KLB - The Meeting


Today was pretty funny. I got to work at the usual time: 12:55, toting a coffee latte in one hand. Bonnie was waiting for me, but it was time to start class. I planned it that way actually. The kids swarmed me as usual when I arrived. I got things in order and taught a great lesson. The kids were on fire, answering all the questions so eagerly. About 30 minutes later Bonnie asked Cathy to take over so I could meet with her. This is where it gets funny.

Basically she started kissing my ass. She said she was "overwhelmed" by the progress the kids have made. She also said she read my letter and that she is sorry for everything. "I like you. You're a good person and you have a great personality. I see now how much the I kids love you. I gave the wrong impression. Everything is fine..." blah blah blah...

Then it came: an offer to either stay at the school as is, or another offer - a full-time job working for the Korean Board of Education in Seoul starting in early March. What the hell? I couldn't believe it. I expected this terrible, awkward meeting, perhaps ending with me storming off the school grounds in a rage - but here she was complimenting me, urging me to stay or take a higher paying job.

The pay is fantastic, but it's kind of a bizarre job. The schedule is 9:00 - 3:00. In the morning I would report to a different elementary school every day and teach the same lesson all week. An hour for lunch, then I'd go back to the office and teach Korean teachers for two hours in the afternoon. All I can think of is what another ridiculous program that's destined to fail. I mean, how ineffective a system is that? Instead of just spending the money to get a foreign teacher in every school, they're obviously looking to save funds by having one teacher go to all the schools in a district. Talk about spreading your resources thin! They certainly can't expect the kids to learn much from that - and if they do, that's a lot of pressure on the teacher.

Then, to top it off, that same super-hero teacher has to teach loads of teachers from the district too - most of whom probably just want to go home for the day not sit there with a foreigner for two hours.

In fact, because it's a new program, the contract is only for a 6 month probationary period with an option to renew at the end.

Bonnie says wants me there because I have a degree in English Education, a requirement. As I said, the pay is great: 2,800,000 won/month (about $2700, or $2600 clear after taxes!). Housing is not included though, but that's still good pay. There are several problems of course:

1. I'd have to move to Seoul by myself as Julie works near here.

2. Teaching 20-30 Korean teachers two hours/day sounds like hell - but I'm not sure. Maybe it would be fun, maybe not. I taught a large class of adults before at Samsung in Ulsan and it was pretty fun. They liked to take me out all gthe time. I don't know how Koreans can drink so much and get up for work at 7:00 - it's amazing. I guess that wouldn't happen so much with teachers. They're probably mostly women anyway. Women don't usually get smashed here with the "one shot" ritual like men. Anyway, this class isn't the biggest worry.

3. I'd be working for the government, meaning if I screw up I may as well forget teaching in Korea again.

4. Dealing with 15 other teachers every week (since I'd be teaching 3 different classes at 5 different schools) - I forsee some problems with that.


5. (This is so typically Korean) I have to make the decision by "early" tomorrow morning.

Problems 1 and 5 are the big ones, of course. I hate having to make a decision so quickly - but in Korea it's either do it fast or lose out to the next guy. That's damn good pay for a job that finishes at 3:00. Too bad it's all the way on the other side of the city...ugh!

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written by shawn matthews    -|link

KLB - My Reply


Since I've lost pretty much all interest in this job I had no qualms about writing this reply:


Listen, the reason I didn't complain to you about the materials is
because I don't like complaining to my boss. I complained to Cathy,
but I thought that was in private. That she reports everything I say
and do to you makes me not want to talk to her at all.

I don't even know what the problem is because I have taught 95% of the
material in the new books - with some exceptions with difficult
readings. Now, you seem to imply that part of that problem is my
students ability level is lower than other schools. That makes me
angry because these kids are fantastic and I feel pride when I see how
smart they are and how much they have learned. They are far above
average for their age group and that is because I supplemented the
sub-standard materials you gave me with interesting, exciting lessons
in phonics, conversation and writing. Have you ever seen kids so
excited about learning? Well it isn't because of your curriculum -
that's for sure.

I'm sorry but the books your agency made are nothing but a
bunch of random photocopied pages from other books bound together.
Perhaps your other teachers haven't had a problem becuase they don't
want to complain either or their assistants haven't told you
everything as mine has. You know what? I have a degree in English
Education from a State University of NY and 5 years teaching
experience in America and Korea - when I say that these are the worst books I've ever used, I mean it. However, this is the point: I didn't complain
to you before and I still taught the material because that's my job.
So what is the problem here exactly? Maybe the problem is I didn't
teach everything 100% on schedule, but that's because it's important
the kids learn the material before moving forward. I'm sorry I didn't
call you and tell you exactly what my thinking was...

The only other material I've been having trouble with is the
Rainforest Theme. It's a big waste of time teaching kids about obscure
animals that even American adults don't know the names of. And without
being able to use Korean in the classroom, it's next to impossible to
teach about the science of rainforests. It's also not very exciting.
I'm sorry again I didn't report that to you, but I didn't want to
complain about these bad ideas.

I'm sorry, but I just don't have free time enough to make extra
preperations. If you wanted to pay me a few more hours a week to come
in and prepare, that would be fine. I would happily do so without pay,
even if I lived only an hour away. But as it is, I spend 3 hours/day
just to get to and from work. That's a big waste of time and has
prevented me from finding part-time work. I haven't complained to you
about that either - but I don't think you should expect more from me.
Yes, I agreed to this, but if you recall, you needed a teacher ASAP
and I had to make a quick decision. The reality turned out to be much
harder than I expected.

As for Cathy - I understand she is a very hard worker and so serious.
I often feel sorry for her that she has to work so hard for so little.
If she worked for me, I would never make her work that hard. She tells
me that she sometimes stays at your office until 12 AM! Sometimes she is
so stressed out that she gets blisters on her mouth and she tells me all
the time that she sleeps just a few hours every night. I don't understand
why everyone has to take work so damn seriously. Maybe it's a cultural
difference, but that's over the top.

Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow. To tell you the truth, I'm not
looking forward to it. I've made up my mind I don't want to deal with
these headaches over a part-time job anymore. That's a shame for both
you and the kids. I know for sure they will really miss me. I know I'll
be very sad to say goodbye to them, too.

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written by shawn matthews    -|link

KLB - Bonnie's Reply


I got a reply from Bonnie. What a load of BS this "part-time" job comes with. Sometimes I think without being able to unload my thoughts on my website, I may just blow up like a balloon and pop. This and the health club are great stress relievers. So sit back and enjoy her reply and my added commentary:



Dear Shawn,

Thanks for your reply and I really appreciate your honest comments. [Has she been taking diplomacy lessons from Condoleeza Rice?]

First of all, don't get me wrong. I wanted to keep you at our classroom
because everybody was enjoying your class including myself. I always felt good whenever I visited the classroom [OK, then - it sounds like everything is terrific. No need to bother me anymore!] and I tried to compromise your lateness [she means my not coming in early enough - I've only been officialy late once. I would definitely go in early if I lived even just an hour away...] with the quality of teaching you have given to us.

However, as time went by, I kept getting repeated feedback and obviously it
seemed you did not enjoy the variety of curriculum I gave to you. [The variety? I have one book for each class made up of a bunch of random, poorly photocopied pages from equally random books - it's the worst book I've ever seen with no continuity. One minute I'm teaching about the food Kangaroos eat, the next about how little Johnny lost his baseball cap. They should have just went on to the next English Time!]

As I said before, you did not have to follow everything what the book has
but we needed to have prior conversation before skipping some parts of the
curriculum. [Even though the book stinks, I only skipped a couple of things - some ridiculously difficult readings and the equally silly rainforest theme. I'm supposed to teach that one class a week. All the materials she gave me for this theme are photocopied pictures of obscure rainforest animals with bizaare names like Cock of the Rock (did I tell you I found a new name for 'little Shawn'?). I did try to teach it a little but obviously Cathy reported that I didn't teach it enough.]

Without knowing the problem, I could not escape from pointing out thing
needed to be resolved. [Yes, that's because I've learned in Korea it's better not to complain and to do your best with what's given. I bitched and moaned on this site and to Cathy - which I though was in confidence, but obviously it wasn't...] Otherwise, you need to develop or find other stuff to supplement the book I have given you but I did not think that worked either. [Earth to Bonnie - that's why I've been teaching phonics, conversation, games and writing! Hello?]


I did not have any problem at other schools in using same curriculum [this tells me that either the other teachers are nitwits (highly liklely) or that they have assistants who don't report every detail of what's actually going on to the boss] and I do understand that some parts of the book does not meet the level of classes at your specific school. [This really pisses me off. She has implied several times that the problem is my students ability. That's BS because these kids are fantastic for their age and I have been very proud of how much they have learned already. They know English Time inside and out, all the conversations, vocabulary, songs, etc., and a lot of other things I've taught including how to read and write and also grammar (Class C). The problem is definitely not their level - it's this poorly planned book! Also, in a perfect world, Cathy would spend her time making useful materials and supplemental lessons rather than interfering with my class and wasting time writing minutely detailed paperwork for Bonnie - I'm sorry but I don't get paid to go in on my free time to prepare materials. But that's not really the reason, either. I would gladly do extra things if she did some things back such as paid a sick day now and again. She gets the same pay from the parents if I'm there or not anyway. In fact, she probably likes it when the teachers are sick because she ends up pocketing that money! Maybe she put the flu in my coffee cup last week!]

The point is that I really value your quality of teaching. Most of all, your
class is very enjoyable overall. [Here we go again!] However, not only you judge the class but many different sources are involved in there including students [Can you repeat that please?] They do not want to waste time during the class [the only time that's wasted is time teaching the new books! - I really don't know what Cathy is telling her but I have never taught so hard before and been so effective as a teacher - what the hell does she expect?] and my role is to listen to everybody's opnion and find the best way to keep this running well [the best way is to not be so involved. We have not had any kids quit with a few exceptions, and those were kids whose parents never paid the tuition. I have the same number of students I started with so what's the problem?]

I really wanted you to stay until the contracted time in finding the best solution for everybody. [Then you should have butted out]. I know Cathy is not a fluent speaker but I need her to be there for taking care of children and doing paperwork to satisfy school requirement - which is also important to me. She is a very hardworker and serious [she sure is!]

If you made up your mind already, it is not a problem to prepare all the
necessary paperwork for you. [Phew - good news!] But I would like to speak to you tomorrow to discuss anything make this situation better for both of us, I will be there at 12:30 pm and wait for you [oh boy! I'm looking forward to that so much!]

And sorry for the salary payment, I did not try to cut anything from you,
insteady, I need to be fair for everybody. [translation: if a teachers misses a day - she actually makes more money by not paying them] If I do not have the restriction
on sick or any personal days off, I will be more difficult to maintain [translatuion: she will make less money].

I know your are commuting from distance, but please understand I am supporting
part of your transportation even thought it would be very little for you. [I don't know what the point is here. Is she saying this is some great benefit? The reason she is paying this fee is because she was in desperate need of a teacher at the time. Remember, she hired me a few days before the job started. She gave me no time to consider the job. I acted skeptical about the travelling and that's when she added the travel fee.]

Anyways, thanks for reading and replying my long letters [yes - they sure are long. What a lot of time and hassle you would have saved yourself would had you not written in the first place!] and hope to see and sit down with you to have a little conversation tomorrow. [Great - a conversation that is sure to piss me off right before I have to teach again.]

Please let me know if I could assist you in anything. [OK - you can assist me by brining the paperwork and not bothering mre anymore].

Thanks,
Bonnie


Stay tuned to see what transpires tomorrow. It should be interesting.

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written by shawn matthews    -|link

KLB - An Odd Day


Today I snapped at Cathy for the first time. I just had a great lesson with the Class A kids. They're finally back on course after a rocky start after the vacation. I was impressed by how much phonics they've retained, even with the time off. Almost every kid can recognize every letter and sound and also spell all the simple words (sit, hot, sat, set, pin, pet, car, cup, nut, far, etc). That is serious progress considering before they didn't even know the basic alphabet yet. It's really amazing. They also remember every part of their English Time 1 books and can sing all the songs too. So, I was very happy with them.

At 1:47 I stopped class to hand out stickers and get the kids ready to go. It always takes at least 5 minutes to get them out the door. Sure enough, Cathy interjected. "Shawn!" she exclaimed. "We have four minutes. We have to teaching more!"

"Cathy!" I snapped. "Don't tell me what time it is because I'm not stupid. I know what time it is. I have to hand out stickers and they have to clean up. Stop bothering me."

She turned beat red and started apologizing. Normally I'd feel bad but today I didn't. I didn't talk to her for the rest of the day and took full charge of every class, as it should be. At the end of the day she said, "Shawn, I think I pissed you off today. I'm sorry."

Something about her choice of words and the way she said it made me chuckle and things immediately lightened up. Then she asked me about Bonnie's e-mail and if I decided to quit. "If you quit, I have to quit too, I think."

"Why's that?"

"Because we're a team. I want to working with only you this school."

Is she for real? I thought, looking at her oddly. What is with this misguided creature. She wants to work with me yet she seems to be complaining to Connie about everything. So I told her I made the decision to quit. I said it was mostly because of the distance and also because I need regular pay and benefits, etc. I also mentioned what Bonnie said in her e-mail.

"No, please don't quit, Shawn. I think you really like the students so much. It will be big problem too. The girls, I know they going to cry if you go. They always tell to me about you. They love you. It sometimes amazes me."

"I love the kids, too. But Bonnie said that's not enough. She doesn't think I'm a good teacher. I think the kids are learning a lot. That's what is important, isn't it?"

"Sometimes Bonnie makes me angry. You have to stay here, please. Will you reconsider? I don't want to work with another teacher. No, it will be bad situation. You're a good teacher, I think so. That's why the school wants the program to continue. You know the last prgram here failed so quickly. That means we're doing good job, I think. Sometime I feel the pride about that."

"Well, you tell that to Bonnie instead of telling her that I read a book and sit down sometimes. That made me angry, Cathy. I don't want this situation where I have to worry what you tell to my boss every week."

"No, no, no. That was my mistake. If I talk to Bonnie will you reconsider? Please?"

"I already made my decision. Bonnie can talk to me if she really wants me to stay, but she will have to make a good offer to change my mind."

Hehe, I wonder what will happen now. Maybe I'll end up with a sweet deal - or maybe not. Still, I realize now if the kids find out I'm leaving they will moan and groan to their parents, I'm sure. Especially the little girls. Leaving the kids would be the worst part about quitting, for sure. It's amazing how much you can become attached to other people's kids.

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written by shawn matthews    -|link

KLB - Response


Well, Cathy told me that "Bonnie" is waiting anxiously for my e-mail reply, so I finally took the time to put my thoughts into words. Here for you is the exact letter I wrote her and sent. Think what you want of me, but I'm proud of myself that I don't cower to employers and that I never will. Luckily I haven't been brainwashed by my American upbringing yet.

In a day and age where we've been convinced into accepting the system, into feeling guilty when we don't strive to be excellent employees, I'm surprised that still - I just don't care. The only things that important to me are my health and well being. To me all other ills are imaginary. Stressing yourself out over your job - what's the point, really?


I'm sorry for the delayed reply, but I needed time to think about your e-mail.

As you know and have kindly pointed out, I really have been enjoying
teaching these kids. I don't think I've ever had classes of children
so excited about learning English, and that is because of the great
relationship I established with them. Our classes are so much fun and
the atmosphere is excellent. However, as you pointed out, that alone
isn't enough at this school. It's a sad day when the focus of
education is not the children but rather the perceptions of the
parents and administration, but unfortunately that's the day we live
in.

So, after reviewing your e-mail and discussing it with Julie, I have
decided I will resign after all. This will enable me to find a
full-time position with a regular salary closer to my house and for
you to find a teacher who, hopefully, lives nearby and needs a decent
part-time job.

The things you ask for are not unreasonable. I think, however, that
if you want your part-time teachers to do a better job, you should
provide some incentive such as a paid sick day/vacation day once in a
while. Especially when they have to pay a lot for the visa trip
and other expenses. And this: "Regarding to the payment for 1 hour
what I missed in the last paycheck was replaced to the hour you missed
this month" [I didn't include this in my last post, but it was in the payment letter. Basically she shorted me an hour's pay a month ago and I called her on it - this month I happened to be late once about 30 minutes and Cathy told her, of course, so apparently she decided it was OK not to pay that hour's wage] is petty and doesn't inspire me (or anyone) to work harder. It seems you want the responsibility and extra duties that come with a salary - yet you pay by the hour "with no exceptions" [she used these words before] and no benefits.

As for Cathy's role - you should also make it clear in the beginning
exactly what the assistant's role is to avoid confusion. I still don't
understand what her role is except for calling parents, bothering me
and reporting my actions to you. She may be great at paper work, but
she's poor at working with foreigners - which is the main aspect of
her job.

Finally:

Even though the contract between you and I was dated for 6 months, my
contract with the school/E-2 visa is dated for one year. Therefore I
will need a "release letter" from the school so I can get another job.
I don't think my performance was so poor that you can't get this for
me.

Since I will have worked there 6 months, I would also like to use you as a
reference. You don't have to say I was a perfect teacher because I
know I haven't been. You could say I did a decent job, was good with
the kids and that the distance to work created some problems for me.
In exchange I will gladly help you find another teacher and say good things about your program. I think that is fair.

Thank you for your time,

Shawn

That should do just fine. If I don't find another job right away, at least I will have some time to travel or visit New York again.

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written by shawn matthews    -|link

KLB - Back to the Grind


Back to the grind yesterday. That's the worst part about vacation - going back to work. The long trek usually doesn't bother me but yesterday I found myself out of breath and my heart racing as I trudged up and down stairs and hills, etc. That's what a week and a half of lounging about will do. I left extra early, with good intentions, but still arrived just a few minutes before class. Class A was awful too. They were quiet when the class was in the morning. Now it's back to 1:00 when they're blazing with energy.

I wasn't a total bum over the break. My home workout plan was failing miserably so I actually joined the health club next door finally, paying for a three month membership. I went three days in a row and now my body feels like someone hit me all over with a baseball bat. Feels good! Huk ergh rarr! (manly grunts).

It's my plan to get back in shape for T-shirt weather. I miss my body from last summer. I always do that. I work out for 6 months, get into almost great shape and then quit going. At least I have retained a lot, though. I was skin and bones until I started lifting several years ago in Ulsan. Back then I weighed just 65 kilograms (about 140 pounds). I weighed in at 79 yesterday (175 pounds) which is perfect for my height (181 cms, or 6'0). I just need to tone up a bit.

As far as the job, I still haven't made a decision or written Bonnie back. It seems a lot of crap to put up with for a part-time job with no benefits. I'm almost sure I will be leaving. I'd like to get a full time job again with all the benefits and hopefully nearby. I'm also considering a trip overseas for awhile or possibly back home to visit my family and friends (do they still remember me?).

I don't like my job much anymore, actually. Yesterday it was all I could do to stay friendly with the spy. I could see she was aggravated that I didn't come early again and will probably inform Bonnie. The kids were good (B and C class), but they hate this book I'm forced to use. It sucks. I miss English Time. I don't even have time to do phonics now either.

So the kids half-learned how to read. Instead of continuing the process, now I'm teaching random units on such things as Rainforests and how they effect the ecosystem. Yeah, they get it - they totally understand and will retain that knowledge - right. One of the animals I was teaching about was pretty funny though. It was some kind of bird called "Cock of the Rock." Imagine a class full of little Korean kids repeating that over and over.

I finally finished the Xbox game Fable last night, though you can still play after beating the game - going around the kingdom as the Hero who conquered evil, marrying girls and sleeping with them (really - and kill them afterward, if you're so inclined!), buying houses, decorating, selling/renting them, finding treasures, fishing, digging, solving puzzles, killing monsters, etc. What a great game, even if the main quest was too short and easy.

Later I'm going to start NBA Street Volume 3 which was just released last week but already made it on Bit Torrent sites and, needless to say, onto one of my DVD-R disks. How much longer will the BT sites be able to get away with this stuff? That's just amazing - though every other day one or two get shut down after being sued by the movie industry. But those are just in the states. Anyway. for now, life is good. So many great games and movies, so little time.

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written by shawn matthews    -|link