Things I am not going to miss in Korea.

As far as teaching goes, there are some things I'm going to be glad to leave behind forever.

1. Having a multipurpose room.

I guess if I didn't teach music this wouldn't be so bad, but since I have stuff set up all the time like instruments and charts, having to tear it all down just to satisfy some teacher who wants the room to look like a blank space for some pointless assembly. As if the students are going to suddenly forget this is a music room if they don't see the instrument cart out.

2. Bus duty.

I really hate this, especially since I'm the only one who has to do it. At most schools I've been to, they post two people outside in the morning as the busses come in. At least then I'd have someone to talk to whenever I'm waiting for the inevitable bus that's running late.

3. Lack of discipline.

I only hear this from other teachers who have taught in the US before and now teach in Korea, but they all say that discipline problems as we know them in this country simply don't exist in Korea. You don't have kids who will blatantly disregard your instructions or disrupt the class with their asinine behavior. I love my kids at this school, but the culture they're raised in simply doesn't teach any kind of respect for figures in authority, parents included.

....more to come as I think of them....