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Could anyone who has taught in both the US and in Korea tell me some similarities and differences between the two? Although the original thread seems targeted at those who want to teach because it is "easy," that is not my goal. I would like some similarities and differences that are more than "teaching in Korea is easier than teaching in other countries."

For instance:

• the "culture" of the workplace (not country culture, but things like professionalism, friendliness, support, meetings, etc)
• typical day
• things you loved and hated
• etc

And anything else you feel is important or something you wish someone had told you beforehand, please impart your wisdom! ^^

Differences:
-As everyone has already stated the amount of work is significantly different. I teach about four different lessons a week here, and have 22 hours of actual class time per a week. Outside of class, I don't have any other work to do as a teacher aside for preparing those lessons. In the US I taught high school social studies. I had to prepare 25 lessons every week for the 22 hours of class. Therefore the time in between classes in the US is reserved for lesson planning, grading, and other teacher duties.

I'm curious what your planning was like in the US. What does it mean to prepare a lesson? My general sense is that, for a good and passionate teacher, the job will not change too much wherever you go. Do you think that might be true?

I think teachers in Korea do have less classroom-time. 3-4 hours a day in my high school. Usually 3. A lot of the remaining time seems to be administrative work, which can keep people late regularly. The teachers whose extra duty is being a homeroom teacher often can leave the earliest. (I leave at 5 and am usually the only teacher going at that time.)

With lesson-planning, then--some don't make time for it, and just rely on lecturing about whatever is the next test-example in the textbook. Sometimes this is due to having other duties. Sometimes it's just about what's easier and results in less resistance from students.

Some teachers do make time for it--staying late, working at home. And then lesson-planning for them means finding new and engaging activities related to test-examples in the textbook.

For the most part, teachers teach the same lessons to each class. I mean, in USA a Spanish teacher will have Spanish 1, Spanish 2, IB Spanish, etc. Here, a second-grade teacher will teach the same lesson multiple times each day.

It's possible in Korea to teach the one lesson every day, and then do the same style of lesson throughout the week, and therefore do essentially no lesson-planning. Some go this route, and some don't.

I think it's the same in USA, right? I had teachers who went this route, and I had teachers who didn't. Teachers who planned activities, and teachers who gave self-study time or lectured with occasional questions (and I don't mean discussion-questions).

tl;dr: my question is about what lesson-planning is like in USA.

I taught second grade before coming to Korea, so I can touch on what it's like in elementary school.

Your lesson plans for next week are usually due the week before and must be emailed to the principal. Ours were due on Wednesdays. I got together with the other teachers from my grade and we would sketch out what the week was going to cover. We chose the standards we wanted to teach and generally kept to a theme, but each teacher had some freedom on how they wanted to teach the standard. The Common Core standards in America are pretty pointed, here's an example from grade 2:

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.G.A.1
Recognize and draw shapes having specified attributes, such as a given number of angles or a given number of equal faces. Identify triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, hexagons, and cubes.

So, you would design a lesson with this goal in mind. Most of us used the textbook as a base and then added our own materials. Your time goes into finding materials and finding effective ways to teach the concept. You do a pre-assessment to see what the students know, then continue to assess throughout. If you can't find materials, you need to make them. If your students aren't getting it, then you're not teaching effectively and need to find another way.

The biggest challenge is trying to figure out how to make the lesson accessible to all of your students, because all of them need to learn the concept. You have to provide accommodations to students with learning disabilities. You can't just teach to the middle. You have to provide extension activities for the smart and gifted students. You're basically tailoring a custom curriculum to each and every one of your students.

And you have to do this for all the subjects you teach. That's a lot of student work to look at and it can be hard to find the time. Because you have to go to IEP meetings, parent/teacher conferences, after school duties, etc. And during the day while your students are at P.E. or music, you can maybe sneak in a little planning, but honestly most of us used that time to relax and recharge. This is why you're always at school late, and if you not consistantly staying late, other teachers will gossip that you're not an effective teacher. Because there's no way in hell you could be without working an extra 10-20 hours a week.

Anyway. That being said, it can be really rewarding. You're spending 8 hours a day with these kids, more than what most of their parents spend with them. You're able to have such a profound effect on their lives. And you end up loving them, of course. They become like your own children. You celebrate their achievements and feel an immeasurable pride seeing them succeed. And then you have to say goodbye at the end of the year, and that can be hard, but you if you did your best to make a difference then that's all that matters.

I taught at an elementary school my first year in Korea. I think it sounds pretty similar--starting with objectives, discussing with other teachers, then planning your own activities. Some teachers planned and planned. Others stuck to the book. Most teachers are that school stayed late, but not very late. An hour or two a day.

The main difference I see is that you're trying to teach to each student, not to the class. A great thing and a difficult thing. Don't see it much here. See it more in USA (students grouped in classes according to level, both MS and HS). Elementary in that regard seems especially challenging.

I didn't study teaching, beyond some theory in grad school just to get ready to teach freshmen. I don't have a degree in education. I don't know as much as I could. But it seems like in USA there's more emphasis on activities and active learning, because it's more engaging for more students. In USA, there seems to be more institutional support for this kind of teaching, particularly in elementary school. Some teachers in Korea will agree with this and go out of their way to read up on it and design activities that will help more of their students, even within the testing framework in which they must teach. There is no real institutional support for this, though, or demand for this, so you still get too many teachers at all levels who put their heads down and lecture without pausing for any kind of assessment.

I guess I still think that, in terms of the day-to-day, good teachers here will be good teachers anywhere. The details will change (what non-teaching duties look like) but the struggles will remain the same.

Quote from: Ben-Ja-Meen on June 03, 2011, 04:47:53 PM

I agree that teachers in our own countries work harder than many of us NSETs do here.  My father was a teacher and worked late most nights and was involved in extracurricular activities on weekends... HOWEVER... at least in the United States (depending on which state) teachers are compensated for their hard work.  In New York they are making a hell of a lot more than any of us will EVER make teaching in Korea.

 I've attached a PDF from the NYC Department of Education with their salary schedule from 2008.  It's quite suprising... here's an excerpt: 

New York City Teacher Salary
The New York City Department of Education offers extremely competitive salaries to newly hired teachers. Salaries are based on prior experience as well as academic coursework and degrees earned. Starting teacher salaries range from $45,530 (bachelor's degree, no prior teaching experience) to $74,796 (bachelor's degree, Master's degree plus 30 credits, 7.5+ years teaching experience). Teachers who have a Master's degree but no teaching experience will start at $51,425. With annual increases plus increases for additional coursework, teachers’ salaries will rise to the current maximum of $100,049 per year over time.

I've lived in NY my whole life, and I know it seems like a really high salary, but you need to make that much to survive there. If you take the 45,530 salary and take away what it costs to rent an apartment in NYC; you'd be making right about what we make here. The cost of living is mad. Also the cost of getting to work everyday will cost you. It's over two dollars for the subway and if you want a car the insurance will destroy you. I took a pay cut to come to Korea, but I feel extremely comfortable living on what I make here. So far I love it!

My mother is a teacher and makes about 90,000 a year. NY also taxes you like CRAZY. Since she has kids to support she still struggles. It's crazy to think people can struggle at all when they're pulling 90,000 a year. Madness!