starting soon
Hello! As the title says, I (26F, Black) am starting at my first hagwon just outside of Seoul later next week. It’s been a long process to get here, but no matter how cautious I was about the interviews I did and the jobs being offered to me, I still feel like I signed on too easily to the contract I have now. No matter—what’s done is done. Thankfully, this sub and others like it have provided very valuable advice for a longtime lurker like myself on green/red flags. I also have family and friends who wouldn’t judge (and may in fact be secretly elated) if I were to decide this isn’t for me and come back home.
First ever teaching job, too. I’ve worked around children (both in a childcare and somewhat educational capacity) and thoroughly enjoy doing so, and my degree is in Psychology with a concentration in Childhood and Adolescent Development. A lot of what attracted me about my current hagwon was the philosophy they had written on the website, though I also realize that invoking the name of Piaget is different from actually applying these principles in practice.
That being said, I have done the research and preparations but I know from stories on here that 1) what you prepare for may be far from what you find once you land in Korea and 2) you won’t know much about the job until you are actually doing it. In the interview I can say that I’m great under stress, I am able to come up with plans and adjust on the fly, I communicate well with both staff and customers, blah blah blah. But I know I am walking into a new and different ballgame.
So…what is some advice you have for a first time teacher? How do you juggle organizing lessons or creating materials, etc within the prep time you are given? Anything you wish you had known going into your first—or second, or third—hagwon job? Self-care techniques you swear by to get through particularly tough days? I’m looking at three more days in my home state before shipping myself off, so literally anything at all is helpful. Have a great day!