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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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rocklee
Joined: 04 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul
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 Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 5:04 pm Post subject: Teaching in public schools |
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Hi,
I'm interested to teach in Korea, namely public elementary and/or middle schools.
- Has anyone had any experiences with teaching in both the EPIK(or similar) and ALT/JET (public school teaching programs in Japan)?
- What are some of the known/recommended recruiters for public schools in Korea?
I've taught in both China and Japan and am looking forward to working in Korea for what its worth. I've been lurking on this board for some time now reading about Korea so I think I'm prepared!
I know there are some information about this in the FAQ, but thought I'd bring this up to recap what's happening now.
Thanks! |
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ilovebdt
Joined: 03 Jun 2005
Location: Nr Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 5:13 pm Post subject: |
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| Hi, I got my public school job through Englishwork.com. The people behind Worknplay.co.kr also offered me a job at a public school. |
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Yu_Bum_suk
Joined: 25 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 6:33 pm Post subject: |
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Those two plus EPIK will be main agencies. From time to time you'll see recruiters adversiting 'public school' jobs, but often they through that word 'public' in just to catch peoples interesest; or, they have a job where a hogwan owner will lease out a teacher to public schools (sometimes a dodgy business).
EPIK seems like more of a crap shoot - sign on and then we'll tell you what you're doing. When I was searching for my present job I was able to visit four schools, something you can't do if you're going through EPIK. |
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SPINOZA
Joined: 10 Jun 2005
Location: $eoul
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 8:12 pm Post subject: |
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Rocklee,
Similar to EPIK (sadly the same payscales too; for Seoul they really ought to be higher than for someone working in the middle of bloody nowhere or a provincial city) is Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE).
I went through footprints in Vancouver (although I'm not from North America).
I'm enjoying myself and, unless I'm mistaken, so are the other 100 folks (it's highly unusual to get fairly unanimous agreement in Korea) so you might wanna look into that avenue. Both footprints and SMOE strike me as very good indeed. |
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blunder1983
Joined: 12 Apr 2005
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 8:38 pm Post subject: |
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I'm an EPIKer in Incheon and am having a ball. I know the 2 others in m sector of Incheon really enjoy it to.
Personally I am really pleased to be in a middle school to a haggie. I like my evenings free.
Here are a few of my findings since I got here, I've only been here 5months and it varies between school to school but I hope i can help:
1. Don't expect to have your school no what to do with you. My school had a teacher before me and I still got no direction as to what my lessons needed to form. Be flexible and don't get stressed with it (my problem when I first got here). Be aware the support of some people on here will save you in a jam, but dont rely on it and be willing to "pay it forward" when ur a little more experienced.
2. Location location location, my biggest negative is the location i'm in the school is fantastic but its a mission to get to Seoul. Come with a clear idea of what you wanna do, and choose your province accordingly.
3. Hours, I have a sweet deal of only 16 hours a week, but even 22 is pretty low. However be aware that you HAVE to be in school for 40 hours in a week, in my place 8.30-4.30. It can get dull so plan for things to do.
4. Security, wage issues and job security is no issue at all, a big plus on some hagwons.
5. Class size, classes are BIG. You'll have some students with 0 english ability and a number just uninterested in learning. Planning exciting lessons for that number is difficult but improves with time.
I don't think public school is for everyone. That said, I wouldn't swop it for a Hagwon in a million years. My students are as sweet as you could want and I get a kick out of exciting 50 people with a game I designed etc. Be prepared to plan lessons in this role and have to deal with large classes. Also be aware no school will have 2 native speakers so you'll be flying solo.
Finally, if it does go *beep* up simply tender your resignation and get a haggie job, you wont loose anything by giving it a try. Nothing ventured nothing gained eh!
Oh and in closing, I got my role through Ann @ WorknPlay who were fantastic. |
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SPINOZA
Joined: 10 Jun 2005
Location: $eoul
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 8:43 pm Post subject: |
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Only 16 hours a week, Blunder? Blimey. And I thought I had way too much time on my hands with 20 (plus the odd extra)!  |
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rocklee
Joined: 04 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 10:37 pm Post subject: |
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Hi thanks people.
Actually I forgot to ask when is a good time to apply for such a teaching job. I am quitting my job soon and am going back to my home country before venturing out to Korea.
I was thinking of doing the Celta thing in Thailand before going there.
Spinoza - Thanks for that, I applied to footprints.
Yu_Bum_suk - Hope you're not Korean  , unfortunately I'm not really in a position to choose just any recruiter (I don't have blonde hair or blue eyes) , so I'm applying to all of them.
Blunder1983 - You know, I actually prefer conversational schools but I don't have a lot of confidence in the ones in Korea, so public schools are fine with me. I've been teaching in Japanese ES and JHS for over 2 years already so I'm prepared for whatever rockets the Koreans might have for me  |
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Howard Roark
Joined: 02 Feb 2003
Location: Canada
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 10:48 pm Post subject: |
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| blunder1983 wrote: |
| Also be aware no school will have 2 native speakers so you'll be flying solo. |
That's not necessarily true. My friend and I got hired at a public school together. He did grades 3 and 4, I did grades 5 and 6 right next door.
I'll also say, it was the 2nd best job I've had in Korea, sweet pay, and having a Korean partner teacher makes it a breeze.
The best job I've had is the one I have now, at a major Korean company (How does free transportation, free breakfast, free lunch, free housing, and finished at 2pm sound?)...in case you wondered.
We got fired from the public school though...for not showing up a few times. You can do a search for another post about that whole thing.[/i] |
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UncleAlex
Joined: 04 Apr 2003
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 11:30 pm Post subject: Coming tro Korea, Are You? |
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Well, if you're sensitive to screaming and yelling among adolescents
throughout an entire public school, then stay in Japan and avoid Korea.
The kids here are really friendly and outgoing - Buddha bless them - but
highly emotionally charged and super-animated. Expect to see a teacher
or principal amiably looking down at two boys wrestling on the floor of a
corridor between classes or a boy pulling a girl by her ear, as she keeps
screaming, until shes give him a swig of her Chilsun Cider. A boisterous
game of soccer has become popular in the classrooms at my school. I
usually go out for a walk and keep a two block distance between all the
commotion and myself at lunch time for a little peace and quiet. I met a
middle school teacher in Seoul who decided to return to Japan to teach in
a high school there, because he couldn't tolerate the noise in a Korean
school. You can always buy ear plugs. Put on your Nikes and welcome.  |
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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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| Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2005 11:57 pm Post subject: |
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| I earlier wrote: |
If you are applying with either GEPIK or EPIK there are a ton of posts on these two programmes, do a search on here and you'll come up with heaps of comments on both programmes. The SMOE programme is new but I'm pretty sure that the problems you encounter there will be the same.
The big thing to remember on the public school versus hagwon debate is that there are good and bad hagwons just as good and bad public school gigs. I'm always wary of people who give blanket statements like 'hogwons are crap' and 'public schools are better' as their experience is unique to them.
Benefits to public schools
1. Less issues with pay. Most public school teachers don't complain about pay on daves.
2. Students. In general because you're seeing them when they are a bit more alert the kids tend to be better behaved.
3. Feeling more like a 'real teacher.' But this also means you are doing 'real teaching' If you're in a middle or high school your classes may be assessed on and you are doing the assessment on high stakes stuff.
4. Less teaching time.
5. Set hours. No split shifts.
Problems.
1. Class sizes. You'll be thrown into a classroom with 40 kids. Some people have co-teachers who may or may not speak english depending on where you teach.. If you haven't taught before this is a concern.
2. Stupid adminstrators. Co-teachers, vice principal, principal, district education admin people are all going to have an impact on your life. They don't play by western rules, and if you run afoul of any of these people they will make your life hell with dozens of low level things.
3. A lot of time sitting on your ass. Be prepared to spend a lot of time sitting on your butt doing nothing. Most public schools will require you to come in even if there are no classes, nor any other teachers there so that you can sit on your butt.
4. You will likely be the only foreigner in your school. Having expats around who know the 'lay of the land' is helpful in adjusting to life in korea. Also good to have someone to vent to about korea and teaching who understands where you're coming from.
5. Isolated locations. Some public school jobs are right out in the boonies. Be prepared to live in 'real korea.' Small town living carries with it a whole bunch of extra problems.
Vacation, apartment size, salary, class size, number of classes, adimn, testing, grading, extra cirrucular crap is all highly variable. A lot of it comes down to different schools, particularly the principal and your minder can make a difference in whether things are pleasurable or not. Unfourtantly being able to know how good your minder, principal and vice-principal are going to make your life hell or not is impossbile to tell without working there first.
Hagwons.
Benefits.
1. Small class sizes. Biggest class I taught was 20.
2. You generally get to teach a variety of ages.
3. More used to dealing with foreigners. A good hagwon will know what you need to get set up.
4. A chance to work with other foreigners. There are mixed reviews about this but if you are a social person this is important.
5. Less sitting on your ass time.
Problems.
1. Dodgy bosses. Bad apartments. pay problems, scheduling changes, and just generally nightmare stuff all comes back to the 'dodgy boss' problem.
2. Discpline. Because the kids are paying coustmers, the lunatics run the aslyum.
3. Hours. Split shifts are often to be found. These can make your day a lot longer.
4. Highly volatile market. Good hagwons can go bad. Bad ones can go out of business.
However there are ways to avoid the bad hagwons. Saxiif's Hagwon Search Guide gives some really good pointers.
My advice to people new to both teaching and korea really need to think hard about whether a public school job is for them. A lot of these gigs will have you being the only waygook, sometimes in isolated areas, with a staff that may or may not speak much english (not so bad in the middle and high school where there are korean english teachers). Also a crash course in classroom management with 12 kids who don't speak english is infinetly easier than when you have 40.
Also just as a general observation at the moment I think that hogwons in general are used to having to deal with foreigners, so being thrown into the day to day mine field of dealing with koreans. Obviously this will change over time, but a lot of westerners get frustrated dealing with adminstrators who have no idea how the west functons while they themselves have little idea of how korean adminstration functions.
Please try and look at yourself and your abilities as a teacher before you make this decision. If you're not confident that you'll be able to adapt quickly korea and teaching and like having a full social schedule then perhaps you'd be better to teaching in a large hagwon in seoul or a big city. If you're a bit more indepedent and want to experience the 'real korea' without a security blanket then perhaps a public school is for you. |
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SPINOZA
Joined: 10 Jun 2005
Location: $eoul
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| Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2005 1:14 am Post subject: |
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Spinoza - Thanks for that, I applied to footprints.
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You're welcome. If you haven't already done so, I suspect you'll hear from Ben Glickman who's a bloody sound guy. I met him when I arrived. Really knows what he's on about. The only problem I and others have experienced is the insane lateness of the visas being done (day before I flew). Caused a real panic. Mind you, it didn't help how DHL delivered mu conformation letter to the wrong address, the complete buffoons! Else, great. Depends on the school you get of course - I've been really lucky.
One of the advantages, OP, about SMOE is that it concerns Seoul and you won't end up in the middle of nowhere or that sucks. SMOE inevitably will become the Korean JET and take a whole lotta teachers away from Hakwons - which will increase the value of a hakwon position. |
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newinseoul
Joined: 22 Sep 2005
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2005 6:17 am Post subject: |
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Interesting thread. I am currently thinking of possibly switching from Hogwan to public school in the future. How does pay compare between both Hogwan and public schools? How about planning and report cards?
When do you apply for these jobs? How long does it take if I'm already in Seoul? Will I be able to interview at different schools? Who interviews you, is it someone at SMOE or EPIK or is it the principal of the school?
Appreciate any comments from you public schoolers. |
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rocklee
Joined: 04 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2005 4:09 pm Post subject: |
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Got a reply from footprints.
They said that because I wasn't from North America (I'm from England but lived in Australia), finding a placement may take a long time. They actually recommend that I try Taiwan instead.
They are a Canadian outfit, so perhaps they prefer Canadian/American teachers before everyone else. Nevertheless, I said that I wanted to go to Korea and would be willing to wait (for whatever their reasons may be).
Just thought I'd mentioned that! |
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rocklee
Joined: 04 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2005 4:11 pm Post subject: |
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| newinseoul wrote: |
Interesting thread. I am currently thinking of possibly switching from Hogwan to public school in the future. How does pay compare between both Hogwan and public schools? How about planning and report cards?
When do you apply for these jobs? How long does it take if I'm already in Seoul? Will I be able to interview at different schools? Who interviews you, is it someone at SMOE or EPIK or is it the principal of the school?
Appreciate any comments from you public schoolers. |
Check the FAQ for public schools, they have the answers to most of your questions. |
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schwa
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Yap
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| Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2005 5:04 pm Post subject: |
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Funny how times change.
I've been quietly extolling the benefits of public school teaching for 5 years on these forums & I've endured my share of derision & scorn for doing so.
Now its the latest bandwagon. I feel vindicated. |
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