RANTING/VENTING MEGATHREAD 3.0

@CO2 Gyeonggi messenger does suck. I  miss Cool Messenger.

Rant: Golden Bell. They keep making me dumb down the questions so now all the students are being spoon fed the answers. Heaven forbid the students actually have to think about anything. At this rate the entire class is going to win.

On this point, where did the idea of Golden Bell even come from? I asked why they call it Golden Bell and they just sort of looked at me like, "What? You don't know?"

I hate that shit.

  "You've never heard of Lemon Tree???"

No, I'm not hip with German rock bands from the mid 90s. The song hit #26 on the UK singles chart in 1996. THIS IS NOT A FAMOUS SONG. It hit the "U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles" at 13. What is the "U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles" you ask?

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top singles that have not yet charted on the main Billboard Hot 100.

There you have it.

  You've never heard Nautical Disaster by The Tragically Hip?????????? It charted at 26 on the Canadian Singles Chart in 1996!

  WOT

 

Gyeonggi Messenger won't allow me to send files over 20MB large (or a collection of files totalling that amount).

  Why are you giving me this USB?

  The files for tomorrow are on there, I can't send files larger than 20MB, remember. Gyeonggi Messenger is stupid (and IT IS. It's an internal messenging system, it only uses the bandwidth WITHIN THE SCHOOL. Korea has no bandwidth caps anyway! Just let me send whatever the f I want!)

  Don't say like that.


Why? Is your brother personally responsible for the development of this program? Do you love it? Probably not. So why take offense at this? It doesn't mean our school sucks, it doesn't mean Gyeonggi sucks. The program has a stupid............. feature? It's not even a feature. I HATE poorly designed things, especially when there's no real discernible reason.

OI VEY

Oh man that is supper shittacular. Our msging system is the same here if you are using just a plain msg. But there is also an option to P2P share large files if the person on the other side accepts it. Which is great when sending PPT files almost daily.

No, I'm not hip with German rock bands from the mid 90s.

You're missing out, mate!

KMFDM, Oomph, Megaherz, Kraftwerk, Enigma, Scooter, L'ame Immortelle, Rammstein... all gold!

Gyeonggi Messenger won't allow me to send files over 20MB large (or a collection of files totalling that amount).

I just install google drive on every computer I ever use. Never have to worry about file sizes again. 

Oh man that is supper shittacular. Our msging system is the same here if you are using just a plain msg. But there is also an option to P2P share large files if the person on the other side accepts it. Which is great when sending PPT files almost daily.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. NO ONE TELLS ME SHIT.

Talked to the boss about next year (whether I was staying or not). Asked for a raise. Boss came back and asked if there was any wiggle room in the amount? If the raise can't be given, what will I do? Leave? Yup. Because I was promised a raise two years in a row and then didn't get one. That amount is the culmination of what I should have been already getting. Honestly, I'm on the fence about staying anyway, but I wanted to give them the chance to do the right thing. At least I had "the conversation", now I can ask for references, that's always a huge pain.

Decided to leave (my job). Asked my boss if she would be comfortable signing a reference letter. Said yes, but wanted to change some sentences (I wrote it) and I said okay. She comes in to tell me what she wants to change and it's the sentence at the end that is basically recommending me to a job. "I'm not comfortable with that line because I have only known you for a year (my bosses changed this year)." Okaaaayyy...I am good enough for renewal but not good enough for her to say "I think travelinpantsgirl would be an asset to your institution". 
So tired after dealing with this. She kept saying why can't you use proof of employment? LOL I told I need both. Me thinks she doesn't understand the purpose of a recmmendation letter. Oh Korea.

she's probably just being petty because you chose not to re-sign for another year

she's probably just being petty because you chose not to re-sign for another year

I figured it was more to trap me here, at least in their mind. I haven't told them I changed my mind yet, because I haven't seen her yet.

She kept saying why can't you use proof of employment? LOL I told I need both. Me thinks she doesn't understand the purpose of a recmmendation letter. Oh Korea.

the whole idea of a recommendation letter is completely foreign to most koreans. they are just not a thing here. the reason is because of the defamation laws.

koreans don't use reference letters for employment. they exclusively use proof of employment.

another tick to put in the column of 'things foreigners have to do but koreans don't'.

Can someone please explain to me why the English exam is entirely in Korean? Questions and directions are in Korean. Answers are either Korean or English transliterated into Hangul. How does this test their English in any way?

Can someone please explain to me why the English exam is entirely in Korean? Questions and directions are in Korean. Answers are either Korean or English transliterated into Hangul. How does this test their English in any way?

Cuz the stupid test is listening. And if it's not, there must be a reading passage in English where everything else is in Korean.

Can someone please explain to me why the English exam is entirely in Korean? Questions and directions are in Korean. Answers are either Korean or English transliterated into Hangul. How does this test their English in any way?

What grade are you teaching?

What grade are you teaching?

Elementary. So I can understand directions being given in Korean, but not really the questions and answers because this is stuff they should have learned during the year.

Cuz the stupid test is listening. And if it's not, there must be a reading passage in English where everything else is in Korean.

Pretty sure it's a listening test. I have yet to see or hear mention of a reading passage.

But what grade are you teaching?

3rd through 6th. And all the exams I've seen for all four grades are the same way.

The 6th grade exam has a small section (like 3 questions, from what I've seen) of "give the next sentence in the dialogue" that has English answers. But that's the most English I've seen.

But what grade are you teaching?

3rd through 6th. And all the exams I've seen for all four grades are the same way.

The 6th grade exam has a small section (like 3 questions, from what I've seen) of "give the next sentence in the dialogue" that has English answers. But that's the most English I've seen.

Third grade tests don't feature much English text because reading and writing are not a primary part of that curriculum. In fourth grade, writing single words is introduced to reading and writing tests, while listening and speaking tests use pictures (mostly).

Fifth grade tests usually feature some limited phrase writing sections, and may also mix different types of tests into one test with sections, such as having listening, reading, and writing in one test.

In sixth grade, limited sentence writing may be required, and most tests are no longer segregated into types, and instead feature all three types of test: listening, reading, and writing. Speaking tests are usually still separated, and usually very laxly tested.

The reason you're not seeing much English text on the tests is because they're usually made to rigorously follow the curriculum, and not include any vocabulary or skills which are not directly taught to that grade. Since the words that would be used for giving instructions aren't usually words that are included in the national curriculum, they aren't included on tests.

That said, I don't necessarily agree with how it's done, but there is a reason why tests are the way they are - it's not just arbitrary goofiness.

Okay. I guess that sort of makes sense. It just surprised me because even my 3rd graders have dedicated reading and writing sections in their textbooks, and my co made a huge deal out of them learning to read by the end of the first semester. They're all literate in English, so I was expecting them to actually use written English on their exams.

That, and all I can see is having to go back next year and get them to un-learn the mispronunciations they get from trying to transliterate between Hangul and English.

But what grade are you teaching?

3rd through 6th. And all the exams I've seen for all four grades are the same way.

The 6th grade exam has a small section (like 3 questions, from what I've seen) of "give the next sentence in the dialogue" that has English answers. But that's the most English I've seen.

Third grade tests don't feature much English text because reading and writing are not a primary part of that curriculum. In fourth grade, writing single words is introduced to reading and writing tests, while listening and speaking tests use pictures (mostly).

Fifth grade tests usually feature some limited phrase writing sections, and may also mix different types of tests into one test with sections, such as having listening, reading, and writing in one test.

In sixth grade, limited sentence writing may be required, and most tests are no longer segregated into types, and instead feature all three types of test: listening, reading, and writing. Speaking tests are usually still separated, and usually very laxly tested.

The reason you're not seeing much English text on the tests is because they're usually made to rigorously follow the curriculum, and not include any vocabulary or skills which are not directly taught to that grade. Since the words that would be used for giving instructions aren't usually words that are included in the national curriculum, they aren't included on tests.

That said, I don't necessarily agree with how it's done, but there is a reason why tests are the way they are - it's not just arbitrary goofiness.

Okay. I guess that sort of makes sense. It just surprised me because even my 3rd graders have dedicated reading and writing sections in their textbooks, and my co made a huge deal out of them learning to read by the end of the first semester. They're all literate in English, so I was expecting them to actually use written English on their exams.

That, and all I can see is having to go back next year and get them to un-learn the mispronunciations they get from trying to transliterate between Hangul and English.

Then in high school it goes back to almost completely Korean.

Okay. I guess that sort of makes sense. It just surprised me because even my 3rd graders have dedicated reading and writing sections in their textbooks, and my co made a huge deal out of them learning to read by the end of the first semester. They're all literate in English, so I was expecting them to actually use written English on their exams.

That, and all I can see is having to go back next year and get them to un-learn the mispronunciations they get from trying to transliterate between Hangul and English.

You have a good coteacher, then. Most of the tests or 수행평가 are from the textbook publishers. I've never encountered any which included transliterated English in Hangul, or vice versa. It might exist, but that's not something I've encountered on tests anywhere I've worked.

Despite having a reading and writing section in the textbook, the curriculum explicitly states that the focus for third grade is supposed to be introduction and basic speaking and listening, and the writing is included as a secondary focus. This is not in any way a good idea, so your coteacher teaching them to read is fantastic.

But, what's included on tests needs to follow some very narrow guidelines, or there's the potential for parents or students to complain about fairness, which nobody wants.

The transliteration is more for the open-ended answers. Like they can write "그린" instead of "green".

I was never shown the curriculum, so that's also nice to know about that. I was just handed the textbook and told to get on with it. But they definitely need to learn to read early on, and my co is really good at teaching reading.

Curse my stupid romantic heart. 

Well, guess I've learned yet another lesson.

Curse my stupid romantic heart. 

Well, guess I've learned yet another lesson.

Sorry to hear that, keep your chin up!

Dating here is really hard.  Not sure what went sour for you but in my experience, cultural difference along with the language barrier is insurmountable.

Each year I forget how cold it gets at school and as soon as late November rolls around, I feel crushed by it.

I get that mold is an issue with many buildings here but my question is this:  will mold really grow in the corridors of a HUGE school if the windows are closed?  There's no heating in the corridors so I don't see why we can't at least close all the windows and the front doors.  Mold isn't going to grow in cavernous hallways with no heating is it? 

Each year I forget how cold it gets at school and as soon as late November rolls around, I feel crushed by it.

I get that mold is an issue with many buildings here but my question is this:  will mold really grow in the corridors of a HUGE school if the windows are closed?  There's no heating in the corridors so I don't see why we can't at least close all the windows and the front doors.  Mold isn't going to grow in cavernous hallways with no heating is it?

^^ this. This is why, even though I have a desk in the international office (something I thought I always wanted to have back when I was the elementary waygook and was feeling a tad lonely stuck in a classroom by myself [I got over it lol]) I sit in my classroom alone instead. The gym teachers are sitting with the heat on and all the windows flung open. And even though I have the heat on high in my classroom it's still drafty as heck in here, so I am sitting here with my oversized down coat on lol.