Interview with Annie at Naju Middle, Jinseong Girls High School
Annie is a Teacher with lots of experience and insight about Korea. It’s an honor to have an interview with her. Enjoy!
Annie
What is (was) the name of your school?
Naju Middle, Jinseong Girls High
What city and province is the school located?
Naju and Yeosu, Jeollanamdo
Are you still teaching there? Please enter Yes or No.
Sort of
What is (was) your motivation for going to South Korea?
Easiest way to leave the country without savings.
When did you realize holy crap what am I doing?
Still trying to figure it out.
What is the one sentence or word you have to know in Korean? Please spell in English!
Just learn your numbers. So practical for everything. Once you learn 0-10, it’s easy!
What should you definitely bring to Korea?
If you live in Seoul, nothing. If you live in the provinces, tea, dark chocolate, spices, an e-reader.
What is the most disgusting and favorite food you have had in Korea?
The worst thing I had was not even the most disgusting; The worst was a shot of deer blood with soju. It didn’t even taste so bad, it was just weird.
My favourite thing is probably samgyupsal.
What is (was) your favorite place in your city and why?
Any of the beaches during a non-beach season so I can let my dogs loose.
How many years have (did) you teach at this school? If less than 1 year, why did you leave?
One year at Naju – left because it was in such a small town. No social life.
Two years at Jinseong – am leaving because they lost their NET budget, found out after re-signing my contract and renewing my visa.
Starting at Jinnam soon. Not so happy about it. I wanted to stay at my beloved school.
Can you tell us about your school? How is the moral quality, working hours, benefits etc? And would you recommend this school, why or why not?
Jinseong is the best job in the city! The co-teachers are so supportive, the students can’t speak English well but they are interesting and have a great attitudes. Because it’s a technical school, I’m not required to really teach them anything. So I make my own lesson plans and try to have fun with them. I teach only 18 hours a week and a lot of my classes get cancelled for whatever reasons. It’s not a job for people who are bored easily, but I studied for the LSAT and took 6 distance university courses. They would let me leave early to write my exams. The school is so accommodating and friendly and welcoming. They are all upset that I can’t stay.
Any advice for newcomers or anything else you would like to add?
Honestly, working in Korea isn’t as good as it was, say, 5 years ago. Every year it seems to get a little bit worse. Less pay, less vacation, less benefits. If you’re just out of university and have nothing better to do with your BA, it is a great way to travel and make some money (if you know how to save!). But don’t wait too long, they’re cutting jobs and funding and hiring less teachers and making stricter contracts.
Conclusion
Use the knowledge that you get from veteran Teachers in Korea to make informed decisions when picking a school in Korea.
Thanks Annie for taking the time to pass on this wonderful information about your school.
Written by: Tate
I travel, I teach, I write. You don't have to be rich to do any of these things and that's why I started this website. You can travel, inspire young minds around the world and get paid doing it.
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