Choosing A Hag-won To Teach English In South Korea

South Korea will welcome a foreigner who wants to be able to teach in this country. However, North Korea practices strict regulations as to who is allowed to enter the country. Foreigners into South Korea will find it to be an exotic country offering numerous places to see and visit. This could be Seoul, the vibrantly energetic capital or Gyeongju, an ancient city that radiates a gentle pace.

South Korea is attracting first language English teachers because of English being in such high demand here. South Korea has become a very popular teaching destination because of the free airfare and housing it offers. A person teaching here will not only be able to save money but they will be able to experience and enjoy a totally different culture and way of life as well.

You can decide if you want to teach in a public school or if you want to teach in a private school. A private school in South Korea is known as a hag-won. The rough translation of this means 'private cram school'. A hag-won is privately owned and is for students or even their parents wanting to get some extra tuition with certain subjects. These academies are attended after the student has finished their normal school day. Most cram schools will operate in the afternoon and evening. There are about 16,000 hag-won operating in South Korea.

If you choose to work in a hag-won you will be in the company of other native English teachers as well as Korean staff. Classes will be divided according to the level and age group, and a foreign teacher such as you will help in improving a student's pronunciation and conversational skills.

You will find that there are three different kinds of hag-won in South Korea. These are the kindergarten and elementary private schools for the 4 to 12 year old students; the elementary, middle school and teen schools for the 7 to 18 year old students, there are also adult hag-won.

You will normally teach a maximum of thirty classes every week. This breaks down to six classes every day. Classes will vary from about thirty minutes to one hour depending on the age of the student. The younger children will normally have a shorter class. A private school class will usually have a maximum of about twelve students in a class. Sometimes you might only have one student to teach.

Most schools will have their own full curriculum. This will help in making the transition to teach English in South Korea go smoothly. Text books are supplied in each classroom as well as supplementary materials, games, quizzes and CDs. Internet is normally available as well. You will be allowed ample freedom to teach in your own way as to how you think something will work the best for your students.

The starting dates for private schools will be ongoing all through the year. You will have the opportunity to go through the school's curriculum together with the other teachers. You will be able to see what happens in the classrooms as well as find out about Korean culture.

If you want to teach English in South Korea your main requirements will be a Bachelor's degree within any field and to be a national from the UK, Canada, the USA, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia or Ireland.