Welcome To My School

I'm posting this from work. Normally this wouldn't be an acceptable use of my time but today the high school students are taking some kind of standardized test so I've been told I can sleep on my desk all day if I want. This is good news, as I went out drinking last night with some Korean co-teachers and was introduced to the wonders of so-me, a mix of soju and beer. I actually have to teach two middle school classes today but they're so much fun that shouldn't be a problem.

Anyway, let's take a tour of my school, Hamchang Middle and High School.

This is the main entrance. The school sits on top of a hill so the gate is down on the street, but this is the main building.

Here's the foyer. To the right are the administration office and the principal's office. I rarely see him, he's usually doing principal things in this office. I surmise, I really don't know what he does.

To the left is a hallway leading to the small library and the English Only Zone. The latter is a special English classroom that I occasionally teach in. In other schools, the EOZ is the permanent classroom for the native English teacher but here it isn't utilized all that much.

There's also an extra classroom that I don't think ever gets used. I took a picture because it'll give you an idea of what a typical classroom looks like here.

Here's a shot of the new gym, which is currently under construction. I have no idea when it will be completed. I didn't even know that I wouldn't be teaching any high school classes today until 8pm last night. Welcome to Korea.

This is the teachers' shoe cubby at the top of the stairs on the third floor. Everyone, students and teachers alike, changes into slippers when they arrive for school. You only take them off if you step onto dirt or leave the school. The students' cubbies are in their classrooms, as are their lockers. Unlike in America, where teachers stay put and students come to them, here it's the other way around. Students stay with the same group all day and the teachers go to them. So it makes sense for their lockers to be inside the room.

This is a student lounge area, located just to the right of the above teacher shoe cubby. Students do occasionally lounge here but usually they're so tired from studying a more apt name would be the student coma area.

This is the third-floor teacher's room. Usually there's at least one teacher in here. I'm not sure why it was so empty on this day.

Here's my desk. Instantly recognizable by the alien Apple computer. Korea has to be the least Mac OS-friendly country ever. If it's not a PC it's just baffling to most people here. (The students, however, ooh and ahh over my Mac. There's hope for this country yet.)

A shot of a third-floor hall. Shoe cubbies can also be outside a classroom.

The view from the stairwell.

From the roof looking south. Those train tracks will take you all the way to Pusan, Korea's second biggest city.

On the fourth-floor roof. It amazes me that this area is open to students, as is the fifth-floor roof (with the blue awning). In my day any dangers, such as that exposed rebar or the precipitous drop, would have been exploited by the students for maximum bullying potential.

Looking down from the fourth-floor roof at the music building (on the left) and the science building. The school cafeteria is on the first floor of the science building.

The school cafeteria in full swing. It's not all that big so they control the flow of students by grade. These are middle school students. And yes, there are two large HD TVs in here. It is Korea, after all.

A middle school class before the bell rings. They're remarkably well-behaved when I'm in the room. I can walk in to pandemonium, with kids in all sorts of gravity- and pain-defying positions, but as soon as they see me they sit down and get ready for class.

So there you go. Maybe next time I'll give you a tour of the town where I live.

A Long-Ass Post From A Small-Ass Place

A lack of posts on this site should not be taken as an indication that there's nothing going on in my life worth blogging about. On the contrary, blog-worthy things are happening to me on an almost hourly basis. It's a little overwhelming. There's no way I'll be able to cover everything but I can at least give you an overview of what's happening in my life these days.

In a nutshell, I am now teaching English at an all-boys' middle and high school in the Korean countryside. Specifically, at Hamchang Middle and High School, in Hamchang, Gyeongsangbuk-do, population 8427. My school has around 600 students, 150 middle school and 450 high school students. I teach English to them all.

Not all at the same time, of course, although I have appeared before them en masse at a ceremony to welcome the new teachers (that would be me and a new middle school science teacher). No, I see each class once a week (and in a few cases, twice a week). My class is called "applied English." The rest of the week, they learn grammar and reading comprehension and other things that they can (and will) be tested on. My job is to make sure they can speak English too.

I have a Korean co-teacher for each class. This is the students' regular English teacher. Some like to be involved with my lessons, for a variety of reasons ranging from making sure the class understands what I'm saying to a desire to co-teach. Others are content to let me take the reins, plan the lesson and teach the class. I'm happy to teach in whatever way the co-teacher prefers. It's fun to plan a lesson and see it succeed but if it fails and it's just you bombing, it sucks. It's also nice to have some of the pressure taken off and let the Korean co-teacher lead the lesson.

The kids, for the most part, are great. They're enthusiastic, respectful and endearing. I've had students offer to carry my laptop, randomly buy me juice or give me candy, and pop into the teacher's room just to say hi. They all bow when they pass and say "hello" or the Korean equivalent, "anyeonghasseyo." In Korea, respect is automatically given to an elder, particularly to a teacher. In America, respect must be earned. Their automatic respect makes me want to be a better teacher for them, to try harder so I do not fail them. And of course respect goes both ways: when they bow to me at the beginning of class, I bow back (only not as deeply).

The school has been great to me. Aside from some confusion about what my relocation bonus is for (I say it's for me, they say it's to pay for my hotel while my apartment is being built) everything has gone smoothly. I started with a schedule of 22 classes per week, what I'm actually contracted to teach, but this was reduced to 20 after they saw how exhausted it was making me. They've also offered after-school classes to me at a higher rate of overtime than what I'm contracted for. And that new apartment? I'm still living in a love motel but once it's ready next week it'll be plush. A brand new one-bedroom apartment with a built-in 42" TV, laundry machine, balcony, and storage area. My school has even offered me use of a car.

All of the teachers have gone above and beyond for me but my vice principal has practically adopted me. There's a long and embarrassing story involving diarrhea and him paying for my doctor visit because I don't have medical insurance yet but I'll save that for another time. But for another example, yesterday I decided I would take a walk through our tiny town and take pictures of places for an upcoming lesson on giving directions. I pantomimed to him that I was going to go take pictures and he jumped up out of his desk and insisted he drive me. "No walk. Long course. I drive." I tried to refuse—he's the VP and obviously very busy—but there's no refusing this man. He borrowed a car from another teacher and off we went the three blocks to take pictures of the bank, police station and other places. When we got to the one grocery store in town he took me inside and made me pick out pastries and cookies and then bought them for me. Luckily Koreans are all about sharing food so I was tactfully able to avoid gaining 5 pounds that day by offering it to the other teachers.

I live in the next town over from Hamchang, called Jeomchon. It has a population of around 50,000 people and thus is not as rural as I was afraid it could be. It has a bus terminal and a train station, a Dunkin' Donuts, a Lotteria Burger (local fast food chain) and two Paris Baguettes (local bakery chain). There are no McDonalds, no Starbucks, no department stores or clubs. There isn't even a movie theater (the nearest one is over an hour away!). Outside of town is farmland and then big, beautiful mountains.

On the plus side, I'm located pretty much right in the middle of Korea. I'm two hours by bus from Seoul, and two hours by train to Daegu, Korea's third largest city. There are lots of small cities not too far away worth exploring, and even a few things in my own backyard that warrant a look-see.

Surprisingly, there are quite a few other foreigners in my town, something like 15 or 20. I seem to run into at least one a day. I was invited to a bi-monthly foreigner dinner party my first week so was able to get some good advice on where to go and all that. But it seems most everyone leaves town on the weekends, something I've already started doing. Last Saturday I went to Seoul and back to get some things for my computer (most people out here don't even know what Apple is) and buy some books. Tomorrow I'm training into Daegu for a haircut and a night out with other new EPIKers.

The days are still a little rough and I pass out around 9 every night, but it's a fulfilled exhaustion. I really like teaching. I like seeing a lesson plan succeed, and the kids understand a grammar point. I like when they attempt to speak to me in English, and when I can see them become interested in what I'm talking about. I like when the other teachers complement me on a lesson. It's nice to make a difference, even if it's only a small one.

I think it's going to be alright out here.

First Post From Korea: Shower Time

Hello all! I'm in Korea, at orientation for my teaching job with EPIK. Orientation is at Jeonju University, in the southern part of the country. After this week I'll head out to my job in Gyeongsangbuk-do, but until then, the dorms here are my home.

The dorm itself isn't all that special (even though it is nice) but what is worth mentioning is the shower. Korean showers do not have doors or curtains; there's nothing separating the water from the rest of the bathroom. You get wet, the toilet gets wet and the floor gets really wet. There's a drain in the floor to let the water out but not all of the water goes at once, so you have to use the supplied bathroom slippers other times so your feet don't get soaked.

You may be able to see in the picture that the roll of toilet paper is covered with a metal plate. The wall sockets are also similarly covered. There's even a lid for the garbage can. Of course, all of this could be alleviated by just partitioning off the shower space.

But hey, who am I to tell the Koreans how to bathe themselves?

Lastly, here's a bonus photo of our shampoo.

How I Almost Landed A Job Teaching English In Japan

Although I'll soon be teaching English in Korea my original goal was to teach in Japan. After all, Japanese was my major in college and I've spent quite a bit of time there. However, like the Rolling Stones said, "You can't always get what you want." Although I actually had a job offer on the table at one point (from G.education Nova), I wasn't able to find a job that fulfilled all of my requirements (namely, a decent salary) and so I set my sites elsewhere.

It's pretty hard to get a good job in Japan right now. From what I've seen online, the market there is rough for prospective English teachers with no previous experience. More and more people are falling in love with Japan and going there hoping to teach, while fewer and fewer positions are being made available as schools scale back or even close. Schools that are hiring want people who are already in Japan and don't require visa support. Those that are willing to sponsor you for a visa want teaching experience. It's an employer's market so schools can afford to be picky. That being said, if you're willing to work for low pay for a year or so to gain experience there are still jobs out there. (This option wasn't available to me as I have student loans to pay off.)

As with Korea, there are two main types of English teaching jobs in Japan: public and private schools. At a public school, you're what is called an ALT, an Assistant Language Teacher. You co-teach English with a Japanese teacher at a public school. ALTs are provided by private companies, like Interac and Altia Central, or the government, which is what JET is. There are also private schools, known as eikaiwa, conversation schools. Unlike Korean private schools, which largely use recruiters to find employees, private Japanese schools hire directly.

Requirements
So what do you need to be able to teach in Japan? A college degree is absolutely necessary. You don't have to speak Japanese, although it doesn't hurt. A TEFL certificate is not necessary but could give you an edge over non-certified applicants. And, as I said before, if you already have a visa eg you're married to a Japanese person then you're good to go.

Get your resume together and rewrite it with an ESL focus. Bagged groceries at Safeway? Great, but even better if you tried to teach your Spanish-speaking co-workers some English on your break. Prepare a nice cover letter too. Have a passport photo taken (and wear a collared shirt and tie). You'll need that for your application. Get two former bosses to write generic letters of recommendation for you. Then scan everything, including your diploma and any TEFL certificates. It also wouldn't hurt to write a short essay on why you want to teach in Japan. You can always add in specifics like location when applying.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?
You don't have to be in Japan to get hired. There are lots of job sites (below) to help you do that. However, being in the country could give you an advantage. That being said, Japan is a very expensive place to be and it could take 3-4 months to land a job so you'll need to being a lot of money with you, something like $5000.

Eikaiwa
Here's a list of some of the larger eikaiwa chains, some of which have offices outside of Japan where you can interview in person. Others will want to interview via Skype or phone. Eikaiwa often pay better than public schools but your hours will vary and be when people are not working or in school, so evenings and weekends.

Amity
ECC
Aeon
G.education Nova (Geos)
Gaba
Winbe
James English School


ALT Providers
If you'd rather work in a public school with normal 9-5 hours, try one of these.

JET
Altia Central
Interac

Job Sites
There are many other, smaller schools also hiring. Look on the following job sites for job postings. Gaijinpot is the biggest and best known, but not every school will post there. Also, everyone looking for a job goes there so there are literally hundreds of applicants for any one job. Check the sites everyday and if you can, check at the end of the day, as that's when new ads tend to go up (it's morning in Japan then).


Gaijinpot
TEFL Jobs Now
Japan English Teacher
Total ESL
You Can Teach English
ESL Job Feed
Dave's ESL Cafe International Job List
All About Teaching English In Japan
Jobs In Japan
Kansai Scene Classifieds
Kansai Flea Market Classifieds
Kansai Free Ads

Information Boards
Check these boards for additional information. As with any expat boards take what people say with a grain of salt.


Gaijinpot Forums
Dave's ESL Cafe International Forums
I Think I'm Lost
JET Forums

Good luck!

How I Secured A Job Teaching English In Korea

The contracts are signed, the visa is being processed, the plane tickets are bought, and all that's left to do is pack my bags. Yes, I'm finally leaving for Asia to teach English.

I've decided to go with EPIK, a South Korean government program that recruits English-speaking people from all over the world to teach in elementary, middle and high schools around Korea. The pay and benefits are both excellent. As with most English-teaching jobs in Korea, your airfare and rent are paid, leaving you free to take home the lion's share of your paycheck. Add to this a lower standard of living than home, extremely affordable health care, and an agreement between the US and Korea so I don't have to pay income tax for two years. Financially, it's the best deal in Asia.

Long-time readers of this site will be wondering why I chose Korea over my beloved Japan. Truthfully, it's more that Japan didn't choose me. I applied to the JET program and ended up on the waiting list and then applied to a number of cram schools as well. But as I found out, it's a difficult time to get an English-teaching job in Japan, especially with no experience. Fewer jobs and more applicants (curse you, manga and anime) means employers can afford to be picky. Korea, however, has made English language a priority. Now is the time to break into Korea, as more and more people are taking the same route.

So how did I do it? In this piece I'll take you though my job application steps. This is not meant to be a definitive how-to, it's just the way I did it. Hopefully it will give you some pointers for your own job search. (I also plan to write similar articles on Japan and Taiwan, both of which I received job offers from before settling on EPIK.)

Public or Private?
There are for the most part two kinds of schools to apply to in Korea, public schools and private schools. The latter could include private day schools but for the most part this means hagwons, or cram schools, places where kids go after regular school to supplement their education. Both public and private schools offer similar salaries and bonuses but the main difference between them is when they hire. Hagwons hire all year round while public schools generally hire twice a year, for spring and fall intakes.

A note about hagwons: there seems to be a lot of disreputable places out there, so much so that there is a warning about them on the US State Department site. Do your research before accepting a position. Ask to speak with a few teachers currently working there and look around online for warnings. I interviewed with a hagwon but am happy I got the public school job, if just for the fact that public-school hours suit me better. Hagwons operate in afternoons and evenings and on weekends and holidays, basically whenever the kids aren't in normal school. I'm a morning person and I prefer a 9-5 schedule.

For public schools, the two main programs are EPIK and GEPIK. EPIK is a nationwide program that includes most of South Korea's provinces and major metropolitan areas. Seoul's hiring is now handled by EPIK but it's known by a different name, SMOE. GEPIK is just for Gyeonggi-do, the province surrounding Seoul. Additionally, other provinces may hire on their own. Sometimes schools or areas hire directly as well.

Recruiters
You don't have to use a recruiter when getting a job in Korea but I think it helps. That being said, there are lots of horror stories about lying recruiters on the web as well, so again, do your research. The recruiter I used to secure my EPIK job was Korea Connections. They're a little smaller than some, like Footprints or Korvia, but they offer a more personalized approach. I went with them after the recommendation of a blogger I like to read (Seoul Patch) so now I'm passing the recommendation on.

Of course, the recruiter you choose will largely depend on the kind of job you want, as each one has access to different positions. At one point I was working with three different recruiters, Korea Connections for EPIK and hagwons, Korvia for GEPIK and Footprints for other hagwons. Don't apply to the same job twice through different recruiters but feel free to sign up with as many recruiters as you need to to maximize your chances. It doesn't cost you anything to sign with a recruiter; they get paid by the school that hires you.

Some people applied directly to EPIK and haven't had any problems. I like having a recruiter though. It's like having an advocate on your side. Also, Korean immigration is complex and confusing and it helps to have someone work through it with you.

Getting Prepared
You know the kind of job you want and you're ready to work with a recruiter (or not, as the case may be). What now?

You're going to need a resume and cover letter. Make sure these are ESL-focused. Even if you have no prior teaching experience, spin your job experience into something that would be attractive to schools.

You're also going to need a scan of a passport-type photo to send them. It's standard practice in Asia. Also, scan your passport, diploma (required), any TEFL certificates you may have (more on this later) and two or three letters of recommendation. Ask former employers to write generic letters of recommendation and have them address them to: To whom it may concern. You can then use them for any situation.

Interviews
Interviews will take place either via Skype or cell phone. I always wore a suit, if just to get in the right mindset. And if it's a Skype video conference definitely look presentable. Interviews could be as short as 20 minutes or as long as 90, it depends on the interviewer. My policy was to take every interview. Even if I wasn't super interested in the job it was still good practice. Unless you're a seasoned teacher you're going to be answering questions about teaching and classroom management without having done any of this stuff. The more you talk about it the more confident you'll become.

Experience
Better than talking is doing, so why not try to get some experience before you start applying? Volunteer in a classroom, set up a language exchange or even do some private tutoring. It'll give you something to put on your resume as well as confidence in an interview.

TEFL Certification
TEFL (or TESL) Certification isn't a requirement for most schools in Korea but having one sure doesn't hurt. In fact, it can often help. SMOE requires it (or at least one year's experience in a classroom). Because I have one, I qualified for a higher salary bracket with EPIK.

There are lots of different places that will give you a certificate. Make sure the school, whether online or brick and mortar, is accredited. You're going to need at least a 100-hour course. Anything less will not be acceptable to a school and thus a waste of money. I went with I To I, a UK-based online school. I really enjoyed the course and was able to apply things I learned directly to the interview. When asked about class management I had concrete things I could suggest, rather than just vague ideas about keeping kids quiet. It also gave me some much-needed confidence—I may not have any teaching experience but at least I've spent 100 hours reading about it.

Korean Language Ability
It's not a requirement. You'll be working with Korean co-teachers for the most part so you're not expected to speak the language.

Resources
The main resource for all things Korea ESL is Dave's ESL Cafe. It's a good place to do some research and get the lay of the land but take what people say here with a grain of salt. This is a very cranky bunch. The recruiter Footprints also has a board, which has some useful information on it.

Good luck!

ROK It: The Definitive Puntime List

In keeping with my recent Seoul list, I thought I'd bang out a list of Republic of Korea puns that should be similarly off limits to anyone blogging about life in Korea. So, without further ado, let's ROK!

ROK and roll
ROK around the clock
I want to ROK with you
Keep on ROKin' in the free world
Is that freedom ROK? Well, turn it up!
ROK of ages
Old time ROK and roll
Rodney on the ROK
ROK of Gibraltar
Honey in the ROK
KrautROK
ROKing down the house
Surfing on a ROKet
ROK steady
King Tubby meets ROKers uptown
This is just a modern ROK song
For those about to ROK, we salute you
So you want to be a ROK 'n' roll star
Are you ready to ROK?
Block ROKin' beats
Combat ROK
Jailhouse ROK
ROK me gently
ROK me Amadeus
Don't stop the ROK
ROK and roll part 2
Bongo ROK
ROK music
I love ROK 'n' roll
ROK box
King of ROK
ROK radio
Soft ROK
Love and ROKets
Duck ROK
ROK paper scissors
ROKy road
ROK steady crew
ROKwell
Lover's ROK
ROK on

Thought of some more? Light up the comments.

The Definitive(?) Seoul-Sucking Pun List

Every Korea-associated blogger has to pun Seoul and soul at some time. I think it's a visa requirement. To avoid having to do it later I figure I'll just get it out of the way now and come up with as many as I can.

(If you're pun-sensitive or otherwise employ a "no pun" life philosophy, please avert your eyes now.)

Heart and Seoul
Seoul mate
Seoul man
Seoul time
Old Seoul
Bless my Seoul
Swallow your Seoul
Seoul fire!
I know you got Seoul
Seoul power
Seoul patch
Come down softly to my Seoul
Free your Seoul
Rubber Seoul
Body and Seoul
Seoul train
Seoulamente
Dark Seoul
What does your Seoul look like?
Hot buttered Seoul
Seoul on fire
Poor old Seoul
River of Seoul
Sell your Seoul
Seoul Sonic Force
Seoul glow
Seoul pride
Dead Seoul
Seoulwax
Seoul makossa
Seoul survivor
Seoul flower
Hug my Seoul
Stone my Seoul
Omar Seouleyman
Seoul to Seoul

I'm sure there are some I've forgotten. Can you come up with any?