Korean Job Discussion Forums

[vox]

Public school ELIs :

Do your students address you as teacher, or as your first name?
Neither work in the west, but in the west I always addressed my schoolteachers as Mr./Ms. so and so.

This wasn't even important to me until Korean co-teachers made it important in my public school. In every grade of my school they're taking time out of my lesson openers to correct students treating the English class starting time in an informal manner. In Korean, they go to great lengths to explain that while I may be their buddy or friend on the playground, in class I'm the teacher and they'll address me as such and do it promptly. Then the class starts out with its scripted opening and bow that they want for each class.

But today for a special demonstration, my Korean English co-teacher said, 'say hello to the teacher' and after we both waved and said hello, she continued, 'now say hello to __.' I was embarassed and felt silly for feeling so. Maybe it was the fact that there were ten teachers in the back observing and taking notes. Today's grade 4 demo class were my grade 3s last semester. One the one hand, I accepted that they need that point of separation because they're so many and the formality works so well to get focus started. On the other hand, I don't think I care but for some retarded reason I'm miffed at my KEco-teacher for that and for being inconsistent. I guess a side issue is that I consider my KEco-teacher to be kind of dim, as she's so inconsistent about so many things in class, from holding up flash cards with her hand covering the word to be read, to varying (without guidance) away from the target language, to getting body parts wrong.

My other native speaker teacher thinks it's more relevant that [firstname]+teacher is not a western expression. I've left it alone this year because I assumed Koreans insisting on it thought that cultural point was important to keep.

The real question I guess is do I drop it, or ask for consistency from my KEco-teacher? Maybe I shouldn't do that stupid Korean wave from five feet away, in the first place. Arr.

[Alyallen]

I am referred to as Aly teacher. So to answer your question, I'm referred to as both in one shot.

My students have learned to call me ma'am or Ms. Alyallen. I personally don't care but my students do know how to call people Mr. Smith or Ms. Jones or Mrs. Johnson or sir.

[kimchi story]

I get a kick out of this because my contract states that I am an ELI and that is actually my first name. My students call me Eli and I have asked them to do so. I haven't even considered that they may not recognize the titles of Mr. and Mrs. but after this I will. And if I stick around, I think next term I will ask the new ones to call me Mr.-, even though my last name's kinda long.

I agree about the whole not using first name + teacher because it's too Konglishish. Too hogwanish.

[Sine qua non]

[poet13]

XXXXX teacher, or XXXXX Seng seng nim (however you phonetically spell it)

Both at school, and in public.

[some waygug-in]

I've been trying hard to get my students....and the other teachers to call me something other than my last name.
At least put a Mr. in front of it or something. I'd rather be called by my first name than what they are doing. Call me my first name, call me teacher, call me ______ teacher or MR. _________, but for God's sake don't call me by just my last name!

I don't know how many times I've been over this with them, and some are catching on, but I still have many that call me by my last name.

It ain't pretty.

[jvalmer]

I just let them call me by my first name.

Interesting, the Korean-American teachers I know don't have a problem with this. Most insist the students call them by their western name. But, if one of the student calls them by their Korean name without teacher or 선생님/샘 following, then that's when they give hell to the students.

[Sody]

That's so weird isn't it? I wonder if Koreans realize how immature their ideals of respect and culture are to us "crazy way-gooks?" If a student called me by my first name and didn't address me as "teacher," I wouldn't care either way. My job is to teach and if they are learning then I''m doing my job well. Whether they respect me or not is irrelevant. I've had students who called me by my first name and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt they respect me even more than the Korean teachers. They aren't on a first name basis with the Korean teachers because they are scared of getting smacked across the side of their heads. Real respect? I dunno I guess it depends who you ask.

Sody

[EFLtrainer]

[Roch]

[OiGirl]

K-12, students are expected to call me "Miss Girl." Sometimes they call me "Girl." I usually tell them the "Oi" part, but they know that despite the fact that they call other foreign teachers by their first name, it's not okay with me. I just say, "you should know how students speak to their teachers in the US."

University students have the option of "Miss Girl" or "Oi." They MAY NOT call me "Professor," because I'm not one!

[oneofthesarahs]

I work in a hagwon. I get a mixture of Sarah teacher and Sarah sem (Sarah sem most often) from the younger kids. My middle school kids just call me Sarah, which I prefer, because they are conversation classes, and it feels more...conversational.

I think the [name]teacher thing comes from the fact that sonsaengnim literally means "teacher" and is a general honorable title. I think to some Koreans, [name]teacher is a reasonable translation, and they just don't realize how it comes across to the Western ear.

[riley]

I like being called Mr___. It sets up boundaries, which are important when you start teaching a class. I don't mind breaking the boundaries later, or at least making it less formal, but I feel it's a good idea for the students to know that you're not their buddy, nor their equal. It could be why I've never gotten dong-chimmed or had major problems with classes.

[Samantha]

[trubadour]

riley:
what's 'dong chimmed' - exaclty?