Korean Job Discussion Forums

[jambonsambo]

I finished my weeks work last friday . It had been a tough week , I have only been here a month . Saturday was to be my payday .
Saturday came and i hadnt been paid . I went into work on monday expecting the director to sort it out . The director called me into her office and sat me down . She told me that a whole class had quit the academy because of me , these were the genius gifted students . Apparently one of their fathers is an english teacher and he looked over his daughters book and saw that i hadnt been correcting her incorrect sentences , the mother then called around to all the other parents and they all quit the school in one big load , they also said i didnt know the names of the girls . The director put pressure on me to finish the syllabus in two months if i was to spend every class individually correcting the homework i couldnt have done that .I was doing my best , as for the names I see 300 students a week ive been here a month in this crazy country and there is so much to take in and the names are so wierd . I jotted down the names of the girls and where they sat on the first day but they kept moving seats so i kept calling the wrong names . The director then went on to say that parents had been ringing up saying i gave money to kids which is true.This happened on a day i ran out of stickers .She also said that another parent complained that i had told her son to shut up . She told me I had embarressed her and damaged her schools reputation . I dont think they payed me because i think they were ready to fire me . I went into my classroom and taught . At the end of the day they took me into the office and basically said that it was my first month and that they thought i would get better , they said they would put the money in my account tomorrow , i think they had decided to fire me but changed their minds , Im really worried by the whole thing I had no idea that there was any problem with that class i gave it my all and tried my best with them i stood up the whole time asking if anyone had any problems or was their something i should explain better or again i cant believe that i didnt see that one coming .I think she was ready to fire me so that she could get the girls back and that she threw in the other complaints just to beef up her argument . I know im not a bad teacher Ive met other teachers and talked about teaching techniques etc . Im fairly sure I know what im doing . I really dont want to work in that academy anymore , the atmosphere has been really soured and Ive lost a lot of confidence in my abilities . I Would like to get out of that school if i could . Id really appreciate anybody elses opinions on my situation and I d like to know how I can leave the school and start a new contract .Somebody once told me if you get to japan and back before your director cancels your visa that you can get a fresh E2 . Does anybody know if this is true ?

[some waygug-in]

I'm not sure about the visa, I've never heard of that before. But I don't know everything.

I've never worked at a hagwan yet that didn't load me down with student/parent complaints after my first month. Usually these tend to lessen as the year progresses, but it's never easy.

There is always a huge gap between what they expect of you, what you expect of them, and what is realistically possible. You have to have a pretty thick skin to put up with some of this crap, but if it is too much for you, put in your notice and walk away. Or, if you are fired as you suspect, you may be free and clear...I'm not sure how that works.

One guy told me this, "you can do everything they want, to the minutest detail and they will be only 60 -70 % happy with you or you can do what you think is best and just ignore the complaints and they will be 60 - 65% happy with you".

It's little wonder that teachers become discouraged and want to leave.

[JJJ]

Damn, what a story!! I know I complain about my school sometimes but (and this is not towards you at all), this made me feel a little better about my situation.

I am so sorry about what happened and if you are still there and working, my hat is off to you. You're a better person than I am.

I would have asked for my money and said "thanks, but no thanks".
About the visa thing, they basically own it. You need a release letter before you can get another job...which is my understanding. And from what I hear, getting this letter can be a breeze or the biggest pain in the butt.

You need your school to supply you with all the little prizes, stars, stickers, and candy. You shouldn't have to. Or use your money as a prize when you don't have a sticker handy. And, get your school to buy 300 plastic name tags and have your kids wear them to each class.
Sorry, I forgot, make the tags and then keep them in your file for each class. DO NOT give them the tags to take home, they will always say they "Forgot".

If your staying, take the next month, be a goodie two shoes, be so nice and do the bare minimum to keep them happy and after that you can relax again. I was put on probation for a month at an English school in Japan years ago and put on my wonderfully bright, fake smile and survived. Now, I'm here. Good luck. Keep in touch with us here and let us know how it's going.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

Threaten to take them to the labour board if they don't pay you ASAP. If need be, come in, ask them where your money is, and if they don't have it tell them you're going to the labour board and leave. Once you get paid tell them that you'll try to respond to reasonable requests but if they think you're so terrible they can fire you. To be honest, a Korean English teacher with a higher level of English would not be impressed by the paragraph you wrote above.

[riley]

Half of your mistakes in the classroom simply sound like normal stuff that a stressed out newbie would make. (giving money to kids!) Take some to look over your mistakes and fix them. It does sound like you are trying to fix it. Don't worry too much about the hagwon, they like to rattle your chain a bit. Good luck and keep improving.

[bellum99]

Ignore them and if they fire then it is good. I just smile, nod, say I understand and do whatever the hell I feel like. Most times I do a great job but a couple of times it was like what you described..then I didn't care.

[Hotpants]

[poet13]

I agree with bellum (even though I flamed you on another thread)

YBs.. Be gentle. The op is writing to a forum asking for advice, not for a critique of his or her grammar, speellllingg, and context. Besides, we've all (I would guess) posted in haste before.

OP.

-I think there's something more going on than your director is telling you.

-I think giving money to students is way, way out of line. First time mistake, you're excused. Don't do it again, because it can be construed by other students and parents in a slimy, sleazy kind of way. At the very least, favoritism. If a parent in this country thinks you are slimy or sleazy, or playing favorites, then by Korean way of thinking, YOU ARE. Reality is not important.

-Learning students names. 300 kids? F* CK it. Dont even try. I tried. The students at roll call would answer 'ne' to someone elses name. I figured out after three days, that one boy had answered to three different names, I think two of them girls names. I didnt bother after that. You will find that you will learn the names of the truly great, and the truly bad students. Don't worry about that. (I am personally against giving them western names, but that's a whole 'nother argument.)

-Telling a child to 'shut up'. Big shame in this country. I've done it, and i was very surprised at the shocked looks I got. Try "Please be quiet", or "Be quiet", or as a last resort I raise my voice (to projection level) and say, "STOP TALKING NOW!" Don't worry about it. Just learn from it.

I'm guessing you're a new teacher. Great. New energy, fresh perspective, and not as jaded as the rest of us silly f&c#ers.

Now to the important stuff.
Your payday is your payday. They haven't paid you. They have played their version of hardball with you, taking you into the office and telling you in effect that, YOU SUCK, their school is failing because of you, and that the great nation of Korea will fall to the Japanese (again) because of you. Fine. Maybe you do suck. Then they should fire you. But they still have to pay you. If you haven't been paid by tomorrow morning, then you need to tell them you will talk to the labor board about it. If you say that to them, and they don't pay you, as ttompatz said to me once, "shyte or get off the pot." Call labor. You have a contractual obligation to teach. You have been doing that. It sounds like you have been putting in an honest effort, and maybe even been doing a good job at it. They in return have an obligation to pay you. It's really that simple. The economic worries of the institution are not your worries. (Yes, it has been argued that you are part of the money stream but again, that's another thread.) If the institution is failing BECAUSE of you, then they need to fire you. But again, they still need to pay you for your work...and ON TIME.

OP, maybe the best thing to happen is they DO fire you. It sounds like you're under a great deal of undeserved pressure. If they do fire you, then....
1) In writing
2) with (as the contract states) 30 days notice.
3) Get a Letter Of Release. An LOR.

4) Update us with what happens.

(dammit YBs, after I chastised you about being gentle with the OP, it shamed me into going back and fixing my thirty or forty spelling mistakes....lol)...and I'm sure there are more....

[vdowd]

Not a dirty word or favoritism - I have given it out before. However, it was not instead of stickers - it had an educational purpose.

I know I could have asked the school to provide it but I use my own money to reinforce the concepts of "May I borrow 100 won?" & "Will you lend me 100 won?" which is very difficult - think of the time a friend (adult) has said to you, "Will you borrow me 10 dollars?" and I will end you 100 won, Where did you get the money? Julie lent in to me (presnet, past tense) and it was highty successful.

The first time I did it - I gave each student 100 won, then I would say "borrow or lend" if someone asked correctly, they had to give it up. If some one else asked correctly, they had to gave it up. End of 1st TEST - 10 students - 2 had 100 won, 1 had 800 won. 2nd review test - everyone had 100 won exactly.

Worth every penny - I know longer had to listen to, "I borrowed her a pencil, Teacher. May I have a star?"

So money can be used well in class. Helped that we all had time after the test to go to the corner store to spend that money. I did tell them that really the phrases meant they had to pay me back - "Just joking, this time." The kids thought it was the best test ever.

[poet13]

Borrow and Lend means the money is returned to the original owner. The kids were right to say you 'gave'. Sorry, I dont think using real money in the classroom is right. The only time Ive pulled out money in the classroom is to ask the kids to explain who the people were, and what the objects were. Why dont you print up some play money?, or even photocopy (with an appropriate NOT REAL MONEY) some bills? Then the students can borrow, lend, and buy, but without real money.

Oops, jsut realized that was two different posters. I say the same.

[jmbran11]

I think the money lesson shows creativity and effort. Maybe it was bad judgment, but we all just do our best to do a good job. Everyone has said or done something foolish in hindsight. If you haven't, you aren't trying very hard. I remember one lesson teaching "over, under, beside, on," etc. where I used the table as reference and kids were climbing on it, under it, beside - you get the idea. In retrospect, parents probably wouldn't have seen the value of their kids (and teacher) crawling on the floor and climbing on a table, but all of them knew all of the words by the end of the class. Of course, the difference was, because of something completely unrelated to my teaching, my school liked me. They let it go. If they don't like you, everything you do can be criticized.

Like the other posters said, your perceived lack of skills are no reason not to pay you. If you don't have the money by today, don't teach another class until you are paid. You may get fired, but if you want to leave I suggest you aim for that. If you are fired, they must release you and you can work somewhere else. There are plenty of places that won't care that you were fired or why. If you really want to leave, try to get fired. Apparently you should just give out some more money. Maybe 100 won for every correct answer. By the time you get to 5,000, you'll be released. It's cash well-spent. If they think you want to leave, they will make it more difficult for you.

That is, of course, if you really want to go. You could always stick it out for another month and see how it goes (provided you are PAID immediately). These things usually blow over.

[rothkowitz]

Have points redeemable for goods at the school...rulers,notebooks.They serve advertising anyways.

Be wary of the school trying to make you accountable for student numbers

Do your best,if you can be an asset to the school and if they realise it do what you can to promote the school by your teaching.

Do not let them try to tell you you're a bad a teacher.Don't fall for that.Keep an account of your lesson plans,if you can have a teacher you can talk about for ideas make use of that.

Check out local bookstores.Try to set up a teaching programme which has them producing stuff.Have them make evidence of this-stuff to show their folks.

Give the students something to go home with.if they go homeand they're presenting it out of enthusiasm in English....ask for a raise!

[cubanlord]

it's about time that people come on here and actually help someone out rather than ridicule them for their boofs. Good going on everyone's part.

[poet13]

umm, money again. I can't agree. Too much can go wrong with that.

cubanlord....were you being real or sarcastic? (I'm drunk so I can't tell.)

[kermo]

I'm really sorry to hear that you went through this discouraging experience. I've done and said bone-headed things even though I'm a very earnest teacher, and I haven't always been exactly what my boss was looking for despite my best efforts.
However, when my boss says that I've made a mistake, I always say "Thank you for letting me know. I'll do my best to fix that situation, and I'm always available in the future if there's anything else you want me to shape up on." (OK, there have been times where my boss is asking me for something impossible or silly and I tell them to blow it out their earhole, but if I've actually screwed up and made someone upset, I'll cop to it.)

Anyway, don't worry about the "atmosphere" being ruined. Come in the next day with a smile and maybe something nice for the office staff to share. Tell your boss about the solutions you've come up with (remembering names, dealing with homework, etc.,) or ask for help. They have faith in you-- enough to keep you on, anyway. Don't give away the chance to prove to them (and yourself) that you've got what it takes. Be aware that the hardest criticism will always come in the first month! After a while they'll ease up on you but most managers like to nit-pit when you're first starting out.

When I first read about the lack of money in the account and the class quitting, I had my doubts about whether your director was telling the truth. It's not out of the question that your boss would make up an excuse not to pay you, or blame you for something that wasn't your fault.

If you think your boss was telling the truth, then work together on a solution, and pretty soon things will be fine. If you think your boss is being deceptive and manipulative, resign with notice, and look for another job. If you're not sure, see what information you can get from your co-workers. Good luck!