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.

Jeong-Sang Language School

At the beginning of May 2000, I was back in Korea ready to start my latest incarnation as an English teacher. The school was Jeong-sang Language School -- JLS.

The first week introduced me to life at JLS, and I sensed this school was different right away. First of all, my first two days (May 3-4) were spent meeting the man who hired me, Baker Huh, and observing other teachers. This was different from my other schools where they simply put me in a class on the first day to sink or swim. Apparently, JLS cared how their teachers did just a bit more than these other schools. The first teacher I observed was my friend Sara. She looked very comfortable with the little kids, and seemed to have the class under full control. It made me think that teaching children wouldn't be a big problem at JLS.

The following day, I observed two classes at the Bundang school where I would be working. The teachers were Gord and Daniel. I found Daniel's class interesting, as Daniel seemed like an incredibly mellow guy who could not be affected by whatever the kids did. I admired his attitude, but I knew I would never be like him in a class of kids.

Later that day, I met with the teacher (Joy) whom I would eventually be replacing. She gave a lesson on classroom discipline that seemed helpful at the time. However, I've long since forgotten what she had to say, and in any event I have developed my own approach to discipline. Let's just say my approach is more to the point and less 'warm and fuzzy' than was Joy's.

On May 5th, Children's Day, I attended my first official JLS function -- Sports Day. Held on the grounds of East Seoul University, all the teachers and staff of the four JLS schools attended this day-long event of sports, a magic show, and gift giving by the president of the school, Mr. Huh. I remember being stunned by the display of generosity, as seemingly hundreds of presents ranging from small to expensive were dispensed. It was on this day, only my third as an official member of the JLS family, that I remarked to other teachers that working for JLS felt like working for The Firm (as in the Tom Cruise movie of the same name). Incidentally, seven years later, I still believe the comparison to The Firm holds true -- for both good and bad reasons.

The following Monday, I finally entered the classroom for the first time as the teacher. And in an ominous sign of things to come, I was greeted by a class of grade six students who glared at me with evil intent. After about ten minutes of earnestly trying to apply the classroom discipline techniques taught me by Joy, I had had enough of the kids' attitude. Out came my first "honest" response: "You don't have to be jerks!"

Yep, it didn't take long to see how things were going to be in the classroom. But working for JLS would be much more than just what was happening in the classroom. It was going to be about opportunities to develop curriculum, and it would be about meeting some of my closest friends. And, finally, it would be about making gobs of money. For sure, the devil had his hooks in me.