Here is where I'll try to answer your questions about Korea and teaching in Korea. I am not an expert on either subject, but have about four years experience in both.So, send me an email with your question and I'll post the interesting ones here. I should post the ones the Korean kids ask me about myself and the West, but I think I'll save those for another page or not at all as you'd be surprised what they can come up with.

General Questions Question: What's the best way to learn Korean while I am here? Answer: Well, I had a Korean language tutor, but to be honest I found that just hanging out with my Korean friends and students I learned more than she taught me. If you really want to get into it you could always trade off with your Korean friend: English lessons for Korean lessons. I find, though, unless you get strict about it you often wind up getting the short end of the stick. There are also alot of classes available for free or for very cheap. Ask your manager or owner of the school you work for about it and hopefully they can help you out. Beware: For some reason some hogwan owners don't like the idea of their native speaker teacher learning Korean. Maybe it's innocent or they don't want you to know when they are talking about you with you right there in the room. It happens more than you think. Also be wary when your students offer to teach you something new. They love to teach you bad stuff to say in korean and try to pass it off as harmless. I always try it out on one of my Korean friends first to make sure it is safe. Question: Do I have to do overtime? Answer: Well, that depends on your contract. Some contracts make it optional, while others make it mandatory up to so many hours a week (this may include working on the weekends). Make sure you read your contract well and if you want the choice of doing overtime, make sure that the option is stated in the contract. Sure, some schools are lenient in this regard, but most are not. While a contract may seem to be more a guideline to your boss, when push comes to crunch, they make alot of money on those extra classes and so you should expect to do some.

I Said, "Kimchee, not chimney." My Korean teacher believed in not sparing the rod.

Quickies Q: How long do I have to work for my school? A: Standard contracts are for 1 year, but I have seen 6 month and 1 month contracts advertised. Of course, bonuses do not usually apply to short term contracts. Q: Do I have any worker rights in Korea? A: You have the same rights as any Korean worker as per the Korean labor code. Check it's website for more info. Q: Do I have to learn Korean during my stay? A: No, but it can make your life alot easier. Q: Can I legally drive in Korea? A: Yes. You can either obtain an International Driver's License or just show your home country license and they'll issue you a a Korean one.

Well, that's it for now. As more questions come in I'll expand this page. Remember if you have any questions, feel free to email me. Also, check out my new forum on my main page. I am being paranoid with it and you have to ask me for the password before you can access it. I only want Korean and ESL topics covered, so I limiting people who want to post. Sorry for the inconvience, but I have seen too many forums and chatrooms turn to garbage.