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VirginIslander
Joined: 24 May 2006
Location: Busan
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 Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 3:28 am Post subject: Perception And The Efficacy of Hawgrons? |
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There is a riff between perception of English Education and English Educators in Korea?
Parents understand the indisputable importance of English in the World, as well as the need for their children to pass high school examinations. However, in my opinion, the public and parents, as if adhering to a pseudo caste system, look down on English Educators, or least Howgron Yes, we provide a service to society but its a secondary service.
Howgrons have the potential to bring bilingualism to Korea, not public schools. For many reasons, it won't happen in the near future. In addition to the daily comments of Korean about English not being a real job (ie my friend's girlfriend, who is a well-to-do pharmacist, is going to break up with him unless he gets a real job; or our students who tacitly agree to English in the private sector but dont see many of us as a real teachers) there is other evidence that supports this cultural perception.
For example, Korean Teachers do not recieve medical insurance and vacation time, according to my head teacher, because their positions are considered 'temporary employment." What the *beep*?
If society as a whole wants its children to speak English how can it reduce its teachers to temporary workers. If howgron teachers are not truly respected, who will aspire to be Howgron teachers in the future. Only those who studied dance, chemistry or design but realized after university their fantaties were just that?
To reiterate, mastery of English cannot occur through public education in Korea. However, the most qualified teachers, attracted by the benefits and salary, will continue to teach in the public sector.
Personally, I believe there needs to be a shift in the perception of English Educators, both Korean and Foriegn teachers. The change should be small-scale, with new schools offering better deals to fluent Koreans and experienced Foreigners.
My question: Will there be a positve change in perception in the next ten years as Koreans English compentency improves? Or, will English teachers countinue to be reduced to second class citizens? |
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Roch
Joined: 24 Apr 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 3:31 am Post subject: Re: Perception And The Efficacy of Hawgrons? |
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| VirginIslander wrote: |
There is a riff between perception of English Education and English Educators in Korea?
Parents understand the indisputable importance of English in the World, as well as the need for their children to pass high school examinations. However, in my opinion, the public and parents, as if adhering to a pseudo caste system, look down on English Educators, or least Howgron Yes, we provide a service to society but its a secondary service.
Howgrons have the potential to bring bilingualism to Korea, not public schools. For many reasons, it won't happen in the near future. In addition to the daily comments of Korean about English not being a real job (ie my friend's girlfriend, who is a well-to-do pharmacist, is going to break up with him unless he gets a real job; or our students who tacitly agree to English in the private sector but dont see many of us as a real teachers) there is other evidence that supports this cultural perception.
For example, Korean Teachers do not recieve medical insurance and vacation time, according to my head teacher, because their positions are considered 'temporary employment." What the *beep*?
If society as a whole wants its children to speak English how can it reduce its teachers to temporary workers. If howgron teachers are not truly respected, who will aspire to be Howgron teachers in the future. Only those who studied dance, chemistry or design but realized after university their fantaties were just that?
To reiterate, mastery of English cannot occur through public education in Korea. However, the most qualified teachers, attracted by the benefits and salary, will continue to teach in the public sector.
Personally, I believe there needs to be a shift in the perception of English Educators, both Korean and Foriegn teachers. The change should be small-scale, with new schools offering better deals to fluent Koreans and experienced Foreigners.
My question: Will there be a positve change in perception in the next ten years as Koreans English compentency improves? Or, will English teachers countinue to be reduced to second class citizens? |
Excellent post, Sir, and I wish that I had an answer for you.
R |
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mehamrick
Joined: 28 Aug 2006
Location: South Korea
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 3:51 am Post subject: |
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I am going to just throw this out there. I think the public schools would be great if and only if they did one thing.
1. Put two or three good foreign teachers in a school and hold traditional foreign language classes everyday.
2. Use some books that were actually useful.
I am sure there are some more.. but just a thought. |
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shapeshifter
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Location: Paris
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 4:09 am Post subject: Re: Perception And The Efficacy of Hawgrons? |
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| VirginIslander wrote: |
There is a riff between perception of English Education and English Educators in Korea?
Parents understand the indisputable importance of English in the World, as well as the need for their children to pass high school examinations. However, in my opinion, the public and parents, as if adhering to a pseudo caste system, look down on English Educators, or least Howgron Yes, we provide a service to society but its a secondary service.
Howgrons have the potential to bring bilingualism to Korea, not public schools. For many reasons, it won't happen in the near future. In addition to the daily comments of Korean about English not being a real job (ie my friend's girlfriend, who is a well-to-do pharmacist, is going to break up with him unless he gets a real job; or our students who tacitly agree to English in the private sector but dont see many of us as a real teachers) there is other evidence that supports this cultural perception.
For example, Korean Teachers do not recieve medical insurance and vacation time, according to my head teacher, because their positions are considered 'temporary employment." What the *beep*?
If society as a whole wants its children to speak English how can it reduce its teachers to temporary workers. If howgron teachers are not truly respected, who will aspire to be Howgron teachers in the future. Only those who studied dance, chemistry or design but realized after university their fantaties were just that?
To reiterate, mastery of English cannot occur through public education in Korea. However, the most qualified teachers, attracted by the benefits and salary, will continue to teach in the public sector.
Personally, I believe there needs to be a shift in the perception of English Educators, both Korean and Foriegn teachers. The change should be small-scale, with new schools offering better deals to fluent Koreans and experienced Foreigners.
My question: Will there be a positve change in perception in the next ten years as Koreans English compentency improves? Or, will English teachers countinue to be reduced to second class citizens? |
Well, since you asked...
One of the reasons some people don't afford these teachers a great deal of respect is the widespread perception that some, if not most of them are wholly unqualified to do their job. Putting aside the issue of actual qualifications, many Koreans feel that the foreign teachers working in Korean hagwons are not, as a general rule, the best and brightest that Western civilization has to offer. On the whole, I'm inclined to agree. Of course there are exceptions, but it seems to me that most genuinely bright people either move on to careers in other fields or move rapidly up the EFL ladder.
If we take this board as a representative sample (it's not clear to me whether or not we should), it's hard not to arrive at the conclusion that a lot of hagwon teachers are people of mediocre intelligence who don't have a particuarly good grasp of the language they're supposed to be teaching.
I don't mean to pick on you, as your post is certainly no worse than the average. Nevertheless, the quality of the writing is mediocre at best. In any case, it hardly serves to reinforce your credibility as a serious professional.
What, for example, is a "riff"?
What does the phrase "students who tactily agree to English" mean?
Again, I'm not picking on you personally. I guess I'm just offering a partial answer to your question, at least as it applies to foreign teachers.
Koreans see that any clown who manages to fall ass-backward into a 3 year BA can get a job in a hagwon. Can we blame them for not automatically accepting these people's legitimacy as educators? Of course, the responsibility for imposing higher standard belongs not to teachers but to the Korean government. Nevertheless, until that happens, I'd say scepticism as to the professional status of hagwon instructors is likely to continue. |
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VirginIslander
Joined: 24 May 2006
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 6:40 am Post subject: |
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Shapeshifter.
| Quote: |
I don't mean to pick on you, as your post is certainly no worse than the average. Nevertheless, the quality of the writing is mediocre at best. In any case, it hardly serves to reinforce your credibility as a serious professional.
What, for example, is a "riff"?
What does the phrase "students who tactily agree to English" mean? |
Thanks for the positive criticism and for not rejecting my post in its entirety for my inability to spell "tacitly" and "rift" correctly. I will thoroughly spell check all my posts in the future.
But, you could have also looked down at your keyboard and clearly saw how the second "f" in "riff" was hit instead of the "t." I'm not going to even comment on how the two adjacent lettes in your second example were mixed up. Thats not poor spelling, its poor typing! 
Although I do admit I am a terrible speller, I am glad that spelling is not a strong indicator of one's ability to teach. |
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Paji eh Wong
Joined: 03 Jun 2003
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 6:45 am Post subject: |
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| Howgrons have the potential to bring bilingualism to Korea |
Your post rests on the mistaken assumption that most Korean students want to learn English. |
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Saxiif
Joined: 15 May 2003
Location: Seongnam
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 6:49 am Post subject: |
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| There are hagwons and then there are hagwons. I've taught at a place in the boonies for kids whose parents could just barely afford hagwons of any sort, a place in Seoul for middle class kids and a place in Seoul for upper class kids. The amount of respect you get and the general learning environment has been COMPLETELY different in the three of them. |
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VirginIslander
Joined: 24 May 2006
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 6:55 am Post subject: |
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Saxif wrote:
| Quote: |
| There are hagwons and then there are hagwons. I've taught at a place in the boonies for kids whose parents could just barely afford hagwons of any sort, a place in Seoul for middle class kids and a place in Seoul for upper class kids. The amount of respect you get and the general learning environment has been COMPLETELY different in the three of them. |
What is it like in the boonies? |
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Corporal
Joined: 25 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 6:55 am Post subject: Re: Perception And The Efficacy of Hawgrons? |
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| shapeshifter wrote: |
What, for example, is a "riff"?
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It's a repeated chord progression, pattern or melodic figure. At least according to Wikipedia. Which is by no means an infallible authority on these things. But still. |
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Saxiif
Joined: 15 May 2003
Location: Seongnam
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 7:00 am Post subject: |
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| VirginIslander wrote: |
Saxif wrote:
| Quote: |
| There are hagwons and then there are hagwons. I've taught at a place in the boonies for kids whose parents could just barely afford hagwons of any sort, a place in Seoul for middle class kids and a place in Seoul for upper class kids. The amount of respect you get and the general learning environment has been COMPLETELY different in the three of them. |
What is it like in the boonies? |
That was my first job. Didn't get to appreciate the good side of the boonies since I was constantly sick, had an evil boss, was a craptacular teacher (have improved a great deal since then through trial and much error) and took the bus to Seoul most weekends to see my then-gf. But it was good to not be in the Seoul rat race. None of the kids had cell phones and the trends were playing with yo-yos instead of wearing Von Dutch or whatever.
Overall though, I think that upper class kids are the easiest to teach followed by the poor kids and the middle class kids are the most annoying to teach since their moms are by far the whiniest. |
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ajgeddes
Joined: 28 Apr 2004
Location: Yongsan
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 7:04 am Post subject: |
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| What is a "howgron"? I really hope you don't pronounce it like that. |
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yingwenlaoshi
Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Location: ... location, location!
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2007 7:59 am Post subject: |
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| It's up to the teacher in a lot of cases. |
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shapeshifter
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Location: Paris
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| Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 4:28 am Post subject: |
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| VirginIslander wrote: |
Shapeshifter.
| Quote: |
I don't mean to pick on you, as your post is certainly no worse than the average. Nevertheless, the quality of the writing is mediocre at best. In any case, it hardly serves to reinforce your credibility as a serious professional.
What, for example, is a "riff"?
What does the phrase "students who tactily agree to English" mean? |
Thanks for the positive criticism and for not rejecting my post in its entirety for my inability to spell "tacitly" and "rift" correctly. I will thoroughly spell check all my posts in the future.
But, you could have also looked down at your keyboard and clearly saw how the second "f" in "riff" was hit instead of the "t." I'm not going to even comment on how the two adjacent lettes in your second example were mixed up. Thats not poor spelling, its poor typing!
Although I do admit I am a terrible speller, I am glad that spelling is not a strong indicator of one's ability to teach. |
Not that it really matters anyway, but I should point out that I chose to highlight the phrase "students who tactily agree to English" not because of the spelling error (which I agree is irrelevant and clearly a typo) but because it's meaningless drivel. Isn't it? |
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