Teaching can be a daunting task if you’ve never done it before. Don’t fret though because you’ll be in the same situation as thousands of new teachers before you.

As a teacher, you’ll always be supported by a Korean co-worker, who will either be in your classroom or in one close by.

Your work day in a Korean Hagwon (private, afterschool institute) or public school will run around 6 hours a day, 30 hours total, Monday through Friday. Hagwons usually supply you with a Korean helper to ensure proper behavior from the children.

The age range of children in a Hagwon is usually from 4 to 18 and you will need to adjust your teaching tactics for each age group. For example, with age 4 to 8 you will need to use exaggerated body movements to get your commands across—they may not understand what you’re saying at times, but your motions will help tremendously.

Speaking slowly and emphasizing your words is essential but don’t forget to use emotion in your tone (you don’t want to sound like a robot). The younger children will repeat whatever you say and vocabulary flash cards are a huge asset. Developing your own teaching style is imperative to building your comfort and confidence levels.

Teaching environements differ greatly from school to school, many Korean teachers are strict and may not like the games you introduce but you must stick with what works. Once the the staff sees the positive result from what they might consider ‘play time’ they will respect your methods.

Many teachers find that games not only encourage quick learning but also liven up the classroom. Be warned though, if the children get too excited, the rest of the lesson could be a challenge. Make sure you have control over your classroom before you introduce any potentially chaotic games. The satsifaction of knowing your students learned a great deal and had fun doing it, is a reward in and of itself.

Make sure you arm yourself with plenty of small rewards for the children. Aside from the children wanting to please you, an added bonus for good behavior certainly doesn’t hurt.

Patience is the key to having success in the classroom. Routine will become a thing of the past almost immediately as you will have to change your teaching tactics quickly, often in the middle of a lesson if things aren’t going as planned.

Remember that your students are interested in anything you say and they deserve your attention. A dear friend once gave me some very blunt advice when she said, “Kids don’t know.” As a teacher you are guiding and shaping young minds, all the children want from you is a smile.

What you can expect in return

Teaching in Korea has amazing benefits for foreign teachers.  Below is a list of things that your school will pay for and other information we thought you’d like to know.

Between 2 and 2.3 million won monthly salary as 1st year teachers. This is the equivalent of about £1,100

Half of your healthcare and dental.

Housing is paid for but not utilities. Electric and gas are very cheap.  

Airfare is paid in full unless you leave the position before you’ve worked for 6 months.

The tax rate is very low at only 3%

At least 10 paid vacation days and 13 paid national holidays