#'2) if you hate hagwon work we simply WILL find some way for you to do SOMETHING else for the next 3 years once you get on the f

[foxcassius]

jiwon is so nice.

[islandsisters]

Meant to Be

Note: I will begin to refer to myself as Em, which is part of my name, and my sister as Elle, which is part of her name as well.

I knew that when I would write this next post, I would know where I’d be living and working next: Korea or Hawaii. To find out where that is, do read below...

In your heart, God will tell you where to go and what to do, but in His timing. You have to trust that because you will not always see one step ahead. 

At the end of June and into July, I was religiously applying to jobs within Korea. I wanted to live there, so I only applied to jobs in Korea. I had gotten a job in Seoul and was negotiating the contract (I was to be hired on) when the school decided that they “chose to renew the contract of one of their teachers who wanted to extend their contract instead of hiring you”. Now after working in Korea for a year, in a hagwon (private school) and not letting my love of Korea, or lack thereof, distract me from choosing a proper school to work at. As a human being, I simply deserve to work and strive to work in a respectful and organized working place, which can be extremely hard to come by in Korea. Even so, I kept applying. I went through more interviews with others schools and even one interview in person (school #2). Less than an hour after having the interview in person then a week or so ago, school #2 had told me that I “was not strong enough for the job”. I had told the interviewer that I am anemnic, but I don’t believe that was the reason, or full reason for not getting hired. Korea has a way of being two faced and last minute, wasting your time. So I decided to move on. 

Then, another school agreed to hire me on (school #3). I knew that when I decided to do an interview with this other private school, this would be my the last interview I chose to do. I had applied to over 300 jobs, used more than 15 recruiters and companies, and was simply tired of investing my time in applying to employers and recruiters who could not begin to understand the unique and impressive educational ECE & ESL background that I have. They didn’t deserve me then and they don’t deserve me now. Likely they won’t in the future either. (I say this because though it is 2019, there are still job listings that ask for White/Caucasian teachers only, which truly reflects Korea, as a whole, and their habitual deep self hate. It’s very sad, it is. 

School #3 did not leave any kind of good impression on me. First, the interviewer/director was nearly 30 minutes late to our interview. When she had started the interviewer, apparently it had not crossed her mind to tell me why she was late, much less apologize (if you have worked in Korea, you will see that this is common behavior, as bewildering as it is because manners ought to be a worldwide kind of thing. Apparently not.), so she did not of the aforementioned. The interview conducted in a speedy manner, as if I were the one late to the interview. The director did not seem very interested in my teaching philosophy, style, or TESOL degree (pretty rare as Bachelor’s degree, if I may say so myself) but rather just wanted me to start work on the date that she insisted. She agreed to easily to my requested pay, offered a small bonus, then hesitated about it, and would not answer all of my questions directly. All of these were red flags, but I was so hopeful to work in Seoul or Incheon, that I considered the job. 

Then comes the contract. The recruiter sent me the contract. She was a problem in and of herself (trying to force me to take the job, avoiding my questions, trying to make it seem lucky that I landed such a job, and almost threatening that if I were to ask to change anything in my contract, that I would automatically lose the job. The woman is a horrible, atrocious recruiter and I would suggest her to know one. (Do note that the recruiters receive some kind of bonus when you sign a contract, so most do not care about your well being at the school or the quality of the school that they are offering for you to teach at. Be aware of that. It is your right to negotiate and to call out anything that concerns you, to be knowledgeable about the law for foreigners, and to not sign a contract due to anything illegal listed in it. Speaking of illegal, I found at least three illegal clauses in my contract from school #3 and other things which were stated very generally (room for the Korean staff to try to make me feel obligated to do things most workers wouldn’t want to or don’t actually have to do). So what did I do? I emailed the contract to the director, highlighting everything that was illegal or ambiguous. And do you know what happened? They never responded, not the recruiter or the director. And you know what I did?

I had been applying to jobs in Hawaii in July, especially in the beginning of the month. Three schools also showed interest and school number 2 ended up working swiftly and most seriously with me. I felt in my heart that the people were good and that’s where I was meant to be, so I accepted the job offer a couple of days before I flew back to the island. Then a couple of days after I was on the island, I was off to training. Today, Friday, was Open House and on Monday, the first day of school begins. I took action confidently because I knew what was and wasn’t for me. Though I did want to return to Korea (sometimes I don’t know why I was willing to work at a private school again), it is no longer an aspiration of mine to teach at any private school there. The peace and freedom I have in America as a teacher is incomparable to that of private school teachers in Korea. I mean, we get 10 vacation days a year and 2 sick days. That’s not living. That’s not healthy. That’s not realistic. And though I do have a hope for things others would say is unrealistic, at least it is more on the positive spectrum of things. For that hope, for that faith, for that fight in me, I will continue to learn how to truly live and for now, a big part of that is through teaching. 

Thank you to everyone positively involved in my teaching and learning journey, Em.