to "Chopstix's" insinuations. First of all, he is completely correct in one area: the kids are fantastic, but then generally the kids are fantastic all over Korea. I can fairly safely say this since I've taught both here in Seoul and in Jinju and I have been in Korea for more than four years now. Mokdong Poly is not perfect, find me the hagwon that is!!! However, it is vastly superior to the other hagwons in Korea that I have worked at.

Regarding the 'six teachers that left without notice': all the foreign staff that left in the last six months were at the end of their contract, or had worked out agreements with the director months in advance. The only exception is "Chopstix" who was fired because he was not able or apparently unwilling to do his job. Hmmm, what's that smell... sour grapes perhaps? As for the Korean kindergarten teachers that left without notice it has been my experience (I'm not saying ALL KOREAN TEACHERS!!) that Korean staff frequently leave without notice, and while some might make insinuations regarding the work environment, I'm more apt to question the professionalism of those who left without notice. I cannot understand why the teachers chose to leave the way they did, but regardless, we were able to deal with the situation with little difficulty. The staff we have now is absolutely fantastic. They are the most talented and dedicated group I have worked with, and this goes for both foreign and Korean staff.

As far as the school, as I said before it's not perfect, but it is far from the horror that it was portrayed as. Granted it's not the 'free ride' that is available at so many other hagwons. We work HARD but we are well paid for our efforts. The management has always been cooperative with and supportive of me. Their door is always open, I've ALWAYS been paid on time, and if there was ever a question of how much I should be paid (because of overtime, etc.) my director has always erred on the side of the teacher.

Please don't take the word of someone who is bitter, had never worked anywhere else in Korea, and was just generally never satisfied with anything. As for "Seoul'd out's" g-friend, my guess is that she had intense dislike of Korea as was glad to get out of Korea, not just Mokdong Poly. The majority of Poly Schools in Korea are a great place to work, and Mokdong is no exception. Have any doubts? Feel free to PM me and I can give you the email of any number of current teachers who are happy at Mokdong Poly.

Happy Trails!

[micap]

I have been a teacher at MokDong POLY for almost a year and feel the need to reply to the post from 'Chopstix.' I have had an excellent experience here. I have never hesitated to approach my Director or Vice Director and they have handled any of my problems or concerns immediately. I have always been paid on time and any miscommunication between the staff and management has been dealt with right away.
As for the 'rat' that was supposedly on staff, paranoia is a sad, sad thing. And in regards to the 'discrepancies' for which you were fired, if you mean sleeping in class, making jokes about the students' looks, being unable to perform simple tasks like taking attendance and administering tests, and an ability to teach even the most basic curriculum, then, yes, those are the reasons you were fired. The current staff are highly trained and energetic and are one of the most taleneted and supportive groups I have ever worked with. Please do not base any decisions on the insinuations of one individual who made it clear that they were hard to please and unwilling to make much of an effort in any area.

[Chopstix]

Wow! If there were falsities put up here then why so many replies? Open door policy- the Director told me about his inability to communicate to people! Some truth about the people leaving Poly school. The Korean teachers were sickand tired of being yelled at and lied to that they would be finished work in the early afternoon- most worked right through to 7. They were quality teachers - who all have jobs now at other schools and are VERY happy. The responses made about the former staff are unfortunately from the teachers of Poly who due to physical defects and the need for 10 sick days in the first two months- were if anything very jealous of the very beautiful-yet talented Korean staff. As far as my 'incompetency', I was caught looking (by the ratt who then dropped off copies to friend Assistant
Director) for better jobs on Daves as this one- 48 classes a week for 2.88 was a joke. I was guilty of only caring about the kids and the three normal staff members. I was guilty of getting tired from the 50 hour work week. I was guilty of being mad I was told my first day I would be paid 500,000 less than my buddies of the same degree (education) although had agreed to a different rate before coming over! Of course this was the first thing we did after the ten hour plane ride! The male kindy teacher after me lasted a little over a month!Anyways- I have been given many letters of reference from parents and am still in contact with some of the students.... and am now in a far better situation- working less/ making more and my bosses and I have a mutual respect = great performance. So again for first timers here in Seoul- shop around and don't let the better salary fool you- you earn EVERY penny............ but hey - the kids are great!

[mary_73]

Well, it's fairly self-evident that the many replies are BECAUSE of the false statements made by you. If they were true I would have no problem not replying. I will leave it up to others to decide for themselves the validity of the comments on this string since it it obvious to everyone who is telling the truth and who merely has a personal ax to grind, and does so by personally attacking people who never did a thing to them. I'm not sure I understand the comment about 10 sick days since I didn't use all 4 of mine all year. So please get your facts straight. You will notice that I did not say anything personally negative about the Korean teachers, you're right, most of them were beautiful as well as being kind. But as for me being jealous, since I'm married to an absoutely wonderful man I hardly think I was jealous of those girls. You cared about your students? Then why did so many quit with the parents stating that they didn't want you teaching their children? Also why did you feel it necessary to not allow several six year old boys into the classroom anytime you were in there? You're right, that's quality teaching, if you can't control them, send them to the hall everyday! Everything the previous poster said about your job perfomance was right on the money. I didn't want this to be personal, but stop spreading lies because you couldn't cut it! Best of luck!

[Eunoia]

I didn't really want to jump into this, but here goes... I too used to work for Poly, and I saw many people come and go in my time. Some were great teachers, some were average, still others occupied a far-ranging spectrum of the inept. While it's true that it's no hagwon paradise, any competent teacher should/would have no problems there.

[Chopstix]

Again wow! For mother Mary- I believe I remember you saying you would be scared to teach in Canada as it would be 'real' teaching and the students would run right over you. The six year-old 'student' you are refering to was the one real pain in the ass who would grab scissors and run around the class or attack the other students (who were just as happy to see him go)- so I had trouble teaching kinders- I realise this is the one age group that are actually smaller than you! I did have trouble using the robotic way of teaching that seemed effective to limit bad behaviour and increase boredom. The sick days were in reference to the other poster who apparently is the new Poly KIA. My real point is don't pretend to be so content with your 50 hour weeks as I would hear the gripes (and contribute) on a regular basis. For the other poster I believe it WAS a better school before the new Assistant Director came to be and royally #$$#% things up. As far as the inability to teach - my observation of hail Director teaching the class was extremely useful- Director:" okay Jeong for the next answer pick the ugliest student in the class"or the solid flick to the forehead... these are the strategies I must have missed when I received an Excellent rating back in Canada and have reference letters stating I would be a credit to any staff! Anyways new teachers shop around and if you have a real teaching degree go to a more proffessional place where there really is good support from admnistration and for the Korean girls a place where you don't have to worry about whether you might be the next one asked out on a date by the Director.