Esl Teaching Korea
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Hector Said:
How is teaching ESL and living in Korea? Any good or bad experiences?We Answered:
I've been teaching in South Korea for 3 years now and I'm planning on another year. I'm honest when I say it's the best place I've lived. I really like my life here. The teaching is cool. I teach elementary kids and really enjoy going to work everyday. As long as you have some rules in your class and don't let kids walk all over you, you'll do great and enjoy the teaching. Koreans are really welcoming and nice to all foreigners from my experience. If you look Korean, they might start talking to you in Korean, but once they find out you're a foreigner, they treat you even better.Some good things:
• food is really cheap to eat out
• bars and restaurants stay open till 3am,4,5,even 6am.
• Many places are open all night long
• You can save alot of money here (even if you spend $500-$1000) a month, you can save about $1,000 or more every month.
• The school pays for your housing
• The school pays for your roundtrip flight
• Public transportation here is great and very cheap
Some bad things:
If you live right in a busy section of downtown Seoul, the air pollution can be a little much. But living a little outside of the city is clean. If you're from the US or Canada, it's far from home, so visiting on holidays can be expensive and difficult.
The Italian food is not so good here, but Korean food is quite tasty.
Here are some videos about teaching in Korea to help you decide if it's right for you:
http://budurl.com/TeachInKorea
Jorge Said:
Is teaching ESL still in demand in Korea?We Answered:
Heck yes! I don't think Korean parents will ever stop pushing their kids to learn english. It is and will definitely be in demand.Willard Said:
Recommendations for ESL teaching positions in Korea?We Answered:
Dave's Cafe is still the best. I got my job in China there,You can also google teaching in Korea and you will see up to
date job offers.As to reputable you should check out an offer.
Get a name of a expat who works for them.
Bertha Said:
Can anyone shed light light on teaching ESL in South Korea?We Answered:
Liz,Yes, I have lived in Korea for five years now. To be honest, it's still not bad, though the economy (like most places) has gotten weaker. The exchange rate also is pretty bad right now ($1=1384), when it peaked a couple of years ago it was ($1=900).
Most schools should offer you a salary, housing, pension and health insurance for benefits (the pension and health insurance should be a 50/50 split between employer/employee). Ask for single housing, it usually will be a small one room with a small kitchen area. The kitchen will have a refrigerator and a gas stove top with two burners and that's it. You can pick up a small convection oven for about 90,000 won at a large grocery store. Ask to see pictures of the housing before you move in (in face insist) to make sure it isn't a dump.
Go over the contract you are offered carefully. You can go Dave's ESL Cafe (in the Job Discussion Forum there is a sticky thread) where you can post the contract and get feedback from someone who has been here awhile. Ask questions of the employer about the hours and the schedule and if you can speak to a current of former teachers. If they won't give you the information or let you speak to anyone, then you should be leery about signing a contract.
The teaching really depends on the age group you want to teach. I started teaching kindergarten and preschool (in a private hagwon) which is very difficult and requires a lot more energy. If you are lucky, you may teach with a Korean coteacher which can help in terms of managing the kids behavior. The next group up is elementary, which I also have taught (in a public school) and that also took a lot of energy, but was quite a bit easier. For the last year and a half I've been teaching at the university level, which is different from the other levels. The university students can sometimes be a challenge because they fall asleep in class and their motivation levels differ from class to class (one class can be really good, the next class can be really just terrible).
I would recommend heading over to Dave's ESL Cafe and reading as much as your eyes will take before they pop out. Lots of good info over there.
Michele Said:
Teaching ESL Korea illegal?We Answered:
Everybody I know has at least a couple privates. You would have to be a complete fool to get caught. To teach privates without getting caught follow these steps:1) Don't tell anyone that you're teaching privates, especially coworkers
2) Don't solicit services to anyone (people will come to you)
3) Use common sense (don't brag about how much money you're making, etc.)
I listed number 3 because I only know of one guy who got caught teaching privates. He boasted about how much money he was making on privates in front of all of the other teachers in his hagwon. One of the other teachers was his girlfriend. They broke-up and she knew his exact schedule for privates at another hagwon and called immigration to rat him out.
When I was doing privates, I'd usually go to the students office or home.
As long as you're not a complete moron, you're not going to get caught.
Agnes Said:
Teaching Korea: What is the difference teaching ESL for different grades (elementary, middle, highschool)?We Answered:
If you are looking to teach at a real, public/private school in Korea (not an ESL Academy like Kumon) :Elementary School ( 1st ~ 6th Grade ) : Unless it is an advanced private school or a school that accepts students who lived in the US & Canada before, the chances are low that the school actually provides formal, full-class English education.
Middle School ( 7th ~ 9th Grade ) : English officially begins at most middle schools in Korea. However, Korean school officials prefer Korean teachers over foreign teachers, so beware of competition.
High School ( 10th ~ 12th Grade ) : Same as middle school. Private high schools, however, will welcome Americans as their English teachers.
In conclusion, you should basically aim for teaching at an ESL Academy (outside-of-school), as they hire numerous Americans -- more than most schools in Korea, anyway. I strongly recommend Kumon -- it is a widely known branch in Korea. Or you could just check out your local area's academies. Fortunately, there are tons of these ESL schools in Korea. Or you can apply to teach at a private school.
Cheers!
Walter Said:
I'm interested in teaching ESL in Korea. Can anyone give me some agencies or recruiters?We Answered:
This agency was featured in a a recent story on cnn.comhttp://reachtoteachrecruiting.com/
The story can be found at
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/03/20/tea…