An announcement by the provincial Kyongki-do government in Korea to lay off roughly 1,000 foreign English teachers in public schools has expats on the peninsula reeling. Some seem to be surprised by the governments decision. But not me. And it's not because I'm not losing my job.
I think the main reason foreign English teachers are frustrated is because they just don't fully understand the system here. Modern Korean education philosophy is a testing culture, and it's not just a problem in Korea. Many of us (including myself) don't like it one bit, but it's also something that we are outside of being employed in Korea. We're not here to help them pass a test, we're here to help them speak English. And to Koreans stuck within the system, this unfortunately comes in second to test preparation for those parents looking to get their daughters and sons into good universities.
A sluggish world economy can also be partly to blame. And there's a lot more to it than this. When we can get inside the mind of a culture, and understand what Korea is to Koreans, we all can more accurately judge the situation, regardless of whether we agree with it or not. And last time I checked, hardly any of us do.
Keep the faith.
gfsf
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