This week has definitely been the most challenging so far, and definitely an emotional roller coaster. I started teaching on Tuesday. In my school there are three grades of middle school students (1st grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd grade middle school). There are four sections in each grade. Each week I will teach the 2nd and 3rd graders once and the 1st graders twice. Each group has it's own challenge. 1st grade is very excited to be in English class, and has so much energy, and actually still want to learn English. However, their English ability if very low. 2nd grade still has a lot of energy, but don't necessarily want to use it to learn English. 3rd grade is a very low energy level age. They are so tired and want to sleep all of the time (I will talk more about why this is later). For the most part, teaching was good this week. I'm still new, and the students still want to talk to the foreigner, which is a definite plus. With each grade I also have a different co-teacher, which is also a challenge. The 3rd grade co-teacher wants me to teach directly out of the book (which is boring for students, as well as myself and isn't really how American's talk). The 2nd grade teacher wants me to teach the material that is in the book, but I can teach it however I want. This is pretty cool, as I can use games for learning. The 1st grade teacher wants me to teacher wants me to use the book part of the time, then make lessons over whatever I want for part of the time. It will be interesting to see how all of this plays out.
Before I came to Korea, I had read about their educational system, and about how serious Koreans are about education. However, until I started living with a host family, I didn't realize how true it was. My sister and brother leave for school at 8 am like me. I get done teaching at 2:30, but they still go to school until 4:30. At 4:30 they go directly to "hagwon" (it is the equivalent of school/academy). They finally get done with this at 7 p.m. Then on Tuesday and Friday, they have an English tutor come to their apartment from 8-1030 pm. Between all of this, they also have their homework. Every other Saturday the students have school from 8-11 am. My host siblings also have "hagwon" for two hours on both Sat. and Sun.! It is no wonder that the students are tired during school! There is so much stress and pressure put on the students here to be high achievers. They have to do well on the tests to get into the "right" high school, so that they can get into the "right" college.
The emotional rollercoaster was really prevalent this week. My family, co-teachers, and students are all great. I really like spending time with them. However, my family is gone A LOT and so then I start to get lonely/homesick. It is weird, because one I'll be great and loving it here, and the next I will be so lonely and ready to go home. To help solve these feelings, I am trying to stay busy. I am jogging every evening, as well as playing piano. I am also looking into archery and kayaking. Right now, I feel like I'm on the up, and am learning how to deal. I know that this year will be full of these roller coaster feelings. Overall, I know that I am lucky to be here, and want to enjoy and make the most of my year in Korea!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
A visit to Seoul and my new home in Hwacheon.
I am now living in an apartment building in Hwacheon, South Korea. I will give you a little history on the events leading up to now.
Last Friday, we loaded to buses and left from Chuncheon for Seoul. On Friday, we had a couple of meetings (one with an English speaking doctor!). That evening, we were invited to the U.S. Embassy for a pool party and cook out with the U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, Kathleen Stevens. Getting to meet and talk to the ambassador was pretty cool- she was a peace corp volunteer here in the 70's, has worked in Yugoslavia, Northern Ireland, China, and Japan- and has some pretty amazing stories to tell. We also got a real American dinner- hamburgers cooked on the grill, potato chips (not octopus flavored!), cheese (which is very expensive here), sour cream dip, smores, cookies, AND Dr. Pepper! It was amazing. After brushing elbows with the big-wigs, we found out that the Seoul Philharmonic was playing for free in Seoul City Square. We went and listened to the beautiful music, and the Korean National Ballet performed, as well as some opera singers.
On Saturday, Dongmi showed me around Seoul. We went to Deok-su-gung Palace (which is located in the center of Seoul- they built modern Seoul around this palace), shopping at Myeong-dung (very modern and CROWDED), shopping at Insa-dong (traditional Korean crafts), and went to the top of Namsan Tower (N. Seoul Tower). It was great getting to spend time with Dongmi, as I had only been able to see her once during orientation.
On Sunday we slept in, then went shopping in an area near a women's college. We found some great deals AND got to eat at Quiznos. We also got our nails done for Yonsei Day. The first place we went into, wouldn't work on our nails because we were white! But we found a place, and our nails looked great :) Then it was back to the hotel for packing and preparing to leave our friends for a couple of weeks at least.
Monday was Yonsei Day. This is the day where our co-teachers and principals come to Yonsei University (the equivalent to Harvard in the U.S.), we have a ceremony where Fulbright announces which ETA goes to which school, then a really awkward lunch with your new school officials, then you drive back to your school with them. This was also slightly embarrassing when you realize exactly how much luggage you have and how small the cars are here. After our 3 hour ride back to Hwacheon (we stopped and ate dak-gal-bi in Chuncheon) I met my host family. The parents own a hotel, however they live in a really modern apartment. My siblings are a girl in 7th grade and a boy in 6th grade. The family is great, although the only one that speaks English is the 7th grade girl.
School started on Wednesday, however I don't start teaching for another week. It has been very challenging/interesting being in a place where you can communicate with very few people. I hope that this post finds you all doing well!
Last Friday, we loaded to buses and left from Chuncheon for Seoul. On Friday, we had a couple of meetings (one with an English speaking doctor!). That evening, we were invited to the U.S. Embassy for a pool party and cook out with the U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, Kathleen Stevens. Getting to meet and talk to the ambassador was pretty cool- she was a peace corp volunteer here in the 70's, has worked in Yugoslavia, Northern Ireland, China, and Japan- and has some pretty amazing stories to tell. We also got a real American dinner- hamburgers cooked on the grill, potato chips (not octopus flavored!), cheese (which is very expensive here), sour cream dip, smores, cookies, AND Dr. Pepper! It was amazing. After brushing elbows with the big-wigs, we found out that the Seoul Philharmonic was playing for free in Seoul City Square. We went and listened to the beautiful music, and the Korean National Ballet performed, as well as some opera singers.
On Saturday, Dongmi showed me around Seoul. We went to Deok-su-gung Palace (which is located in the center of Seoul- they built modern Seoul around this palace), shopping at Myeong-dung (very modern and CROWDED), shopping at Insa-dong (traditional Korean crafts), and went to the top of Namsan Tower (N. Seoul Tower). It was great getting to spend time with Dongmi, as I had only been able to see her once during orientation.
On Sunday we slept in, then went shopping in an area near a women's college. We found some great deals AND got to eat at Quiznos. We also got our nails done for Yonsei Day. The first place we went into, wouldn't work on our nails because we were white! But we found a place, and our nails looked great :) Then it was back to the hotel for packing and preparing to leave our friends for a couple of weeks at least.
Monday was Yonsei Day. This is the day where our co-teachers and principals come to Yonsei University (the equivalent to Harvard in the U.S.), we have a ceremony where Fulbright announces which ETA goes to which school, then a really awkward lunch with your new school officials, then you drive back to your school with them. This was also slightly embarrassing when you realize exactly how much luggage you have and how small the cars are here. After our 3 hour ride back to Hwacheon (we stopped and ate dak-gal-bi in Chuncheon) I met my host family. The parents own a hotel, however they live in a really modern apartment. My siblings are a girl in 7th grade and a boy in 6th grade. The family is great, although the only one that speaks English is the 7th grade girl.
School started on Wednesday, however I don't start teaching for another week. It has been very challenging/interesting being in a place where you can communicate with very few people. I hope that this post finds you all doing well!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Leaving Chuncheon
So, tonight is my night in Chuncheon, and I am a little sad to leave "mini America". For our last night out, a group of us ate Patpingsu (the best is supposed to be here in Chuncheon), and then went to noraebang (karaoke). It was so much fun.... then we ad McDonald's delivered to the dorm as we were packing! This started my thinking process about the differences of Korea and America and the many "improvements" that I have made. So here is my list:
Top 5 things that I love about Korea/ orientation:
5. Couples that wear matching t-shirts a.k.a. couple tees
4. Getting any type of food delivered without a delivery charge!
3. Beautiful scenery
2. Trying new foods
1. Meeting great people and making new friends!
Top 10 improvements/ new experiences since I've been in Korea:
10. Realizing that foods that I don't like in the U.S. aren't that bad when compared to foods that I have eaten here.... it is definitely a sliding scale!
9. Eating a baby octopus- yes it was a gross as it sounds.
8. Being gwaked at everywhere I go.
7. Going to a jimjilbang. This is a spa type place, but you sit in hot pools naked. Very different.
6. Teaching at Camp Fulbright!
5. Learning how to hold/use chopsticks. Since Koreans use these at every meal, this was definitely a good skill to acquire.
4. Climbing to the top of a mountain.
3. Singing in a noraebang with fun people.
2. Learning taekwondo and becoming a yellow belt.
1. Partially learning a new language, and graduating from Korea University.
This weekend we will be in Seoul. Friday we will meet the U.S. ambassador to South Korea and have a cook out at her house. Saturday I am meeting up with Dongmi and she is going to show me around Seoul. Sunday, some of the girls and I are going to get our nails done and maybe a haircut. On Monday, we meet our school officials, and they take us to our schools and homestays. This will be a big day, as I will be moving away from 70 other Americans, and moving into a Korean family. I know I will miss the friends that I have made during orientation, but am so excited to meet my family and start teaching.
Top 5 things that I love about Korea/ orientation:
5. Couples that wear matching t-shirts a.k.a. couple tees
4. Getting any type of food delivered without a delivery charge!
3. Beautiful scenery
2. Trying new foods
1. Meeting great people and making new friends!
Top 10 improvements/ new experiences since I've been in Korea:
10. Realizing that foods that I don't like in the U.S. aren't that bad when compared to foods that I have eaten here.... it is definitely a sliding scale!
9. Eating a baby octopus- yes it was a gross as it sounds.
8. Being gwaked at everywhere I go.
7. Going to a jimjilbang. This is a spa type place, but you sit in hot pools naked. Very different.
6. Teaching at Camp Fulbright!
5. Learning how to hold/use chopsticks. Since Koreans use these at every meal, this was definitely a good skill to acquire.
4. Climbing to the top of a mountain.
3. Singing in a noraebang with fun people.
2. Learning taekwondo and becoming a yellow belt.
1. Partially learning a new language, and graduating from Korea University.
This weekend we will be in Seoul. Friday we will meet the U.S. ambassador to South Korea and have a cook out at her house. Saturday I am meeting up with Dongmi and she is going to show me around Seoul. Sunday, some of the girls and I are going to get our nails done and maybe a haircut. On Monday, we meet our school officials, and they take us to our schools and homestays. This will be a big day, as I will be moving away from 70 other Americans, and moving into a Korean family. I know I will miss the friends that I have made during orientation, but am so excited to meet my family and start teaching.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
So much news, so little time
So it has been a crazy couple of weeks, and I have had very little free time until now. I am going to try and sum up the last two weeks.
I taught on "Thanksgiving Day" in an intermediate class. These students were really great. Their English wasn't as good as the first group of students I taught, but there were very smart, and the activities that I had planned went really well. A great piece of advice that my clinical instructor told me was this, "They may have trouble putting into words what they are thinking. However, this doesn't make them dumb. It just makes it more challenging as a teacher to plan advanced lessons, but having to use simple instructions and wording, so that the students can understand what they are supposed to do." This is so true, and I will definitely reflect on it as I teach throughout the year.
Yesterday was our last official day of Korean language classes! I can't believe that we have been here 5 weeks, and how much that I have learned within that time. I can now hold a basic conversation, and be able to get around the city on my own. I even had an outing to E-mart where I told the taxi driver where to go! (Small but important steps!) We have our Korea language final on Monday, and I will be spending most of the weekend studying. There are four parts on the final- reading, writing, role playing with a partner (acting out a certain situation, such as navigating, asking for, and pricing things in the grocery store, or asking about the weather- I guess it is universal to talk about the weather- haha), and an individual interview in Korean. Please wish me luck with this!
This past week I also received my placement school. I will be teaching in the city of Hwacheon, South Korea. Hwacheon is a very agriculturally rooted city of about 8,000 people. It is north of where we are now, and pretty close to North Korea. I will be teaching at a co-ed middle school, and will have about 350 students. I feel really lucky with this placement, as some of my peers will be teaching over 1000 students per week! There are also two other ETA's in Hwacheon- they will both be teaching elementary students. Later this week, we will know more about our host family- I am so excited to learn who I will be living with for the next year!
Today, our group of ETA's visited the DMZ. We actually drove through Hwacheon to get to the DMZ. It was really cool to able to see my town before I actually move there. It is a very beautifully situated city- surrounded by mountains and a river. At the DMZ, a soldier talked to us, about their job. We went to a very remote portion of the DMZ, so there was no "visitor center" or anything like that. From where we were at (the soldier's observation point), we could see the fences and North Korea. We could also see where the North Korean military grows their own food (even the military is hungry- they only eat 3 times per week :( The area was strangely quiet and peaceful (very abandoned). We could not take pictures looking into the North, but I know that it is something I will never forget.
Assuming that the Korean final goes well, we will have a graduation ceremony on August 13! On Friday, we leave for Seoul, and get to spend the weekend in Seoul together. The U.S. ambassador to South Korea, is having us all over for a pool party and barbeque on Friday evening!!! I can't wait- maybe we'll get grilled hamburgers :) Saturday and Sunday are free days and I am hoping to meet up with Dongmi! On Monday, we will meet our school officials, and they will take us from Seoul to our respective schools and homestays. This will be a very emotional day, as we will be "moving on" to the next phase here in Korea. I know that I will miss the good friends that I have made (most of them are 4 hours away), but am lucky that there are other ETA's in my town. It will be exciting to start our "job" and the reason that I came here for- to teach!
Here are some links for the city and county of Hwacheon!
http://www.ihc.go.kr/foreign/eng/page/sub01/sub01_01.html
http://www.narafestival.com/global/content_view.asp?bc=F001&bo__idx=11961
http://www.invil.org/english/village/gangwon/contents.jsp?con_no=604594&page_no=1
I love you all and hope to talk to you soon!
I taught on "Thanksgiving Day" in an intermediate class. These students were really great. Their English wasn't as good as the first group of students I taught, but there were very smart, and the activities that I had planned went really well. A great piece of advice that my clinical instructor told me was this, "They may have trouble putting into words what they are thinking. However, this doesn't make them dumb. It just makes it more challenging as a teacher to plan advanced lessons, but having to use simple instructions and wording, so that the students can understand what they are supposed to do." This is so true, and I will definitely reflect on it as I teach throughout the year.
Yesterday was our last official day of Korean language classes! I can't believe that we have been here 5 weeks, and how much that I have learned within that time. I can now hold a basic conversation, and be able to get around the city on my own. I even had an outing to E-mart where I told the taxi driver where to go! (Small but important steps!) We have our Korea language final on Monday, and I will be spending most of the weekend studying. There are four parts on the final- reading, writing, role playing with a partner (acting out a certain situation, such as navigating, asking for, and pricing things in the grocery store, or asking about the weather- I guess it is universal to talk about the weather- haha), and an individual interview in Korean. Please wish me luck with this!
This past week I also received my placement school. I will be teaching in the city of Hwacheon, South Korea. Hwacheon is a very agriculturally rooted city of about 8,000 people. It is north of where we are now, and pretty close to North Korea. I will be teaching at a co-ed middle school, and will have about 350 students. I feel really lucky with this placement, as some of my peers will be teaching over 1000 students per week! There are also two other ETA's in Hwacheon- they will both be teaching elementary students. Later this week, we will know more about our host family- I am so excited to learn who I will be living with for the next year!
Today, our group of ETA's visited the DMZ. We actually drove through Hwacheon to get to the DMZ. It was really cool to able to see my town before I actually move there. It is a very beautifully situated city- surrounded by mountains and a river. At the DMZ, a soldier talked to us, about their job. We went to a very remote portion of the DMZ, so there was no "visitor center" or anything like that. From where we were at (the soldier's observation point), we could see the fences and North Korea. We could also see where the North Korean military grows their own food (even the military is hungry- they only eat 3 times per week :( The area was strangely quiet and peaceful (very abandoned). We could not take pictures looking into the North, but I know that it is something I will never forget.
Assuming that the Korean final goes well, we will have a graduation ceremony on August 13! On Friday, we leave for Seoul, and get to spend the weekend in Seoul together. The U.S. ambassador to South Korea, is having us all over for a pool party and barbeque on Friday evening!!! I can't wait- maybe we'll get grilled hamburgers :) Saturday and Sunday are free days and I am hoping to meet up with Dongmi! On Monday, we will meet our school officials, and they will take us from Seoul to our respective schools and homestays. This will be a very emotional day, as we will be "moving on" to the next phase here in Korea. I know that I will miss the good friends that I have made (most of them are 4 hours away), but am lucky that there are other ETA's in my town. It will be exciting to start our "job" and the reason that I came here for- to teach!
Here are some links for the city and county of Hwacheon!
http://www.ihc.go.kr/foreign/eng/page/sub01/sub01_01.html
http://www.narafestival.com/global/content_view.asp?bc=F001&bo__idx=11961
http://www.invil.org/english/village/gangwon/contents.jsp?con_no=604594&page_no=1
I love you all and hope to talk to you soon!
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