Teaching: Proof That the Grass Is Greener

For nearly twenty years, semester after semester, classroom after classroom, I sat amongst peers staring up at various teachers who came and went out of my life, like a crush or a passing trend. I definitely respected all of these people, and even admired many of them as well. I perceived them as being vastly knowledgeable, well-read, and bore the answers to every thinkable question I might have. There was always a mystique that surrounded “the teacher” – who is this person really? Is she married? Is he this mean to his own children? What do her pajamas look like? Did he smoke pot in college? What does she really think of me? And where on earth does he shop?! These types of questions lingered in our minds as students, from elementary school through college, sometimes talked about during lunchtime gossip, but usually just remained in the depths of our youthful wonderings. Seeing teachers in public, if I may quote the 2004 film “Mean Girls” “is like seeing a dog walk on its hind legs.” Just bizarre.

Never in my 16 years of academia as a student did I think I would venture to the other side. Sure, I may have conjured up some revengeful fantasies of grading papers with red pens, passing out pop quizzes with a giant grin on my face, and assigning 5 hours of homework. But I did not seriously think I would have the opportunity to try it out. And here I am! Teaching English in Korea – quite a unique educational experience. Koreans value English education as a high priority – it is mandatory for all students, from elementary through high school. They feel it’s important to have a native speaker in the school so the students can hear what it actually sounds like (since most of their Korean English teachers speak with a thick accent) and have exposure to a different culture. (As I mentioned before, Korea is a very homogenous country.)

My classroom, the Language Lab. This is NOT a typical Yeoju Girls HS classroom...most have 40 desks in rows facing the front.

And when I say educational experience, I’m not only giving lessons…each day I learn dozens of new things myself. About this country, culture, school system, educational philosophy, history, food. (One of these days I’m gonna muster up the courage to bring my camera with me into the lunch room and take a picture of my lunch tray.)

In between the two buildings, they've built a nice garden. And look! There are windows now!

So I guess I should share with all of you non-teachers (there are a few teachers following this blog I know….shout out to my aunt Holly and cousin Bobby!) what it’s like on the other side, especially in a culture so different. The students respect me, more so when I raise my voice or have candy to hand out for correct answers. Preparing lesson plans has gotten much easier with practice. I’m not required to follow the textbook, so it’s totally up to me what I decide to teach – my main goal is to get them speaking in English. I see the 1st graders (American high school 10th grade) once or twice a week, and the 2nd and 3rd graders every other week. I also teach Morning Class to 1st graders each day. So far my lesson plans have been:

1) About Me

In my Adjectives lesson plan, I had each team come up with sentences using adjectives and then make these posters, which I hung around the room. They are HILARIOUS - brilliant idea on my part.

Yes, the gangstas of Yeoju are in MY classroom. Believe it! Thug life.

2) American High School

Amazing!

3) Adjectives

4) Zodiac Signs

Coming up:

5) Music

6) Phobias (for Halloween!)

7) Past Tense

8) Keeping in Shape

9) Fashion

Basically I make a Powerpoint and a worksheet, and change-up the way I teach depending on the grade level. In the morning, we usually play games or I pass out a word search. Thank you Camp Pembroke, Central Synagogue, and YMCA acting for teaching me thousands of ice-breakers that I now use with my Korean students! OH! I almost forgot. I’m teaching them the names of all 50 states, and suing the “Fifty Nifty United States” song to help them understand. Its hilarious getting them to pronounce things like “Louisiana” and “Illinois.”

For the most part, teaching these girls is really fun. I try to make the lessons light-hearted, entertaining, but also educational. They are so stressed out all day long, sitting in 1-hour lectures with zero activity or movement, I feel like I have a responsibility to brighten their day. But being a teacher in Korea is more than just teaching. To be a teacher here is a highly respected profession, and teachers are regarded as being very successful individuals. Most of the men wear suits to work each day, and the women dress professionally as well. Definitely a step-up from business casual.

My slippers. Everyone wears outside shoes, and then slippers during the day around school. Its funny to see people in these really nice, professional outfits, and look down to see...slippers and socks! It's so comfy and wonderful.

But to be honest, I am not really regarded as a “true teacher” – just the foreign English teacher. Probably because most of the other teachers here are old enough to be my parents… In addition, teachers are expected to help out in other ways. For example, this week there is some construction and office-changing going on in the school. So all the teachers helped move furniture from the nurses office to her new office. We also spent an hour putting coverings on the windows of the teachers’ office so students can’t peek into our office anymore. It’s kind of strange, but definitely a bonding experience.

Okay. I can't really figure out what this is all about. I know when new restaurants open, there are tons of plants outside. It must be related somehow...

I could obviously continue to ramble…I think you’ve figured out what a pro I am at that by now! (Thanks to all my English teachers over the years.)

Okay I just had to post this. Look very closely...those tiny things have eyes! (An appetizer from my dinner last night.)

Ceramixing It Up

Korean’s pride themselves on several cultural traditions that date back thousands of years: eating kimchi, the Hangul language, heated floors in the winter. Add ceramics to that list. Ceramics is an important art form here, and last weekend I had the opportunity to see why. The Gyeonggi International CeraMIX festival is currently underway (lasting until November 22), and one of the cities it’s held in every year is Yeoju! This region of Korea is among the most famous for ceramics, and ceramicist from all over the area came to Yeoju to show off their craftsmanship. They sell pottery of all kinds, for practical use and artistic pieces. Some are absolutely gorgeous, but unfortunately most of the artists wouldn’t allow photos. It’s become an event that families attend together, and there are tons of activities for little kids to partake in. It was great to see a unique event happening in my small city, and to see how proud Koreans are of this art form. There was a booth set up for people (read: children) to make their own pieces with help from a professional ceramicist, so of course myself and some fellow English teachers decided to partake! I “made” a lovely vase and then got to decorate it on my own. It was a great way to spend the day, and made me appreciate Yeoju that much more! Once I get paid, I’m definitely going to return and make some purchases. Check out the photos to see what I saw…

 

Center of the festival, just a 5 minute walk from where I live.

 

Some cute statues and cute kids.

Me being eaten by a ceramics monster.

Inside where goods were sold. No photos allowed...sorry peeps.

Good effort, Yeoju. You tried.

Behind the scenes...

My masterpiece.

The largest ginger root ever! I especially like the photo in the background.

 

 

Open House

I realized I haven’t yet written about my lovely Korean abode. I live right behind my school, literally a 3-minute walk – very nice. But I am about a 15 minute walk to the main “downtown” area of Yeoju. There’s another foreign teacher living in the same building, but everyone else is Korean. How much can one write about 15-square-feet of living space?

Things that are different…

1) I have to press a button to turn on my hot water every morning.

2) The floors have heating in the winter! I hear it’s the bomb.

3) My mattress is on the floor because this is the Korean way…

My Korean villa. Check out my ride parked out front. (The one on the right...)

Saved By the Bell

I think it’s time I take you through a typical day at Yeoju Girls High School.

8:00am – I arrive at school. The bell rings – which is a little 30-second melody, actually. It plays whenever class ends or is starting. The girls run to “morning class” – an extra class for whatever they need help in. I was informed yesterday I’ll be teaching morning class everyday from now on, to the 1st graders (sophomores). AWESOME!!!!!

9:00am – 1st period. Korean schools are different from American schools in that each class (group of students) has its own room, and the teachers travel around throughout the day, instead of students having their own, unique schedules. Except for me! The students leave their room and come to the Language Lab just for my class. I feel special.

10:00am – 2nd period. This might be the time of day when someone comes into my office to tell me that a class has been added to my schedule today, that I won’t be getting a paycheck until I have a bank account, or that my wardrobe request needs to be approved by the principal.

11:00am  – 3rd period

11:50am – LUNCH! Every day we have something dericious for lunch. The teachers eat lunch in a separate lunchroom from the rest of the students. I think it must be a temporary situation, because we eat in the Earth Science Classroom. No one has explained this to me, of course. I get a little metal tray with 6 circles for the different dishes. There is always a soup, rice, and kimchi. Then a meat or fish dish – today we had fried fish. It was actually pretty good. Then a little side dish, some sort of noodle thing, kinda spicy. My aversion to spicy foods is slowly evaporating with each day. Woohoo! Koreans don’t really drink while they eat. Maybe a glass of water after the meal, but that’s it. It makes eating spicy foods an even greater challenge. Also, all the girls in the school brush their teeth after lunch, so responsible!

This is my desk. I only use the desktop computer to print. So official. I need to decorate.

My office. I quickly snagged a photo while my office mates were gone.

Free food! This was left on my desk. A little desert type thing. No idea why it was left there, but it was a nice gesture anyway!

12:40pm – 4th period. I only teach 4th period once a week, on Fridays. So I get a little extra time to digest my food on most days. When I’m not teaching, I’m sitting at my lovely desk on the 3rd floor, in an office that I share with 3 other teachers: a computer science teacher, an English teacher, and the 3rd is unknown. We are slowly becoming besties.

1:30pm – 5th period.

2:40pm – 6th period. ALMOST THERE!

3:40pm – 7th period. By this time, I’m usually exhausted, and my cheeks feel rather swollen from smiling all day.

4:30-5:00pm – Cleaning time. I sit in my room and watch the kids clean my classroom. It’s rather strange, but I’m getting to know these specific girls really well. They are teaching me about K-Pop, Korean pop music. Once I become well-versed in this music genre, I will post some music videos. They also love American music, so I play some music while they clean. It’s a great time all around.

Kruising Korea

I can’t believe I actually have a moment to sit down and write a blog post – I’ve done so much in the last 48 hours its amazing. Saturday morning I woke up at 6am, thanks to my jet-lag, and decided to climb the hill that I have been waking up to every morning. It turns out that I live across the street from a serene park, with ceramics sculptures, war memorials, and an ancient Korean pavilion. I also got to watch the sunrise, which was incredible. The park also contains the Yeongwol Pavilion, a beautiful structure that sits atop the hill and was purposefully placed there because of the scenic view. It was perfect.

I love these. Yeoju is known for its ceramics. In a few weeks there is a ceramics festival here. Get excited.

Yeongwol Pavilion. Korean pavilions were always built in the location of great views. Those are actually Chinese characters, Jeong told me, because Korea used to have strong ties to Chinese culture..

Gorgeous sunrise.

Downtown Yeoju.

I spent the rest of the morning walking around Yeoju – the town was still waking up so none of the stores were really open, but I am starting to get a better feel for the area. The Han River runs through Yeoju, which is the same river that divides the city of Seoul, and I live right next to it. It’s pretty cool that I’ve always gotten to live by bodies of water…Hudson River, Lake Mendota, and now the Han!

More downtown Yeoju.

The Han River. This is a block away from my apartment.

View of Yeoju and the Han from the Yoengwol Pavilion. My apartment is the smaller building, my school is the tall blue and the long brick building.

Later that day, I got my health exam at a hospital in Icheon, a nearby city that is a little bigger than Yeoju. My co-teacher drove me and it was a nice little adventure. An interesting experience, some minor differences to check-ups in America, especially the fact that I needed a translator with me the entire time. No band-aid when they took my blood! Sanitary? Who cares, really. Went out for delicious noodles with Jeoung. I can’t remember what they were called, but you are given a scissor to cut the noodles in your bowl before eating! So cool. Right after the exam, I headed into Seoul for my first time. The bus ride was a little over an hour, took me directly to a stop on the metro, and I then navigated my way to meet up with my Wisconsin friends. Such a great feeling to see familiar faces. And of course, Seoul completely lived up to its reputation. I know, I know. I was only in the city for a total of about 8 hours…maybe it’s the city girl in me that was craving some congestion, busy streets, and pushy people–but I absolutely loved the energy of the city.

Gangnam district in Seoul. Missing NYC just a bit.

Wisconsin does Seoul! Soju for everyone. Learned some new drinking games :) Do I look a little Korean here or is it just me?

Hello Kitty is my T-Money card - when I swipe it lets me into the metro in Seoul. How cool?

We spent the night eating dinner and bar-hopping around Gangnam, which is a newer/younger area. Planning to spend all of next weekend in Seoul, and maybe a few more days. Next week is Chusok, Korean Thanksgiving, so I have Monday-Wednesday off from school! Woohoo! I’m adjusting to life in Korea really well, missing certain things from home but am easily distracted by all the new things to see, hear, and do. Julia

Welcome to Teaching

Just finished teaching for the first time! I loved it. The kids are hilarious. They thought the fact that my mom’s name and my name rhyme was the funniest thing in the world. They also just want to know a lot about me. Definitely a very different high school experience than my own, but teenagers are teenagers. I teach 2, 3, or 4 classes a day and two days a week I have a teacher’s workshop where I have conversation class with other teachers who want to improve their English. And at the end of the day every day, the students clean the school. There are no janitors here, every student has her own job. I supervise the cleaning of my classroom. More on that tomorrow. Here’s the powerpoint I used to describe myself: About Me

Awesome decorations at Q'z bar in downtown Yeoju.

Last night I had my first Korean BBQ – we went to a pork restaurant. Most restaurants only serve one kind of meat, pork is most common. It was good! Lots of new things to try. And of course, I had my first shot of Soju – it tastes like a weaker version of vodka. I met up with the other foreign teachers here, who graciously invited me to their Facebook group when they found out I’d be arriving in Yeoju. Even though this is a small city and is considered to be “rural” because it is so far from Seoul, there is a big group of English teachers who have formed a great community. We went to an American-style bar to play poker and drink beer, and to my absolute delight there was a Wisconsin Badgers Flag hanging proudly in the bar! Along with a Packers banner and a Brewer’s t-shirt. There has been a huge Wisconsin presence in Yeoju because of the program I am doing, so I guess I”ll have to carry on the tradition :)

At the top of the mountain is an ancient building where scribes would write. (Rough description from my Korean co-teacher. I'm going to venture up there soon and figure out what it is!)

Things in my apartment are beginning to come together, but I am missing a closet, making it slightly difficult to unpack and settle in. I’ll upload some pics once it’s ready for public display. But for now, the amazing view I wake up to. (A little too cliche in my opinion.)

There a lots of administrative things I need to do, like get an Alien Registration Card, open a bank account, and obtain a cell phone. I feel pretty lost without all these things, but slowly I’ll settle in and make this place my home.

Julia

I am in Korea

Here it is, my first post from Yeoju, South Korea!!!!!!!!!! There’s no time to be witty, I have a lot to get through.

I got off the plane, made it out to the terminal with no lost luggage, and found my co-teacher, Ji Young (Jeoung) who is young, stylish, and very sweet. She was with another teacher from Yeoju Girls High School, the biology teacher, and the three of us quickly left the airport, got into an SVU and began our 2-hour journey to Yeoju. It was sad to say goodbye to all the other Wisco people, but I know we’re all going to meet up soon. Jeoung gave me a hug, held my hand, and smiled as we looked for the car–such a warm welcome. We chatted the entire car ride about my job, my life and family, and about her hobbies and interests. It’s her first year at the school, so we are kind of in it together!

We went straight to a restaurant with the principal of the school; my first, real Korean meal. It was delicious, interesting, and a little stressful. Table manners are HUGE here, and I’m not totally sure if I behaved properly (for example, I continued to eat after the oldest person had finished, something I later read is not good. oops.) There was a lot of food in front of me, and I’m not totally sure about everything that I ate. But of course, I tried everything. I know I had a pork dish, kimchi, seaweed, some noodles, rice of course, and a sweet, cold pumpkin soup. NEW NEW NEW!

They took me to my home for the night – a room in the dormitory attached to the school. This is where some of the students live who have a long commute to school. They live in the dorm so that they can study more. Very Korean. I slept for maybe 3 hours.

Today has been a whirlwind. I was taken to school at 7am with some of the girls in the dorm, and we had breakfast together at school. They were so kind and sweet, and their English was really good. (I think they were specially selected to guide me because of their proficiency.) Breakfast consisted of spicy rice cakes shaped like noodles, rice, soup with tofu, seaweed, noodles, and of course, kimchi. Very different from the carbohydrate/dairy filled breakfast I am used to. I spent the day following various teachers around, very confused as to what was going on. I was introduced to a group of teachers and then to the entire school. Thankfully the foreign English teacher from University of Wisconsin that I’m replacing is still here, saying her goodbyes, and she gave me a little tour of the school and we chatted for a while. My role here is unlike anything I’ve ever seen at a school in the United States.

It’s really difficult to describe how different everything is here. It’s not just the language or the new foods, but the way people treat others and the feeling in the air. Perhaps with more time I’ll be able to give a better explanation. Just imagine being an invisible person, except when people need to tell you something. Or when a Korean highschool girl wants to say, “Hi! Nice to meet you!”

Overall, I’m excited, slightly confused, and a little overwhelmed. Tonight I’m meeting up with the existing foreigner community in Yeoju – I’m excited!

Thanks for reading, everyone! Miss you all so much. Can’t believe this is all happening.

Julia

My Seatbelt is Bassened, Is Yours?

Things are becoming more and more official each day: Tuesday I received my job placement from the ESL department at UW-Madison. Wednesday I booked my flights to Chicago and South Korea. Thursday I got my work Visa at the Korean Consulate. And tonight, (Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday) I’m having a going away party at a bar in the East Village with friends from so many parts of my life. Everything is happening at such an electric, rapid pace–I feel like I’m going to blink my eyes and suddenly be at the front of my classroom at Yeoju Girls High School rambling about the difference between “there” “their” and “they’re.” Thank god some of my Wisco friends are in town to hang with me in my last weeks of Amurrica :)

Yeoju is the name of the city in Gyonggi-do where I will spend the next year of my life. It is about 1-2 hours southeast of Seoul (according to Google maps and guestimations from friends). Judging from internet searches and write-ups in my guide books, it sounds like smaller city with fascinating historical sites that most people visiting Korea would probably miss out on. Also, there seems to be some sort of important outlet shopping mall in the area–I’ll be sure to report on that in the future. Also, I’ll be at an all-girls public high school, a curveball indeed but certainly a hilarious one.

Yeoju! My home for the next year.

While I was expecting to be placed closer to Seoul or another big city, I am no less thrilled about the adventure on which I am about to embark. As I’ve been telling friends and family, I signed up for something new, different, and crazy and this is what I ended up with! The most rural experience I’ve ever had is at overnight camp in Massachusetts (shout-out to my Camp Pembroke readers if you’re out there!), so this will DEFINITELY be something new for me. But I’m insanely pumped. I’ve heard so many benefits to living in “rural” South Korea (the word “rural” takes on a totally different meaning in SK, since the country is much more densely populated than ours): generous & welcoming people, slower pace of life, you WILL learn the language, developing closer relationships with other foreigners, everything is cheaper, more motivation to travel! The list goes on. A New York City girl taking on rural South Korea…if anything it’ll make for some interesting blog posts.

My seatbelt is definitely ‘bassened!

Julia