Wow - It seemed to come around quickly but it is already the end of summer camp and equally quick and unexpected is the fact that it will be my last Summer English Camp.
Firstly, I am staying in Korea... but not as a teacher... whether this is the right decision will be told after the passing of time but I have accepted a job outside of teaching, but related to my degree and related to English Language.
after a bit of the usual beating around the proverbial bush and a lot of Korean not really giving a straight answer I read the words" "Of course, you've got accepted by my team." in a tone that read like it had always been so obvious I then resigned from my position as NET at Seongsu Elementary School.
I think it was a complete shock to my Co-teacher / Manager and to the vice Principal and Principal when I went in front of them holding my hastily written letter of resignation with my co-teacher doing the talking and me standing there trying not to look too happy and at the same time trying not too look miserable... while the news sank in and they spoke about me and the impending lack of an English Teacher at their precious school and who can blame them. I thought that they would just get another teacher and it would be fun for the kids to get to meet another foreigner... However, it turns out that they can't get the budget for a new teacher. On one hand it seems a little bit odd, as they won't be paying me so they have that money and I am sure they could find a teacher in Korea and with their own housing (there are lot's of us!) But they have been told by GEPIK that they should wait... this suggests to me that maybe GEPIK really will end next year... !
I will write again as things get finalised, I was pressured to tell my school before I even knew the exact details of the new salary and benefits package - in fact I still don't know those details concretely and have nothing in writing. But I know enough that the basic package is substantially more than what I get now and I just need to negotiate the final package....
I never posted this so I can fill in the blanks. I had an interview with the HR manager and an interpreter - I am happy with the result, the salary is close to what I really wanted and certainly comparable to UK wages, so better than now, obviously.
It was unusual to negotiate with the HR manager. In England I can just about tell if I am being 'played' or the negotiation is genuine. about this time it left me confused. The fact that he asked me - what do you ideally want as a salary indicated that the negotiation was 'on' so I started and pitched my top figure. he just about fell out of his seat we then played the game for about 40 mins, while I dragged him close to my figure, or he pulled me down to his...I may never know if the interpreter said exactly what I said or what he thought I should say... he seemed uncomfortable with the situation, but I really really thank him for his efforts on my behalf
My emotions are mixed... leaving a relatively easy job for the unknown longer hours, pressure, work/life complications and no longer having rockstar like attention everywhere I go... There are students I won't give a second thought to, but there are some that I will miss a lot. The 3rd and 4th grade camp was mostly spend controlling students and breaking up fights and was, for the most part, pretty awful. There were some students who were great, though and this makes a difference. The 5th & 6th grade camp was pretty awesome allround. Lots of teaching, lots of fun, lots of creativity and no fights... I really enjoyed it. I made a video to show them (I will post a link later) on the last day (today) and Harvey is coming with me... So this is it ~ 18 months as a teacher in Korea is over, for now. I don't know if I will teach again. I learnt a lot about myself and looking back there were a lot of positive experiences. But I wasn't happy and I wanted to do something else, to work for a company, to have a different set of experiences in Korea... and this part of the adventure starts on 20th August... I have 13 days of holiday to enjoy first...
Firstly, I am staying in Korea... but not as a teacher... whether this is the right decision will be told after the passing of time but I have accepted a job outside of teaching, but related to my degree and related to English Language.
after a bit of the usual beating around the proverbial bush and a lot of Korean not really giving a straight answer I read the words" "Of course, you've got accepted by my team." in a tone that read like it had always been so obvious I then resigned from my position as NET at Seongsu Elementary School.
I think it was a complete shock to my Co-teacher / Manager and to the vice Principal and Principal when I went in front of them holding my hastily written letter of resignation with my co-teacher doing the talking and me standing there trying not to look too happy and at the same time trying not too look miserable... while the news sank in and they spoke about me and the impending lack of an English Teacher at their precious school and who can blame them. I thought that they would just get another teacher and it would be fun for the kids to get to meet another foreigner... However, it turns out that they can't get the budget for a new teacher. On one hand it seems a little bit odd, as they won't be paying me so they have that money and I am sure they could find a teacher in Korea and with their own housing (there are lot's of us!) But they have been told by GEPIK that they should wait... this suggests to me that maybe GEPIK really will end next year... !
I will write again as things get finalised, I was pressured to tell my school before I even knew the exact details of the new salary and benefits package - in fact I still don't know those details concretely and have nothing in writing. But I know enough that the basic package is substantially more than what I get now and I just need to negotiate the final package....
I never posted this so I can fill in the blanks. I had an interview with the HR manager and an interpreter - I am happy with the result, the salary is close to what I really wanted and certainly comparable to UK wages, so better than now, obviously.
It was unusual to negotiate with the HR manager. In England I can just about tell if I am being 'played' or the negotiation is genuine. about this time it left me confused. The fact that he asked me - what do you ideally want as a salary indicated that the negotiation was 'on' so I started and pitched my top figure. he just about fell out of his seat we then played the game for about 40 mins, while I dragged him close to my figure, or he pulled me down to his...I may never know if the interpreter said exactly what I said or what he thought I should say... he seemed uncomfortable with the situation, but I really really thank him for his efforts on my behalf
My emotions are mixed... leaving a relatively easy job for the unknown longer hours, pressure, work/life complications and no longer having rockstar like attention everywhere I go... There are students I won't give a second thought to, but there are some that I will miss a lot. The 3rd and 4th grade camp was mostly spend controlling students and breaking up fights and was, for the most part, pretty awful. There were some students who were great, though and this makes a difference. The 5th & 6th grade camp was pretty awesome allround. Lots of teaching, lots of fun, lots of creativity and no fights... I really enjoyed it. I made a video to show them (I will post a link later) on the last day (today) and Harvey is coming with me... So this is it ~ 18 months as a teacher in Korea is over, for now. I don't know if I will teach again. I learnt a lot about myself and looking back there were a lot of positive experiences. But I wasn't happy and I wanted to do something else, to work for a company, to have a different set of experiences in Korea... and this part of the adventure starts on 20th August... I have 13 days of holiday to enjoy first...
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