Teaching in Korea

Day 8 of the Mosaic Tour

Thursday, 6.28

I was nervously excited about this day - we'd be guest teachers at Posco Jigok Elementary School. I'd prepared and stressed about my lesson for a LOOOONG time. What if I couldn't teach in Korea? What if the kids didn't get my style? What if so much of my teaching was so contextualized that my lesson fell flat? It all turned out fine, and I loved it. The kids were so sweet, and we were welcomed as if we were visiting dignitaries. Unlike our other official visits, we left laden with SO many gifts that we felt overwhelmed. (These parents know how to give gifts to teachers!)

My translator. He was so sweet and so excited. Clearly, the title of translator held with it a certain honor. He excitedly told me all about his school and graciously led my ignorant behind all over his campus.

As a part of our welcome, we were treated to a brief introductory video.

Some of my KAD peeps. Hugs.

The sentiments were so sweet. This is the principal. His translator introduced him as, "Our honored and handsome leader." I love that my people can tell a joke.

We were offered "official" teaching certificates, IDs, and gifts from the school before we set off to tour the campus.

How we spent our day.

This kid. During the orientation session at the beginning of the day, he leaned over and whispered intermittently,

"[The student body president] is in my class! He's a good leader!"

"I used to be in that [jump rope] club!" Me: "Wow! You can do all those cool tricks?" Him: "No! I'm not that good!"

"I'm in the ping pong club! But I'm not very good at it!"

The English teacher's class. He seemed a little nervous.

I asked my translator to show me his favorite book in the library. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins. :O

My first class of the day. These kids were just the sweetest, and "Ooo'd," "Ahhhh'd," and laughed at all the right moments. When I showed them my house, they were astounded, as most Koreans live in high-rise apartments, since land is at a premium. I had to tell them, "I'm not rich! This is just how our houses look!"

When they were done eating, each kid would clean up after themselves, scraping their food into these containers, and setting their tray on the conveyor belt. Everything was metal - utensils, trays, and water cups. For water, after clean up, each kid would go to a water station, get a cup, fill it, and hurriedly gulp a mouthful.
  

The cafeteria during lunch was Grand Central Station, but an organized chaos. Students were busy going to and fro, but everyone moved with a purpose. Some kids were designated clean up helpers, and moved through the cafeteria armed with a broom, dust bin, and apron. Also, teachers ate with their students. I didn't see a single teacher or student who wasn't eating the provided school lunch, which was, after all, delicious.

Joe, Tour staff, next to the toothbrushing station. The first digit is the grade, the second is the room number. Each sterilization compartment held toothbrush holders.

The walls outside each of the classrooms I taught in were lined with posters featuring my picture. This was my favorite, as this student clearly thought I needed more make up.

Some of the second class I taught that day. Both times I taught 6th graders. The two students closest to me were my translators. They, like their predecessor, seemed honored to have been chosen for the role. After lunch, there was about an hour before class began, so they showed me around their classroom. Surprisingly, for most of that hour, their teacher was nowhere to be found. But each student was doing their own thing in the classroom. When I asked where their teacher was, they said, "In the teachers' room, drinking coffee!" Then they giggled. It was so strange how it was acceptable that their teacher could just leave them unsupervised for so long, but again, the kids were beyond wonderful.

My second class was less fluent in English than my first, but they still tried very hard, followed directions, and worked together. I was proud of them. Weird. I just noticed they segregated themselves by gender.

Right outside the school as we left, I noticed this garden. The plaque reads something like, "Planted in honor of Me and Korea Mosaic Tour Guest Teachers, 2013." The flowers behind the pinwheels are the Rose of Sharon, the national flower of Korea.

My first class decorated the board. My word. The sweetness. Many of their posters featured common Korean foods, holidays, or words. They knew they were teaching me as much as I was teaching them.