culture shock korea.sort of-

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Culture Shock Korea, Sort of …by Carol A. Boe

IntroductionCultural LearningCultural DifficultiesClassroom ExperienceA Few Awesome ExperiencesWhy I Didn’t Learn More Korean-excusesStaying in Touch with Your Culture

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Culture Shock Korea, Sort of …

Introduction 1995-1999

Hagwon- First six months Sejong & Kyungnam Universities – Different

majors 2003-2006

Namseoul University – English Department

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Cultural Learning My first time in Asia- Everyday was a new adventure Sticking out like a sore thumb: Pros & Cons

Always make friends with adult students! Best way to go into the culture

More invitations than you know what to do with Navigate Korean culture and society Where special experiences come from

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You start to feel comfortable in new culture—even if you only know a little of the language.

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Cultural Difficulties Not speaking or reading Korean—my fault

Feel illiterate especially with different alphabet Frustrated and overwhelmed

You can’t read signs Always asking for help & speaking English slowly with

hand gestures I learned to speak & read a little Korean –my excuses later

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Cultural Difficulties, continued No street names or street signs in Korea Many buildings numbered by when they were

built, not locations Makes teaching English locations interesting

Navigate by landmarks And bits of English

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Classroom Experience

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Classroom Experience, continued “Crazy” American English teacher New ways to shake students up to speak

English Cultural dilemma: English nicknames or

Korean names in class Tried both ways

Often mixed levels- Teach by majors Namsoul Univ. English Department

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A Few Awesome Experiences Foreign English teachers as neutral confidents

You want to be kind and have good rapport Seoul Women’s University- English composition

A very personal experience A Namsoul University tragedy

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My Excuses for Not Learning More Korean Don’t speak students’ first language in class

An American in Japan – KOTESOL Me and Richard at Kyungnam University

I’ve been teaching English all day Koreans want to practice their English I’m not a good language learner; Korean is just hard I did learn about Korean to help me teach English.

Korean grammar Hangul characters and English pronunciation

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Staying in Touch with Your Culture Find other ex-patriots, groups, clubs

An international church in Seoul Get involved with national and regional chapters of

TESOL International (E.g., KOTESOL) Go to meetings and conferences, even if you have to travel Meet other English teachers Learn new teaching techniques Job opportunities- much easier to find new jobs in-country

Helps you adjust, feel comfortable in new culture.

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Thank You!

culture shock korea.sort of-

Presentations & Public Speaking