Welcome to Korea!
UPDATE: Apparently some of the links near the end are broken. I will try to re-link them this weekend. Sorry about the problem. If you do a search with the title of the link on Google it will lead you to the original blog post on my old blog, http://kimchi-icecream.blogspot.com/
The Kimchi Icecream Guide for New EFL/ESL Foreign English Teachers/Instructors in South Korea, 2010 Edition is the culmination of five years of writing and blogging about living and teaching in South Korea. It is based on my experience teaching elementary after school programs and camps, 1 full year of teaching at 3 different middle schools (all girls, and co-ed), 1 year at an all girls academic high school, 1 year at a foreign language training center (English immersion camp programs and the 6 month Teach English in English training program for Korean English teachers), nearly 2 years at a national university of education (training future Korean English elementary teachers in a full time English education program, and a second 6 month Teach English in English training program), and my current experiences teaching at an all boys vocational-academic (it’s currently transitioning from the one to the other) high school. Add to all of this summer and winter English camps during the entire five years, with varying levels of public school students, university students, and Korean English teacher trainees, and you’ll see that I’ve accumulated quite a bit of time and experience teaching in Korea.
My goal is to help new foreign teachers entering Korea for the first time to be informed of everything they need to know in order to make the transition from just keeping their head above the water and doing what I call ‘survival teaching’ to beginning to be able to swim with varying degrees of success and happiness. I write about both the good and bad things that may or may not take place in your teaching and living conditions in Korea. The really hard thing about trying to write an orientation guide is that each foreign teacher has a different personality and their teaching/living situations can be so different as to be almost as though they’re not in the same country. Perhaps the 3 biggest things you’ll need in Korea are a sense of humor, patience, and the mental abilities to adapt and be flexible about things that are literally beyond what you can imagine being possible–these are the things I think are VITAL to surviving and thriving in Korea.
In the readings below I’ve created a 1-3 star rating system to tell you how important I think a particular post is for new teachers to read.
* A little important and something you should read after you’ve been in Korea for a month and settled in.
** Moderately important and something you should read after you’ve unpacked everything in your apartment, and been in your school for a few weeks.
*** Very important information that will help you avoid typical mistakes and problems that new foreign teachers face when they first arrive in Korea.
I’ve put together this guide with everything I think a new foreign teacher (and for that matter even some veterans might find something useful here) might want to read about when they first arrive in Korea that I’ve written and blogged about. Yet there will be things that you think are incomplete or missing; please add comments or email me and if it is possible I will write about the question, issue, or topic.
If any of the following materials are used as a part of an orientation or new foreign teacher training manual I would appreciate being cited as the author (if it’s something that I wrote) and or as a source from which the materials were taken from (if it’s something I found and arranged and posted on the Net). I’ve spent a lot of time and energy writing and blogging and would appreciate the citation. Thanks.
I’ll leave you with this thought about teaching and living in Korea.
Spoon boy: Do not try and bend the spoon. That’s impossible. Instead… only try to realize the truth.
Neo: What truth?
Spoon boy: There is no spoon.
Neo: There is no spoon?
Spoon boy: Then you’ll see, that it is not the spoon that bends, it is only yourself.
I wish all new foreign teachers in Korea good luck tomorrow as the first day of the spring/summer semester begins.
Jason Ryan
p.s. There are a few kinks in the spacing and text size that I’m trying to work out, sorry.
Before Coming to Korea
***Before Coming to Teach English in Korea–Things to Bring with You on the Plane
***New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Bring pictures with you for an introduction lesson during the first week at your school***
Orientation (NEW!)
2009 SMOE Orientation — SMOE Orientations From The Past . . . taking a look at what’s online and trying to get a sense of what is coming soon . . .
On my way to SMOE’s 2009 August orientation in T-minus 4 hours . . .
SMOE Orientation August 2009 — Day 2, Notification: Everybody on the 10th floor gets ‘relocated’ due to ‘construction hazards’–uhm, excuse me?
SMOE August Orientation 2009: a brief description of Day 3, and preview of the SMOE orientation series coming soon
2009 SMOE August Orientation Day 4 – teaching demonstrations and getting ear-thermometered for the Nth time . . .
2009 SMOE August Orientation Day 7 (or 6 if you got here last Saturday) — And on the seventh day Smoe told the teachers to pack, get on the buses….
First Week in Korea — Checklists
***Introduction For New Foreign English Teachers To The Korean Public School Environment
***New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Bring pictures with you for an introduction lesson during the first week at your school***
***First Day At School For New Native English Teachers in Korean Public Schools — Checklist***
***New Foreign English Instructors — First Day In Your New Apartment Checklist***
Cultural Differences and Culture Shock
***New Foreign English Teachers in Korean Public Schools — One Foreign Instructor’s Take On Some Major Cultural Differences
Korean Education System Topics
***Introduction For New Foreign English Teachers To The Korean Public School Environment
***South Korean English Education Madness — 15 minute video that explains the general situation and problems
New Foreign English Teachers in Korean Public Schools — Health and Homesickness in Korea
EFL/ESL Teaching Books (NEW!)
List of EFL/ESL teaching methodology, lesson plans, games and activities, and cultural background books in my personal teaching library
***TESL/TEFL Teaching Method and Theory Books, Lesson Plan and Teaching Resource Books For New Foreign English Teachers In Korean Public Schools***
What are good EFL/ESL lesson plan, activity, game, resource books for teaching English in a Korean high school? – Here’s my list.
Bookstores in Korea
New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Kim & Johnson Bookstore, Gangnam, Seoul
New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Young Poong Bookstore in Jonggak Station, Seoul
New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Bandi & Lunis Bookstore in Jonggak Station, Seoul
“What the book?” — New and Used English Books and Magazines — Itaewon, Seoul, South Korea
Korean English Co-Teacher Topics
***8 Tips for Foreign English Instructors Co-teaching with a Korean English Teacher ***
New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea — What to do when your co-teacher doesn’t show up for class.
After School Programs/Classes/Extra Classes and English Camps (NEW!)
***English Camps in South Korea – A Guideline for Foreign English Teachers***
Winter English Camp Konglish: “shampoo and rinse” and “wash towel”
***New Foreign English Teachers in Korean Public Schools–Summer and Winter Camps Checklist***
Korean Student Pointy-Sense: The 24 Hour Test/Assignment Point Radar Phenomemon in Korean Students
Living in Korea — Locations and Conditions (NEW!)
2009 Foreign English Teachers Living in Korea: Best and Worst Living Conditions Contest
Memories from 2005 on Ganghwa Island
2009 SMOE August Orientation — My new apartment . . . and yep, there’s no gas, no power, and no furniture . . . lol, sigh.
And the ajumma said: “Behold! I bring forth the fridge for your apartment!” — And the foreign teachers Jason and Julianne bowed down in awe before it
Moving Sale – A friend of mine is leaving Korea and she has lots of stuff to sell…
Life in Korea – Issues for Foreign Instructors
***Act on the Treatment of Foreigners in Korea — Brian in Jeollonamdo has a translation link about this***
Lesson Topic Ideas
“I can’t think of any English lesson topics . . .” Lesson Plan Topics List For New Foreign English Teachers In Korean Public Schools
Where to find western and foreign foods in Korea (NEW!)
http://www.vegetarianinkorea.com/
Gecko’s in Itaewon, Seoul, South Korea — Trying their cheese burger …
Subway merchants, Jongno Tower, VIPS for dinner, and heading to Lotte Mart . . .
Namdaemun Market, Seoul, South Korea – How do I get to Namdaemun Market? Where can I find foreign foods and products in Seoul?
The Best Hamburger in South Korea — The Smokey Saloon in Itaewon
Coming Soon: TURKEY DINNER IN KOREA!!! WOO HOO!!!
2008 Thanksgiving in Korea with a Turkey!
Dinner at the Olive Garden–YUM!
Where can I get Indian food in South Korea? — Foreign Restaurant in Itaewon, Seoul.
Taking Julianne to VIPS in Chuncheon
Korean Foods (NEW!)
http://www.vegetarianinkorea.com/
There’s a five part series from the TV show “Bizarre Foods” where they talk about Korean food culture and give a lot of info.
Shaving in my kitchen, eating dokgalbi, and Julianne’s first time shooting a bb gun
Everyday Korean Foods — Julianne’s First Dolsot Bibimbap
Weird bacon for breakfast, a walk by the river, and dokgalbi for dinner
When the Korean winterscape gets you down reach for your favorite comfort food
Korean BBQ Galbi Video 2008 Nov 21 Dinner in Chuncheon
Lyn likes to eat steak with kimchi–That’s so WRONG on so MANY LEVELS–lol
Chicken dokgalbi in Chuncheon, South Korea–up close and personal
Seoul subway stairs, pseudo Chuncheon dakgalbi, and dodging scooters on the way home . . .
BBQ Yang Yom Galbi in Seoul, South Korea — Dinner tonight was yummy!
Teacher Training and Conferences in Korea
***Check out KOTESOL’s official website to learn more about it. You can become a member and then attend monthly sessions with presentations, and also attend the yearly international conference held at the end of October in Seoul.
2008 KOTESOL October 25, 26 COMING SOON . . . THIS WEEKEND!
2008 KOTESOL Weekend
2008 KOTESOL: Me acting like a cat . . . yikes, or should I say “Meow?”
NOTE: Before reading this post below be aware that regardless of the criticisms I make in this post I will still be attending the KOTESOL conference. It is a great place to network with other foreign teachers from hogwans, public schools, training centers/institutes, and universities . . . and get some teacher training and hear presentations about EFL/ESL methodology . . . and the list goes on.
KOTESOL Conference 2008: Amateur vs. Professional/International
2009 SMOE Workshop Day 1 – Unrealistic expectations?
TESOL course & TESOL certification with online certificate programs
CELTA, TESOL TEFL, TESL and CELTYL Certification & Certificate Courses for EFL ESL Teachers. Teach English abroad or overseas at ECC (Thailand) ASIA. Survivor Education Thailand
CELTA Courses Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults
http://www.eccthai.com/training/schedule.asp
Shopping for Clothing
“Big Size!” Clothing Shopping Trip to Itaewon
Being Sick and Hospitals and Medicine in Korean Culture
“You should go to the hospital.”
The Nurse Who Could Speak English — Visit to Seoul National University Hospital International Foreigner Clinic
Got a cold and cough like me? Try Chinese Herbal Cough MedicineChinese Herbal Cough
Medicine in South Korea vs. Buckleys–Which one do you think makes your face contort the most?
E2 Visa Health/Medical Check for Renewing a Contract — One of the things I truly dislike about living in Korea
Things you can do when you’re sick and at home on a Saturday night in Korea: Disney XXX
“You should go to the hospital” — Korean cultural norm of going to hospital for many things may backfire on it for H1N1
H1N1 will become an epidemic in Korea that will see a revolution in hygiene awareness, and Koreans staying home when they’re sick
South Korea – Swine Flu will close all schools and pretty much shut the country down for 10 days–and give foreign teachers another 10 day quarantine
Being sick and actually having a sympathetic and understanding co-teacher . . . somebody pinch me!!!
H1N1 and visiting a South Korean Hospital — Do NOT pick your nose and then hand out sterile masks!
Stories About Teaching in Korean Public Schools (NEW!)
Jason, you’re going to prep the seniors for the listening section on Suneung, and do you want to be in a promotional video for our high school? Wow…
Halloween Classroom Decorations — Looking back at 2005 and my first Halloween lesson in Korea
Shopping For Halloween Decorations at Lotte Mart, Seoul Station
Carving jack-o-lanterns with my co-teacher — Co-teaching . . . it ain’t just in the classroom.
EFL Classroom Halloween Culture Lesson Craft Activity and Display Part II
“Please pay attention.” (And stop wiggling your tongues at each other, lol)
It’s class time . . . and yep, no students (again).
Being sick and actually having a sympathetic and understanding co-teacher . . . somebody pinch me!!!
Because its Punny and I am laugh when read
Winter English Camp Konglish: “shampoo and rinse” and “wash towel”
***EFL Foreign Teacher Motivation – What do you do when you don’t feel like teaching but have to?
Expat/Foreign Instructor Blogs (NEW!)
Blogs can be a great source of information about teaching and living in Korea, but they can also be a very bad source. Be careful not to get sucked in by the ranting and raving blogs–they will poison how you see yourself and Korea.
Top South Korea Blogs
General Bloggers (NEW!)
http://www.efl.htmlplanet.com/index.html
Korea Photography Blogs
Scribblings of the Metropolitician
Photoblogs from South Korea
Korean Food and Western Food and Restaurant Bloggers
Women Expat/Foreign Instructor Blogs (You get your own special category because there aren’t many of you.)
A Fat Girl in Seoul (Korea, books, and calories)
Korean Culture and Language Study Blogs
An Introduction to Korean
University Bloggers
http://eflclassroom.ning.com/index.php
My Life! Teaching in a Korean University
Public School Bloggers
Hogwan/Training Institute Bloggers
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/
http://english.hani.co.kr/kisa/section-014000000/home01.htmlhttp://english.chosun.com/
http://south-korea.alltop.com/
Seoul Korea Movie Listing and Times
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/index.asp
EFL/ESL Academic Journals
The Internet TESL Journal
Foreign Teacher Association
Definitely worth checking out though I, and other expats, are still waiting to see what ATEK is developing into . . . check it out and decide for yourself.
Welcome to ATEK The Association for Teachers of English in Korea is a new organization of teachers on visas in Korea and their supporters.
Traveling in Korea
http://info.korail.com/2007/eng/eng_index.jsp
http://www.adventurekorea.com/main/
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/index.kto
Useful EFL/ESL Websites for Foreign Teachers in South Korea
http://puzzlemaker.discoveryeducation.com/ (great site for making ready to photocopy handouts for class, for example crosswords and word search puzzles)
http://www.mes-english.com/ (not accessible at schools anymore, have to do some work from home internet)
http://www.eslprintables.com/ (have to put up some of your own work in order to download stuff)
http://bogglesworldesl.com/ (best for elementary/beginner students)
Kimchi Icecream Blog Stories About Living in Seoul (NEW!)
63 Building, Seoul, South Korea — Walking along the Han River in Seoul . . .
Han River Ferry Boat Ride in Seoul, South Korea
South Korea Subway Station Walk Through – Walking from my school to Jonggak Station in Seoul
Mass Freeze in Seoul at COEX Mall, South Korea 2009
I almost dongchimmed an ajusshi in the subway tonight . . .
Chang Deok Gung/Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea — Part 1
Chang Deok Gung/Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea — Part 2
Choong Ahn High School, Seoul, South Korea — Fall pictures, a soccer game, and a magpie . . .
Club Freebird, Hondae, Seoul, South Korea — A band I saw the other night and nobody can tell me their name, lol.
Fall Leaves Around My Neighborhood in Seoul
Fiery Red Fall Leaves and A Monk Waiting for a Taxi in Seoul, South Korea
Soju Street Advertising in Seoul — Nothing says eat me, drink me like a neon pink costume …
Morning walk to school . . . check out the mountain in the background, wow.
2009 Seoul Lantern Festival at Cheonggye Stream, Seoul, South Korea
2009 Seoul Lantern Festival — Saturday night pictures . . .
Rubber Seoul Event and World AIDS Day, Hongdae, Seoul, South Korea – Saturday December 5th, 2009
Seoul Snow Jam 2009 — World class snowboarders and a 3 story high snow ramp in Ganghwamun Plaza?
Seoul Heaviest Snowfall Pictures, January 2010
Gwanghwamun Plaza Ice Skating in Seoul, South Korea
Hard working Koreans in Seoul, 2010
Pigeons on ChangDeok Palace’s Main Gate, Seoul
The Staring Ajusshi — I know my girlfriend is hot but will you please stop staring at her?
Things I’ve seen while walking around Seoul’s streets and in the subway . . .
Daily pictures of life in Korea #1: Choong Ang Boys High School
Kimchi Icecream 
3 comments
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March 4, 2010 at 1:28 pm
The Kimchi Icecream Guide for New EFL/ESL Foreign English Teachers/Instructors in South Korea, 2010 Edition « Expacked
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March 14, 2012 at 5:49 am
Faith
Hey Jason-
Thanks so much for putting this together– it is great and I am finding it to be an invaluable resource as a new foreign English teacher in the Korean public school system.
Faith
March 15, 2012 at 6:41 pm
kimchiicecream
You’re welcome….and good luck.