Summary of Year 1

This post will be devoted towards looking at highlights of my first year at JLS.

When I began in May 2000, I was covering for another teacher, Leslie, who was on vacation in Canada. The Bundang school was not as big as it would become within a couple years, so my schedule was fairly light. In fact, I remember that my Tuesday schedule that first month consisted of one class, from 9:20 to 10:20 at night. Later, after Leslie returned, the school struggled to find classes for me. Consequently, I attempted a bit of a fast one with my schedule by telling Mr. Shin (the Bundang manager) that I would like to work Saturdays (for overtime pay, of course), if I could get Mondays off. Amazingly, Mr. Shin agreed to this idea, so for the next month I was working only four days a week for my regular salary, and then working Saturdays for extra cash. This sweet schedule came to an end about a month later when Baker (the native speaker supervisor) got wind of what was happening.

In June of that year, the teacher I would be replacing, Joy, went home. At this point, the native teacher staff at Bundang consisted of Leslie, James, Daniel, and myself. In the fall of 2000, Ryan would join our ranks, creating what I considered to be the first classic teacher lineup in Bundang. I say 'classic' because the five of us were the core; even though others would appear for short stretches or as short-term replacements, the five of us were the full-time group for that year.

As part of this group, it was the first time in Korea where it seemed like I was part of a real teaching crew. Leslie was a veteran; she had taught in Canada for about thirty years, and had been a principal in Toronto before opting for a career change of sorts by coming to Korea.

James told me that he was in medical school, but came to Korea to earn some money. He also had teaching credentials, if memory serves me correctly. James was definitely an interesting character -- when I talked to him at Sports Day back in May, he wasn't playing any sports; instead, he said he was waiting for someone else to get hurt, and then he would offer his medical services for a price. I could see that our sarcastic natures were going to get along just fine.

Daniel was the laid-back member of our group. Nothing could upset him. At least, that was the outward appearance he projected. He loved poetry and prose (having a master's degree in English Literature), plus he was a trivia nut. Daniel was pretty much the most likable guy I've ever met, and to this day we remain friends even though he and his wife live in Atlanta now.

Ryan came to Korea with a teaching degree in hand and a serious attitude about teaching. Nevertheless, he could be a clown just like the rest of us. Interestingly, he also trained in yoga and was a devotee of the Conversation with God books. It was this last point that was of particular interest to me, as I had also read the Conversations books. So, while Ryan and I would normally be silly, there were moments when we would have serious discussions of ideas from the books. In fact, we nearly went to see Neale Donald Walsch when he visited Seoul.

During the Chuseok holiday, Heather and I took a vacation to Beijing, China. We saw all the main sites, including the Great Wall and the Forbidden City. I've already written about this trip on my Geocities site. My video highlights can be seen on YouTube.

In December, JLS native teachers had a Christmas party. Most of the teachers from the three branches attended, and we had plenty of drink and good music. The memorable moment from that party was Ryan vomiting into the hallway radiator -- Merry Christmas!

Towards the end of my first year at JLS, we began to see some personnel changes take place. First off, Travis was hired in early February, and then shortly after James was forced to move on because his contract was not renewed. As much as I liked James personally, he had made some enemies at JLS with his blunt way of dealing with people. One of the people he offended was Baker, our supervisor. James maintained that he was stunned to not be rehired, but it came as no surprise to me. I'm thankful that I had a good relationship with him, however.

At the end of my first year, Leslie was also let go due to health issues. I felt it was a mistake to not keep Leslie around. She was, after all, a true educator with a background in curriculum development. Just a few months ago, I saw Leslie in Seoul. She has stayed in Korea all these years, which I find intriguing. I wonder why someone with her experience has opted to stay in the EFL environment without doing so at the university level.

Overall, my first year at JLS was marked by meeting good people. Certainly, nothing happened to dissuade me from signing on for a second year.

Update: In early 2002, the old gang (consisting of Leslie, James, Daniel, and myself) got together for one last time. Here are a few photos.