By So what have you English teachers in Ulsan been up to, to get yourselves fired?:
As many as 17 native English speakers _ or 12.4 percent of the total 137 _ have been expelled from primary and middle schools in Ulsan for alleged poor teaching methods, demeanor or other reasons, the local education office reported Wednesday.
The office said that it has not renewed their contracts after judging their methods to be inappropriate for teaching students in English.
A written survey was conducted to determine how many acted decently, how faithful they were to their duty, how well they guided students and how well they taught English.
Among the dismissed were those who often yelled at students, argued with Korean teachers assisting them and wore indecent clothes. Some had to visit hospital too often for weight problems and some refused to teach after school, according to the survey. [Korea Times]
1:46 am on May 7th, 2009 1
What is the state of educational budgets in Korea with the downturn in the world economy?
That's where I'd start to look to explain this.
Currently in the US, I've heard of some teachers being dismissed because of budget cuts and hiring freezes, but of course, they aren't being told its because of budget cuts…
10:44 am on May 7th, 2009 2
I suppose they should have "tried to understand their culture." They should have gone to hwaeshik, carried a stick and used it, have their female students sit on their laps (if Canadian, then have the male students sit on their laps); they should have worn "decent" clothes such as the silver, glistening suit, or micro shorts with thigh-high stockings(hopefully not worn by Canadian dudes). Perhaps they should have just known that a contract means nothing here and you're supposed to kill yourself teaching after hours to be part of the team.
1:07 pm on May 7th, 2009 3
Pay peanuts, get monkeys.
In Korea, pay a lot more than peanuts and still get monkeys.
Many of the reasons are valid. Let's look.
"poor teaching methods"… well, technically, they can't be poor if they don't exist. I am going to go out on a limb and say the majority of "teachers" don't do much (if any) preparation. On the other hand, since most of the "teachers" have no teaching training, they can't be entirely blamed… and the hogwons/schools rarely do more than throw a new-arrival into a class and say, "Teach English!"
"poor demeanor"… without a doubt. If I had a dime for all the shabby-looking, arse-dragging, sourpuss English teachers I saw, I'd… I'd… I'd have a few bucks in useless change. It seems there is a disproportionate number of stinkers, non-shavers and rumpled casual clothes-wearers around here. As for girls, string-haired, no-makeup, hippie-bordering-on-homeless-fashion-wearing Lola Granola types abound.
"yelled at students"… this is not the way to solve problems but the poor English teachers trapped in a room of brats in need of a good smack probably learned by the Korean teachers' examples. There are not many tools in the teacher's toolbox to maintain order in a Korean classroom. When I was in school, classes were very orderly with "stand in the corner", "no recess" and "tell your parents" as the main threats. I'm always surprised at what monsters the Korean children can be.
"argued with Korean teachers assisting them"… they deserve to be fired. A smart foreign teacher will shut up and do as the Korean assistant teacher says… even if they think it is wrong. Consider that the Korean is the teacher and YOU are the assistant teacher… if for no other reason than to push all responsibility onto them. Bask in your movie star treatment down at the local hook-up bar. At the hogwon/school, act as if you are part of the supporting cast… which you are.
"wore indecent clothes"… I'm not sure what this means. The majority of foreign girls I have seen dress more like truckers than working girls. I have seen inappropriate clothes… but they are of the unprofessional, unclean, unkempt or ultra-casual varieties. Many successful female Korean teachers keep their adult hogwon classes full by dressing well and wearing occasional "indecent clothes" such as extra-short skirts, extra-high heels and (gasp) bare shoulders. This is something the female Western teachers should consider… and I doubt that many hogwon owners would complain too much. A Latex microskirt won't really fly in a class of 5th graders but I sure wish I had more teachers like that in high school. I'm not sure what today's universities are teaching but, based on the foreign teachers in Korea, they seem to lack education in hygiene and appropriate professional attire… something that was just assumed, and backed up with peer pressure, back in the day.
"Some had to visit hospital too often for weight problems"… that's too bad. I hate to see health be an issue. From an employer's point of view I can understand that the best solution is to replace the teacher with a smaller and more maintenance-free model. The most interesting part is "some". This means there was more than one of the 17. Is this a problem?
"and some refused to teach after school"… Hmmm. This is a hard one without a great answer. If it is in the contract, too bad. If it is not, there is certainly a lot of irritation with the school springing this request all of a sudden. As these teachers didn't get their contracts renewed, it seems they wanted to stay in Korea. If that is the case, the best bet would be to suck it up and just do it… for a year. When it comes time to renew the contract, start talking terms. If faced with keeping you, which they were happy with, or risking getting some new scumbag who might be filled with complaints, they will make concessions to keep you.
In the end, I have little pity for most of these teachers. Without a doubt, there are bad employers and there are many examples of great foreigners who got the shaft… but, in the majority of case I have seen, the teachers have been mostly-to-fully at fault for their problems.
4:22 pm on May 7th, 2009 4
"but, in the majority of case I have seen, the teachers have been mostly-to-fully at fault for their problems."
I've been out of the game since 2000, and Korea's increasingly horrible reputation as an ESL gig had become too wide spread and harmed started to lower the quality of people coming in…
But in my experience, the schools were by far the source of the trouble.
I met a fair number of language instructors, and I can only think of a couple who were pieces of crap.
Most wanted to do a fair to good job but quickly learned that wasn't going to get them anywhere in the meat grinders. The institutions were crap and a primary hurdle to effective education.
It wasn't the teachers who created the massive schedules and just plopped themselves in class after class after class after class – with no schedule for a planning period or the like – and no say over textbooks or other class material…
The instructors don't run the schools or the programs. They naturally tend to work with what they are given – and when they are given crap, the end up doing the minimum…
8:23 pm on May 7th, 2009 5
USinKorea,
You are not exactly wrong… but within your post lies the answer to much of the conflict.
"I met a fair number of language instructors, and I can only think of a couple who were pieces of crap."
I might agree. Despite my professional disrespect, many of the foreign instructors are not pieces of crap as human beings. They are very suitable in the position of waiter or coffee shop worker or whatever sustenance-wage McJob they left.
Once they arrived in Korea, despite being given a fat paycheck and automatic respect as a teacher and a professional, many of them keep their McJob habits and mentality… which sets the stage for hogwon/teacher conflict.
I can give a long list… but some highlights might include attention to professional grooming and attire, losing the hourly minimum wage mentality of "I'll only do that if I get paid for it", choosing carefully what to complain about and what to simply endure as a cultural experience.
Many of the teachers who aren't pieces of crap still don't make an effort (possibly through ignorance) to do what Korean society requires to flow smoothly through their professional life… which, in many cases, is why they are in Korea to begin with.
"Most wanted to do a fair to good job but quickly learned that wasn’t going to get them anywhere in the meat grinders. The institutions were crap and a primary hurdle to effective education."
Yes and no. Most want to do a fair to good job as long as it doesn't require too much effort. And, yes, once they see that to do a good job (mostly by fighting against the hogwon system and the Korean education mentality) will require Herculean effort, they kinda give up and just do what it takes to get by. This is very understandable… not respectable… but understandable.
What they should do is step back and observe why this is the case. Instead of fighting the system, they should observe it and find their place in it.
For those who have not, let me make something very, very clear to anybody who cares.
ENGLISH HOGWONS ARE NOT EXACTLY ABOUT TEACHING ENGLISH.
TEACHING ENGLISH IS NOT THE PRIMARY JOB OF A HOGWON INSTRUCTOR.
Every hogwon teacher should know this and know why. If one thinks otherwise they are doomed to unhappiness, conflict and failure.
I have to run now… but if anyone is interested, I'll explain, in painful detail, the true purpose of hogwons and the real job of hogwon instructors…
…and that will address the rest of the points in your post.