Expectations from your Korean students

Here's the question:

I just got to Korea last Wednesday and started teaching today [Friday]. I didn't recieve any training and was totally shocked and scared when I was standing in front of a class of nine adults. I'm really freaked out and don't know what to do!!! What do the expect from me? Any advice about how to handle or manage these students would be sooo great!

I have talked about teacher training before and let me add that you are not alone. Everyday dozens of new teachers step off the plane and into a classroom. On top of that, many don't have much experience or any knowledge of what students expect of you. Don't worry about it. Students (or at least older students) know that people are new to the teaching scene and even newer to Korea. Most of the time, they'll give you a little adjustment time for you to get settled. Each class of students is different from the last and your teaching methodology will constantly evolve as you get into your groove.

In the meantime, let me offer you a bit of advice. In my years as a teacher and supervisor, I have discovered that people unfamiliar with Korean culture and its education system go through months of missteps and frustration as they try to adjust to a new job in a new country.

Listen to Part One of my podcast on how to better understand the education culture in Korea. It's a four-part series that covers the culture of education; methods; goals and strategies. The last one should be published within the next day or so.

Gay Politicians in South Korea

Here's the question:

I started wondering what the political atmosphere in Korea is concerning gay rights. As I'm sure you know already, it is a really touchy issue here in the US of A and political candidates stance on that one thing can make or break them at the polls. So my question is: does such a political stigma exist in Korea similar to how it does in the US? If so, what happens when the political discussion shifts into that issue?

From all of your responses so far [on LGBT issues], it seems that Korea is in a bit of denial when it comes to anything gay. I might be right to guess that they don't even mention it in politics? If so, are there any "rabble rouser" politicians who are making a mark in that respect?

I'm certainly getting a lot of questions about the LGBT community in Korea and honestly, while I was aware of some facets of it, I didn't know nearly as much as I do now. For that, I say thanks.

When considering South Korean politics, you must throw out many of the highly emotional issues in America. Korea has their own set of highly emotional issues and, although there are a few that overlap, many do not. Korea has dealt with same-sex marriage and like many US states, the court refused to recognize such unions.

In 2004, the left-wing or Democratic Party in Korea (민주당) has advocated for equal rights and even ran on a similar platform picking up a few seats in parliament, but there has yet to be a single successful openly-gay candidate to win an election. That's not to say that some politicians are concerned about equality for all citizens, it's just that timing is everything in politics and considering that current President Lee Myung-bak called homosexuality "abnormal", it's safe to say that right now, LGBT rights are not at the top of the list.

If anybody has any questions, just send me an email at asktheexpat@yahoo.com or leave a comment.

Job Placement and Visa Processing Times for South Korea

Here's the question:

I was just wondering about the average time it takes from first applying for teaching jobs in korea to actually going there? i'm 100% keen on going to south korea but first i'll be in the USA from aug 6th to sept 14th and i'm hoping to get to korea hopefully no more than 2/3 months after i return to england. Will it soon enough if i start applying straight after coming back from the USA or do i need to start applying for jobs now with the intention of leaving in november time?

There is no set time frame, however, there are some things that you can do to get the ball moving. First of all, request your criminal background check now. Do it while you're still in the UK. Secondly, get your medical check done now as well. Once you have all of your required documents, the actual processing time is pretty fast, so preparing that stuff BEFORE heading to the US is helpful.

Both of those things are simple enough to get done before you leave for the US. While you're in the US, start talking to recruiters and considering who and where you want to teach. Don't do any serious looking until you're about to return to the UK though. By chatting with recruiters via email or telephone, you'll be able to get a better idea of what the market is like and how fast you'll be placed. Once in the UK, you can get serious with recruiters/schools, interview with the consulate and start saying your goodbyes.

As I said, there is no set time frame, but if you do it right, I'd say from the moment you seriously start talking with recruiters to touch-down in Korea, five to six weeks would have passed which fits in your aforemention time frame.

If anybody has any questions, just send me an email at asktheexpat@yahoo.com or leave a comment.

Luggage Weight Limitations for your Flight to South Korea

Here's the question:

ive just got a job in a public school in seoul in korea, im due to travel on the 23rd of august from the UK. i was wondering what the weight restrictions for luggage are?, your help would be greatly appreciated.

This question gets asked all the time on my Facebook group and no one really ever gets a solid answer. Why not? Well, weight restrictions typically depend on the airline. Some are more lenient than others. I would recommend contacting your airline and asking them. You should also consider that limitations and restrictions change so often that it would not be wise of me to offer advice. Typically, they will allow for a little more weight if you let them know you're going to be abroad for a year. There's a helpful website called "Luggage Guide" that gets updated semi-regularly and has a lot of good links, so drop by there and see what they think.

Rather than worrying about how much you can pack and whether you can push the limits, I would suggest packing as light as possible. Skimp on a few things. Many people get stressed about packing and try to cram everything in when they first come to Korea. This is not necessary. Take a look at my "What to Pack" post and start crossing some stuff off the list. You'll be happy that you did. Remember, South Korea is not a summer camp where you must rely on the canteen for supplies, much of what you need is here.
And if you did forget a thing or two, well you can always ask your parents to send you a package from home or you can ask me where to find it and I'll try my best to help out.

If anybody has any questions, just send me an email at asktheexpat@yahoo.com or leave a comment.

Scuba Diving in South Korea

Here's the question:

I was wondering if you knew of anywhere in Korea that would be good for gaining a diving license. I have nothing at the moment and would need to start from scratch. Also I don't live in Seoul so if there was something on the south coast or in Busan that would be great.

While generally not seen as a popular pastimes among Koreans, Scuba diving is gaining some momentum these days. Just as with other watersports (pun intended), Koreans are warming up to the water and trying out some more leisurely pursuits. Personally I am not into diving as the initial costs deter me from starting, but there does appear to be a couple expat resources.

Scuba in Korea, based out of Daejon, offers some pretty decent info. They've got everything from courses and dive sites to underwater photography and shark diving info.

* Aquatic Frontier, based out of Osan, makes the claim to be the only "USFK Approved Diving" club in Korea. They also offer courses and have a pretty active calendar.

* Deep Blue Quest also offers courses.

* Wet ROK Diving out of Daegu has got some courses and by the looks of it, they seem to offer the cheapest courses.

* Big Blue 33 is the number one dive resource for Jeju and it appears to be doing quite well. Its prices are reasonable as well.

I'm sure there might be some other smaller groups or clubs out there, but if you get connected with any of these organizations I'm sure you'll be able to get into the sport.

Any divers out there have any recs?

If anybody has any questions, just send me an email at asktheexpat@yahoo.com or leave a comment.