I have just finished my first two weeks teaching English at
Beomeo Public High School in Yangsan City, South Korea. Unfortunately, my coworkers’ warnings about the
school have proved quite appropriate.
The students are unbelievably unruly.
They yell and sleep in class, talk to each other, play StarCraft on
their huge smartphones, carry little handheld mirrors and apply copious amounts
of makeup during lessons, and constantly kick or hit or touch
each other…. That being said, they are
also curious, energetic, very endearing, and often have big, wonderful
personalities. If they aren’t
frustrating me, they are definitely making me laugh. I am not shy, nor am I timid, both qualities
that I think will help me fare much better in my position.
Each class is 50 minutes long and comprised of 20-35
students, and I teach 23 classes per week.
The students range in age from 15-17 years old, and classes are
separated by gender. All Korean students
attend public schools during the day, and then attend additional lessons at
private academies during the evening and sometimes Saturdays. My average student begins school at 8:30 AM,
finishes normal classes at 4:40 PM, then stays at the school for supplemental
lessons. The student eats dinner at the high
school before leaving to attend private lessons, and probably
returns home somewhere between 10 and 11 PM.
So when a student doesn’t seem to care about my once-a-week 50 minute
English lesson, or falls asleep in my class, I can’t really say I blame him.
Students’ English levels are generally very low, much lower
than I expected. Though classes are
organized according to some kind of skill assessment system, ability levels
within each class vary widely. My
co-teachers tell me that much of the students’ schooling prior to high school
has been poor or undisciplined. Some
students are able to string together full, meaningful sentences, and others don’t
yet know the Roman alphabet. One student
was skilled enough to write “FUCK U J”
in thick black marker on the back wall of the classroom.
During my first week of teaching I prepared an introductory
PowerPoint for the students about my life in America, the importance of
English, classroom rules and expectations (ha, right…) and a short quiz on that
material. Then I invited the students to
ask any questions they may have about me, English, or America. The questions I was asked every class without
fail were these:
Married?
How old?
You have boyfriend?
Oooooh, boyfriend, he Korean?
You like kimchi?
Your hairstyle, real?
In Yangsan, where you live?
America, guns?
Do you have gun?
Eyes, what color?
Do you know Psy? Gangnam Style?
Some more original questions included these:
Have you seen Backstreet Boys? (Incidentally, I HAVE been to
a Backstreet Boys concert!)
Do you like Soju? How much you can drink?
You like Obama? True he did the drugs? (Korea is a
conservative culture, so I responded that it was an unconfirmed rumor, only to
find out that the kid had read his autobiography. What??)
During the second week of classes I prepared lessons and
activities related to American markets, food and culture. The students and teachers found the food both
intriguing and grotesque. Things like
tomato soup, gravy, and root beer floats were especially perplexing, while
apple pie was a huge hit (perhaps in part because a container of 3 apples may
cost the equivalent of 9 or 10 American dollars here).
My lessons went over quite well with both co-teachers and
students, but perhaps my smartest teaching decision was showing this video in
every class.
My audiences were mesmerized.
Teaching is challenging, but also entertaining and
rewarding, and I am lucky to be working with very competent, helpful
co-teachers. I look forward to getting
more comfortable in my position and getting to know my students and co-workers
better.
XOXO
Ms. A
