More I've Written: What to Think About Before Coming

KNOW WHAT YOU’RE GETTING INTO BEFORE GOING

• READ BOOKS ON ESL TEACHING IN KOREA BEFORE GOING
• THERE ARE AT LEAST 5 OF THEM AVAILABLE AT WW.AMAZON.COM
• LOOK FOR THEM IN ENGLISH BOOK STORES LIKE KYOBO, WWW.KYOBO.COM
• CONTINUE TO READ THEM DURING YOUR FIRST YEAR
• ALSO READ BOOKS ON KOREAN CULTURE
• GET A BOOK, TAKE A CLASS OR FIND SOMEONE TO TEACH YOU BASIC KOREAN
• EVEN IF YOU DON’T THINK YOU’LL STAY LONG IT WILL HELP TO
•  KNOW THE ALPHABET
• KNOW WORDS FOR THINGS YOU NEED

BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO TEACH IN KOREA CONSIDER THESE THINGS:

1.     YOU WILL MOST LIKELY LIVE IN A ONE ROOM APARTMENT. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS?

A.      THERE WILL BE NOISE FROM ALL THE OTHERS LIVING AROUND

B.      ESPECIALLY THE BIG CITIES ARE NOISY. THAT’S WHERE MOST TEACHERS GO.

C.      KOREANS LOVE TO GO OUT AND COME HOME AT ANY TIME OF NIGHT.

D.      OFTEN THERE'S CONSTRUCTION WORK BEING DONE WHICH STARTS 7-8AM.

2.     IF YOU LIVE IN ONE OF THE CITIES YOU WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH POLLUTION

A.      DO YOU HAVE ASTHMA OR BREATHING PROBLEMS?

B.      TALK TO A DOCTOR ABOUT THIS.

C.      DON’T ASK YOUR RECRUITER OR FUTURE EMPLOYER TO TELL YOU HOW BAD THE POLLUTION IS, THEY WILL UNDERESTIMATE IT.

D.     TRUTHFULLY THE WHOLE COUNTRY HAS POLLUTION BUT IT’S WORSE IN THE CITIES.

E.      THE WEALTHIEST AREAS IN SEOUL ARE VERY POLLUTED.

3.     POPULAR PLACES SUCH AS MOVIE THEATERS, PARKS, DEPARTMENT STORES AND OTHER PLACES ARE OFTEN CROWDED

A.      IF YOU GO TO ONE OF THESE PLACES ON THE WEEKEND IN A MAJOR CITY BE PREPARED!

4.     KOREAN FOOD IS SPICY!!!!!

A.      EVEN IF YOU LIKE SPICY FOOD IN YOUR COUNTRY YOU MAY NOT BE PREPARED

5.     KOREANS ARE HOMOGENOUS

A.      THEY DON’T ALL LOOK ALIKE, BUT THERE IS A LOT LESS VARIATION

B.      THEY DON’T HAVE NATURALLY CURLY, WAVY OR KINKY HAIR

C.      THEY DON’T HAVE LONG OR BIG NOSES

D.      THEY ARE MOSTLY AVERAGE HEIGHT

E.      THEY ARE MOSTLY THIN OR AVERAGE

6.     KOREANS TALK OPENLY ABOUT DIFFERENCES IN FOREIGNER’S APPEARANCES

A.      SOMETIMES THEY ONLY TALK TO EACH OTHER

B.      OFTEN THEY TALK DIRECTLY TO FOREIGNERS USING KOREAN OR SIGN LANGUAGE

C.      PARTICULARLY CHILDREN, OLDER PEOPLE, LOWER CLASS, OR RUDE PEOPLE

7.     MYTHS

A.      KOREANS ARE A WELL-EDUCATED PEOPLE

B.      KOREAN STUDENTS ARE ALL POLITE, HARD WORKING AND GOOD STUDENTS

C.      KOREAN SCHOOLS ARE BETTER THAN AMERICAN SCHOOLS

8.     GOOD POINTS

A.      GOING TO TEACH IN KOREA NOW IS EASIER THAN IT WAS SAY TEN YEARS AGO

B.      THERE ARE MANY BLOGS, BOOKS, SITES THAT CAN GIVE YOU A LOT OF INFO.

• YOU MAY FIND GOOD PLACES TO WORK OR AVOID BAD ONES BASED ON THIS.
• YOU WILL FIND OUT GOOD PLACES TO GO IN KOREA.
• YOU WILL FIND WHICH PLACES SUPPLY THINGS YOU NEED.
• YOU WILL LEARN ABOUT KOREAN FOOD.
• YOU MAY LEARN ABOUT NICE AREAS TO LIVE OR VISIT.
• YOU CAN LEARN ABOUT THE LIFE IS SEOUL VS. SMALLER CITIES OR RURAL AREAS.
• YOU CAN LEARN ABOUT WHERE TO GO IF YOU REALLY NEED HELP.
•  YOU CAN LEARN ABOUT WHAT TO DO IF YOU GET SICK.

9. ONE PROBLEM THAT COMES UP NOW AND THEN – JEALOUSY

• CONSIDER THIS: THOUGH IT’S BASICALLY EASY FOR FOREIGN TEACHERS TO FIND JOBS, FOR KOREAN TEACHERS IT’S NOT!
• IN FACT IT’S NOT EASY FOR KOREANS TO FIND ANY JOB!
• AT THE MOMENT ONE OF MY KOREAN FRIENDS WHO HAS TWO DEGREES, ONE IN EDUCATION, IS STAYING OUTSIDE OF THE COUNTRY BECAUSE THERE IS NO ELEMENTARY TEACHING JOB AVAILABLE FOR HER.
• I KNOW FOREIGN AMERICAN/CANADIAN TEACHERS WHO ARE TEACHING RIGHT NOW IN THE SCHOOLS SHE COULD BE TEACHING IN.
• SOME HAVE ONE DEGREE, WHILE ONE IS IN THE TALK PROGRAM, STILL A STUDENT.
• THEY HAVE NO EDUCATION DEGREES

• DURING MY HAGWON TEACHING DAYS I LEARNED THESE THINGS ABOUT KOREAN TEACHERS I WORKED WITH
• THEY MADE A LOT LESS MONEY THAN ME, SOMETIMES HALF OR LESS OF MY SALARY.
•  THEY HAD NO BENEFITS SUCH AS THE APARTMENT OR AIRFARE.
• THEY SOMETIMES HAD TO WORK LATER, WEEKENDS OR HOLIDAYS.
• THEY DIDN’T GET ANY VACATION OTHER THAN PUBLIC HOLIDAYS AND A SUMMER VACATION RANGING FROM FIVE DAYS TO ONE FULL WEEK.
• WHY SHOULDN’T THEY BE JEALOUS?

BTW I’D LIKE TO ADD HERE THAT ALTHOUGH I UNDERSTAND THE KOREAN GOVERNMENT’S WANTING TO HAVE LOTS OF FOREIGN TEACHERS IN KOREA, AND I BELIEVE THIS IS THE REASON FOR THE START OF THE TALK PROGRAM WHICH BRINGS COLLEGE STUDENTS WITHOUT DEGREES TO TEACH IN KOREA SIX MONTHS OR ONE YEAR, CAN YOU ALSO CONSIDER ALL THE KOREAN POTENTIAL TEACHERS WHO CAN’T GET JOBS?? COULD SOME OF THEM BE TEACHING PART-TIME IF THEY CAN’T GET FULL TIME JOBS, OR COULD THE ONES WHO SPEAK ENGLISH WELL TEACH ENGLISH CLASSES IN SCHOOLS AS THE TALK PROGRAM MEMBERS ARE?