I’m actually not positive about the age issue in English teaching here. We have quite a few English teacher friends and although they’re almost all in their 20′s and 30′s, we have also met a couple English teachers in their 40′s. They are definitely more rare here, though, so I would assume the kids aren’t used to seeing them as foreign teachers.

That being said, however, there are many local Korean teachers in their 50′s that I have seen on field trips, etc. They are used to seeing those teachers, so I can only imagine that they would have the same respect for a 50+ year old foreign teacher as well.

I would assume that schools would be eager to have a more experienced teacher, since Korea has had many problems recently regarding young foreign teachers being unexperienced and unreliable. It has actually become a huge issue here.

My only advice would be to remember that you are their teacher, and kids will be bratty to all teachers, regardless of their age.

-Sharon

Carmen: There is very blatant racial discrimination here when it comes to hiring for teaching jobs. Some teachers are very open about wanting “pretty blonde hair, blue eyed Canadian girls” or “blonde, attractive men” and they sometimes also discriminate against Korean-Americans who don’t speak Korean (especially for teaching jobs because they want someone “foreign looking”). In the end, you’re pretty much guaranteed a job teaching if you are attractive and white from Canada or the US.

Rafael: My parents are visiting us in about a month or so and they are planning on taking us to Daegu, where they were both born. I am excited to see their hometowns! They have a little bit of family here, and it’ll be the first time that I’ve met them. It’s pretty intimidating when I won’t understand what they’re saying when they talk about us.

Take care and be careful. Did people warned you about the water..” don’t drink the water “..lie the do when you go to Mexico..just wondering.

Adios amgos,

Rafael M.