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lolacatessan
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
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 Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:33 pm Post subject: 2nd time in Korea QUESTIONS |
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Hello- I've posted a few specific questions but I wanted to go ahead and get all the questions out there that I have.
My husband and I taught English at a hagwon in South Korea for a few months last year but we had a lot of problems there and ended up leaving early.
We are not having any luck finding good jobs in the states and we're missing a lot of aspects of Korea so we are thinking about returning.
This time around we want to do a lot of research before we go and find a much better contract than we previously had.
So here are some questions:
If and when we get an interview with a recruiter, should we tell them about our previous experience teaching in Korea since we left early? Should we tell them where we taught and exactly why we left?
Is teaching adults less stressful than teaching kids?
Are there opportunities to teach adults in smaller towns/the country?
What are the apartments like in the country?
If you work in a small town are the Korean teachers nicer and more helpful? Do you have experience with them actually going into the big cities with you to hang out?
Do nice, friendly, helpful, reasonable, understanding Korean bosses exist? lol
Does 2 weeks paid vacation exist? (no, this isn't the most important thing to us but it would be nice)
Do public schools get more vacation than hagwons?
Has anyone else had a bad experience the first time around in Korea and then returned to have a much better experience?
What are some tips to start off on the RIGHT foot with the boss?
There's only about a one week window in which we can leave for Korea in August - do you think it would be possible to find a great contract AND be able to leave during that very specific week? Or do you think we'll need to be more flexible with our departure date? We have a wedding to go to in August about a week before colleges usually start and if we go to Korea for one year my husband wants to start grad school when he gets back- so we would need to get back before it started the following year.
Is it possible to get a public school position in August?
What are some of the best places to live and best schools to work for, in your opinion and why? |
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butlerian
Joined: 04 Sep 2006
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:28 pm Post subject: Re: 2nd time in Korea QUESTIONS |
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| lolacatessin wrote: |
If and when we get an interview with a recruiter, should we tell them about our previous experience teaching in Korea since we left early? Should we tell them where we taught and exactly why we left?
If your experience is less than a year, probably not. However, it depends on the facts - some Koreans are aware of the problems many foreigners experience working at a hagwon, but others may be wary about taking on a teacher who has previously failed to complete their contract.
Is teaching adults less stressful than teaching kids?
Usually yes, but sometimes no. For the same reason that teaching every class is different, even though you may use the same lesson plan and act in a similar way. Everyone's different. There are good kids and annoying adults and vice-versa. Usually, adults are less stressful because they don't require discipline the way kids do. But adults can be more demanding and may expect a lot from you. I've had some great adult classes - usually when I have a group of adjummas - and some that bored me to death: shy Uni students trying to look cool or not embarrass themselves in front of their classmates. So, at the end of the day, it's pot luck really.
Teaching kids is easier in a public school if you have a good co-teacher to take care of the discipline issues and translate when necessary. The odds are you'll have several co-teachers, so some classes will be fine and others may be a struggle.
Are there opportunities to teach adults in smaller towns/the country?
Yes, but usually only as part of a public school contract. I work in a small town and teach the Korean English teachers as part of my contract.
What are the apartments like in the country?
There's no answer to that question - it varies wildly.
If you work in a small town are the Korean teachers nicer and more helpful? Do you have experience with them actually going into the big cities with you to hang out?
From my experience, they are generally nicer because they'll probably be a bit more curious about you since they don't see many foreigners. However, you will get the occasional Korean teacher who's very conservative and lives in the countryside in order to live a pure Korean life away from external influences, like Western teachers! Some teachers will be happy to go to the big cities because they may be from a big city - new co-teacher is from Busan but has ended up teaching in a small town. She's already missing Busan.
Do nice, friendly, helpful, reasonable, understanding Korean bosses exist? lol
I hope so. My bosses seem nice, but because of the language barrier I can never be sure!
Does 2 weeks paid vacation exist? (no, this isn't the most important thing to us but it would be nice)
In a public school, 2 weeks paid vacation is the minimum. More is possible.
Do public schools get more vacation than hagwons?
Usually, but public school vacation varies considerably for native speakers.
Has anyone else had a bad experience the first time around in Korea and then returned to have a much better experience?
Yes, me.
What are some tips to start off on the RIGHT foot with the boss?
Smile, be friendly and learn a bit about Korean culture and language beforehand. Many Koreans see Westerners as a bit intimidating and, frankly, rude, so try to see things from their point of view. I'm not saying you should bow to everything they say, but the small things can go a long way. Remember that in Korea relationships are more important than contracts.
There's only about a one week window in which we can leave for Korea in August - do you think it would be possible to find a great contract AND be able to leave during that very specific week? Or do you think we'll need to be more flexible with our departure date? We have a wedding to go to in August about a week before colleges usually start and if we go to Korea for one year my husband wants to start grad school when he gets back- so we would need to get back before it started the following year.
Is it possible to get a public school position in August?
Most public schools will need you to start working for them between the last week of August and the first week of September. Depending on how desperate they are, some may be willing to negotiate this.
What are some of the best places to live and best schools to work for, in your opinion and why? |
There's no big theory out there that answers questions like this. It all depends on what you want. My first job was in a big city and, while it definitely had it perks, the jobs I could find there were not so great. Now I'm in a small town two hours from Seoul, and while I do miss not having many of the things I had before, such as a wider variety of food/restaurants/drink and a big cinema, my job is much better and I feel more appreciated here. When I walk downtown, students recognise me and say hello. It's a much friendlier and relaxed atmosphere. But some people would miss not working with another Western teacher. |
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lolacatessan
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:55 pm Post subject: |
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thanks for the info!  |
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poet13
Joined: 22 Jan 2006
Location: Just over there....throwing lemons.
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:03 pm Post subject: |
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| What he said, right down to better experience the second time around. Good post. |
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jlb
Joined: 18 Sep 2003
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:05 pm Post subject: |
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I actually went through this same situation. I got fired from my hagwon at 10 months. I took them to the labour board and the whole deal.
When applying for new jobs, I put the experience down and at first I stupidly said the name of my hagwon. A couple places actually phoned the old hagwon but still offered me the job. After that, I refused to tell people the name of the hagwon, just saying it was in Cheonan.
I was pretty honest with potential employers as to what happened and why I didn't finish the contract. Most were pretty sympathetic. Out of about 5 or 6 places I talked to, it was only an issue with one and they didn't offer me a job. The offers were still extremely plentiful to say the least. I was a lot wiser the second time around and so ended up with a lot better job on the recommendation of a friend from my first time here. Connections seem to be the best way to get your second job. Do you still have any? |
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lolacatessan
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:19 pm Post subject: |
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| jlb wrote: |
| Connections seem to be the best way to get your second job. Do you still have any? |
Do you mean connections with koreans or english teachers still in korea? If so, not really. The couple people we met there who worked at other schools, hated their schools too lol
The only school that sounded kind of good (according to a guy we met) was an english school for adults called ELS. Apparantly teaching the adults was easy and if you wanted you could take a month off at any time and then just add another month onto the end of your contract. Only downside I heard of was you had to be there at 6am  Plus it's in a pretty big city and we're thinking of working in a more rural area.
Sounds like a public school in the country would be good for us.
Another question about our previous experience though- is there anyway our next employer could find out that we worked in korea before? (if we didn't outright tell them). I mean I wouldn't wanna play dumb- like act like I don't know what galbi is once we're there lol |
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polonius
Joined: 05 Jun 2004
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:50 pm Post subject: |
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| I had a teacher tell us that he had never been to Korea, but when we applied for his National Health insurance, we found that he had indeed worked here before. We didn't hold it against him, only asked him why he felt the necessity to lie. I would rather people are upfront and honest with me. But then, I am a westerner and use western rules when I hire my teachers. Like other posters said, regardless of whether or not you have worked here before, you will still get job offers. |
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lolacatessan
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:05 pm Post subject: |
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| polonius wrote: |
| I had a teacher tell us that he had never been to Korea, but when we applied for his National Health insurance, we found that he had indeed worked here before. We didn't hold it against him, only asked him why he felt the necessity to lie. I would rather people are upfront and honest with me. But then, I am a westerner and use western rules when I hire my teachers. Like other posters said, regardless of whether or not you have worked here before, you will still get job offers. |
Ok I guess it's best to go ahead and say we've taught in Korea before. But I don't think I'll be saying which school. |
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travelinbri
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
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| Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 7:11 am Post subject: Second/Third Experiences |
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I think a lot of people have lousy first experiences, it has something to do with expectations, and sometyhing to do with recruiters and not knowing what to look for, and something to do with luck, I had amixed first experience, but I would never, ever go back to that place, my second experience was pretty good, working for an International School, I knew what I wanted out of the year, and what I was getting into... my third experience, at one of those English camps, wa sagain jaded cause of my own igh expectations... expectations are the key... figure out what you want out of yoru experience, what your wilign to live with, and get that in the contract. You cant know if yoru gonna have a great boss or a lousy one, so get it written that you will work only so many hours, you will accept only so much vacation, dont go in saying yoiu nee a good boss to make it good, accept that you may have frustrating classes and a lousy boss, but be happy with the stipulations of the contract...
And then, be flexible and friendly.
-TBRI |
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Homer
Guest
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| Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 7:22 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| Is teaching adults less stressful than teaching kids? |
Depends more on you then on your students.
Depends the type of teacher you are. Different stresses from different groups. Adults can be more demanding when it comes to grammar and rules. Children require a more energetic teacher....these are but two examples...
| Quote: |
| Do nice, friendly, helpful, reasonable, understanding Korean bosses exist? lol |
Sure they do. But the traffic has to flow both ways right?
| Quote: |
| Does 2 weeks paid vacation exist? (no, this isn't the most important thing to us but it would be nice) |
Yes it does. So does 4 weeks paid vacation or more (Public Schools or Universities)
| Quote: |
| Do public schools get more vacation than hagwons? |
Some do...some don't.
| Quote: |
| What are some tips to start off on the RIGHT foot with the boss? |
Know the rules Meaning figure out how to approach your boss here. For example, you got an issue, don't bring it up in a meeting. Instead meet the boss privately.
| Quote: |
| There's only about a one week window in which we can leave for Korea in August - do you think it would be possible to find a great contract AND be able to leave during that very specific week? Or do you think we'll need to be more flexible with our departure date? We have a wedding to go to in August about a week before colleges usually start and if we go to Korea for one year my husband wants to start grad school when he gets back- so we would need to get back before it started the following year. |
Tight schedule but it can be done. Hakwon contracts will be open for those dates as well as some Public Schools, Government programs or university positions (usually the second tier positions however).
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| Is it possible to get a public school position in August? |
Harder than for March but possible. You can also look into government programs like EPIK. They recruit in the spring for september starts (training of new teachers occurs in August however).
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| What are some of the best places to live and best schools to work for, in your opinion and why? |
Nearly impossible to answer without knowing your qualifications, your preferences in students, schedule, location..... |
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lolacatessan
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:48 am Post subject: |
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[quote="Homer"]
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| Quote: |
| What are some of the best places to live and best schools to work for, in your opinion and why? |
Nearly impossible to answer without knowing your qualifications, your preferences in students, schedule, location..... |
Qualifications:
My husband and I both have B.A.s (no TESOL, etc.)
Preference in students:
We taught all ages our first time around (4-16 years old) and then I actually taught some of the KTs (20s, 30s, 40s). Teaching the adults was much more relaxed and I liked that but of course these KTs already knew a lot of English (it was just a conversation class). It was tiring teaching the kids - I felt I was more an entertainer than a teacher - but the kids were cute and it was really fun at times. So, I'm thinking I want to teach kids.
Schedule:
Less than 36 classes a week would be nice lol (that's what I had the first time - not to mention about 2 meetings a week, 2-3 hours of prep per day, 1-2 hours of telephone teaching per day - I was at the school for over 40 hours a week).
I'd love having 4-5 classes a day, 1-2 hours prep time per day, one meeting every two weeks (preferably), no telephone teaching because it's stupid, no Saturdays (for class or seminars/workshops that I don't get overtime for - Saturday seminars/workshops would be fine if we got paid for them).
Location:
I don't think I want to live in a big city - maybe about an hour away from a big city (like Soeul) in a small, rural town - no more than about 200,000 people I guess (?) And I also think we'd like to work at a public school with 2 weeks paid vacation or more.
That's my ideal - I know I may not get all of that of course. |
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lolacatessan
Joined: 05 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 1:07 pm Post subject: |
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| lolacatessin wrote: |
Location:
I don't think I want to live in a big city - maybe about an hour away from a big city (like Soeul) in a small, rural town - no more than about 200,000 people I guess (?) And I also think we'd like to work at a public school with 2 weeks paid vacation or more. |
Actually, now I'm not so sure I'd want to live in a town that's even that big. Some of you have said you live in a small town- how small is "small"? I know it can vary wildly. But how small of a town should we look for to really get away from the fast-paced nature of the city - but still be close enough to a city to go to the cinema or e-mart?
Can anyone name some cities that I can look into? |
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butlerian
Joined: 04 Sep 2006
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 5:11 pm Post subject: |
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[quote="lolacatessin"]
| Homer wrote: |
| Quote: |
| Quote: |
| What are some of the best places to live and best schools to work for, in your opinion and why? |
Nearly impossible to answer without knowing your qualifications, your preferences in students, schedule, location..... |
Qualifications:
My husband and I both have B.A.s (no TESOL, etc.)
Preference in students:
We taught all ages our first time around (4-16 years old) and then I actually taught some of the KTs (20s, 30s, 40s). Teaching the adults was much more relaxed and I liked that but of course these KTs already knew a lot of English (it was just a conversation class). It was tiring teaching the kids - I felt I was more an entertainer than a teacher - but the kids were cute and it was really fun at times. So, I'm thinking I want to teach kids.
Schedule:
Less than 36 classes a week would be nice lol (that's what I had the first time - not to mention about 2 meetings a week, 2-3 hours of prep per day, 1-2 hours of telephone teaching per day - I was at the school for over 40 hours a week).
I'd love having 4-5 classes a day, 1-2 hours prep time per day, one meeting every two weeks (preferably), no telephone teaching because it's stupid, no Saturdays (for class or seminars/workshops that I don't get overtime for - Saturday seminars/workshops would be fine if we got paid for them).
Location:
I don't think I want to live in a big city - maybe about an hour away from a big city (like Soeul) in a small, rural town - no more than about 200,000 people I guess (?) And I also think we'd like to work at a public school with 2 weeks paid vacation or more.
That's my ideal - I know I may not get all of that of course. |
I think it's safe to say that you'd get most if not all or even more of what you're asking for in most public schools. |
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snowy32
Joined: 03 Dec 2005
Location: NZ
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| Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 5:39 pm Post subject: |
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A town of 200,000 people in Korea will probably feel much smaller than a town of 200,000 people where your from. I'm only speaking from my personal experience though. I lived in a 'city' in NZ that had about 120,000 people but it felt large enough. I live in a city in korea of 600,000 people and it feels about the same size to me. I think this is due to people being crammed in apartments instead of living in houses.
If you truly like small towns how about Gyeongju? It's a historical town and it's quite nice, VERY small but if that's what your looking for than that'd be okay. It's about an hour from Busan so if you get bored you can just pop down there. |
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Homer
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 5:32 am Post subject: |
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Well considering your qualifications and expectations you could make out well in a Public School in a smaller city or in a Hakwon in a smaller city that offers better schedule.
Try Daejon....its nice enough there. |
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