I am still a very new teacher- let me state that right away. However, in the ten months that I’ve spent teaching elementary children here in Korea so far, I have found one very distinct difference between those first shaky months and now; that is I no longer struggle to fill the entire class time.
I remember in the first six months of teaching frequently looking at the clock and just willing that minute hand to move faster. This would occur as I saw that the students were finishing the last activity that I had planned, and I still had ten more minutes left in class! I would get nervous and worried thinking, “How am I going to fill this last chunk of time.” I would often find some kind of video to play, but the students were well aware of the fact that their teacher had not done the best job with time management. A most welcome change is that now we never run out of time. I have been able to achieve this due to many factors, but maybe the most important one is always planning one more activity than I think we’ll need. As my knowledge of how long activities will take has improved, I find that many times this extra activity is not needed. However, when it is needed it is great to be able to pull it out and use it. That is not say that I don’t ever use videos anymore. Sometimes when I see that the students have mastered the material, or just that they look like they need a break, I will put on a short clip (I love the “How It’s Made” clips on YouTube; they’re in English, they’re educational, and the kids and I love them). However, it is nice to be able to choose whether or not I play a video, rather than having to play one out of necessity because I don’t have anything else planned- a most welcome change!
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As some of you may know, I am currently writing a book on teaching English as a foreign language in Korea. My goal in working on this project is to provide an all-in-one resource containing all of the information about teaching in Korean in one place.
Topics that I plan on covering in detail include the following
With TEFL a growing industry, it is my sincere hope that this book can serve as a useful guide for anyone considering coming to Korea to teach English. I hope to have this published soon. Now, back to writing! I have undoubtedly had friends and family members ask me, "How do you teach elementary-aged children when you don't speak their language? Isn't a Korean English teacher better equipped for the task?" I have thought a lot about the reasoning behind having a Native English Teacher (NET) in the Korean public school system. Through the accounts of others and my own personal experience I believe that there are several advantages to having a NET in the school.
1.) Many Korean children never interact with foreigners I think this is an important factor for having a NET in the classroom. Korea is after all the most homogeneous country in the world. Look in any Korean school and you are hard-pressed to find anyone not of Korean heritage. If not for me, my students would never meet someone with a different culture and a different physical appearance. 2.) Having an NET in the school provides a more concrete example of the value of learning English I often reflect on my own experience learning Spanish. When I was in high school and even college, I really didn't have any native speakers with whom I could practice. However, once I went on my study-abroad experience in Costa Rica, I suddenly was given ample opportunities to practice the language. This made the language learning suddenly much more important, and I found myself running to my dictionary to look up a word that I didn't know. By having an English-only speaker in their school, the kids are forced to use the language to be able to communicate with their NET, making the language more valuable and real in their eyes. 3.) The NET provides native English pronunciation Even the best Korean English speakers that I have met have some kind of accent. Being able to provide that native English accent provides the students an opportunity to hear how English sounds from a native speaker with no accent. 4.) The NET is often able to create classes that break from the mold of normal Korean classes Many curriculum Korean English classes use rote memorization and boring CD's to present the subject of English. My classes are a complete break from this kind of learning. Teaching in an after-school setting with complete free reign over the topics and lesson style, I am able to present information in a fun and exciting style. I incorporate games, total physical response activities, and task-based lessons to present the subject of English in an interesting and memorable way. |
AuthorCliff is an adjunct professor at Yonsei University, Wonju campus. Archives
December 2019
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