I am a bit sick tonight; I expect it is all the Korean food mixed with the extra pollution in the air from all the rain. I had some bad kimch'i yesterday afternoon in the cafeteria; it was apparently soaked in fish oil or something. Not only did it taste aweful, but I choked on the cabbage. I almost threw up in front of everyone (my bile rises even thinking about it now). I am not sure why I have such an aversion to fish, but I do. The curry that went with it was, rather perversely, not spicy at all. That night, they served kimch'i friend rice; I ate the scrambled egg that accompanies every Korean meal (they even put them in sandwiches!), but could not face another round of bad kimch'i. I normally like it, in moderation, but the school's variety leaves much to be desired. Tonight's meal was rather bland; cold noodles in soy milk with sesame. It didn't really taste like anything, but my stomach still protested. I managed to worry down a few bites before giving up. Normally, the food is pretty tasty, but this week, it is just bad. I can't wait until sandwich day....
On Tuesday night, I had a very good meal, though; I believe it is called galbi. They bring a bunch of sauces, veggies, and chilis out to you. They then bring live coals out and set them in the middle of the table. The waitress got the meat started on the grill after snipping it apart with scissors (Koreans use scissors much as we use cutting knives), and left us to watch the meat cook. We were chatting away, and when the waitress came back, the meat was rather well done...she stayed and grilled the meat for us. I was privately amused that the three North American guys I was with could not even grill properly.
To continue... You grab a leaf (bay, cabbage, or lettuce), place the raw carrots, onions, and cabbage shavings on your leaf with a little sauce, then dip you piece of meat in a green sauce and place it on top. You then fold the leaf and eat the whole mess, sort of like a Korean taco. It is yummy and surprisingly filling. Oh yes, and you drink cheap beer with it.
Well, I guess some of my adoring fans (all two of you) want to know what it is like teaching in Korea, so here is a run-down:
I teach grades 1-6 (eight classes a day) in a rather exclusive hakwon. The classes are divided by ability and grade level. They are also divided by Returnees (those who have lived in North America or the U.K.) and Gifted-and-Talented (those who have exceptional ability in English and plan to study abroad). No speaking Korean is allowed within the school grounds. We hand out detentions and notes home just like at any other school. I teach reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, and debate (upper level).
Hakwons are academies, much like American after-school programs, but more intensive. There are Arts hakwons, Taekwondo hakwons, Math hakwons, but most of all English hakwons. All students must pass an exhaustive comprehensive exam to graduate from high school, so it behooves the children to get extra attention in this area (males must serve a mandatory two years in the military as well).
A Korean child's number-one job is school. I have had more than one child break down in tears because they did not get a perfect score on something. Their parents push hard, sometimes to the point of harassing the teachers (sound familiar?). Most of the parents are reasonable, however, and I find the children very well-adjusted in soul and body. They are respectful of authority unless you screw up.
The other day, I mispronounced a student's name, and the class made fun of him for most of the period (I probably inadvertently called him "cabbage-head" or something). When I reprimanded the class for their obnoxious behavior, they suddenly began making fun of ME! Although startled by this behavior, I got my own in. We had a few minutes left over in class. I went up to the board, and wrote four names: Hepsibah, Methusalah, Jehosophat, and Mephistopheles. I then calmly asked the would-be rebels to correctly pronounce the names. "Methusalah" was especially difficult, as the Koreans cannot distinguish easily between "r" and "l" ( the cafeteria lady told one teacher that she was serving "flied lice" one night). I then moralized, after much laughter, that it is very rude to make fun of someone (for example, a "foreign" teacher!) who is new to one's culture and unable to pronounce words properly at first.
There are a few trouble-makers, but their parents are pretty well aware of how their children act, and punish accordingly if word gets home. I even have a well-known (in Korea) child movie star; he is very talkative, and always has to be the center of attention, but he is also respectful of authority.There are, of course, a few spoiled brats, but they are not flat-out rebelling, which helps. I have a few students whom I suspect might do well with a course of Ritalin, however; fotunately, I am experienced in these matters.
As I said, I work at a rather exclusive hakwon; they strenuously screen the students who want to get in. As a result, the children I get are unusually bright. This is both a good and bad thing. Good, becuase it makes teaching easier; bad, because they see right through the typical "teacher bag o' tricks" for classroom management! I have to always be on my toes because they remember everything. These students are excellent at retaining information, if it is sufficiently demonstrated, but rather poor on creative thinking and problem solving. Definately left-brainers. My first-graders are the exception; I do lots of artsy things with them. I have a few excellent writers, and I encourage them to develop their creative talents, even though it is not a vey Korean thing to do.
We work with Korean staff; the Korean teachers often act as liasons between the English teachers and the parents. It is nice, because we don't have to deal directly with culture-clash. The downside of all the academic pressure is that the kids sometimes have meltdowns. I occasionally see children (especially the more sensitive girls) silently crying. I have learned that you do not offer comfort because they will absolutely deny that anything is wrong, even the littlest ones. Instead, they seem to get hold of themselves, and go on with their work. It shames them to have crying acknowledged. Koreans do not acknowledge the uglier emotions unless necessary.
I have one fifth-grade class that manifests this tendency by arguing all the time. They pick on each other constantly. One girl in the class especially amuses me; her demanor is that of a world-weary cynical thirty-year-old even though she can't be more than nine or ten. She has a very low but strong voice, kind of Tallulah Bankhead. She will be a pretty woman soon, I think, but the boys don't know quite how to handle her now! This fourth-grader called the boys, who were arguing, a bunch of "pessimists," (they were whining) but they reacted like she had called them a buch of assholes. I am afraid I cracked a smile at that one, because I knew that she knew what that word meant. The boys later retaliated by drawing rather clinically accurate caricatures of her as a monster. She tattled on them, and they grinned when I confronted them. I made them apologize, which they did; she said nothing, but firmly set her chin, glared at them, and nodded. Again, I was in serious danger of losing it. Instead, I used the boys as an object lesson for the word "discourteous."
My day is long and hectic, but I still manage to get a lot done. I have a two hour paid prep period, and consider it my biggest blessing! I have only had to come in early once to mark papers. I do come in a half hour early on Mondays to get a head start on lesson plans, but I don't mind as it is nice and quiet.
If my readers have any questions, please post them under comments, and I will answer what I legally can.
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