There was one teacher employed at Yes Youngdo who was fired and given only a week left on their visa. This meant they had to leave the country within a week or pay a fine for overstaying. I heard from other teachers that they couldn't get a flight back to the US/Canada and settled for one to Europe. They also said that this person said they wished they had been given a little more notice. In my opinion, even if a hagwon has every reason to fire a teacher, they have to be considerate. Losing your job as an English teacher in Korea means losing your apartment and your visa. In some countries, for example China, foreign teachers can hold on to their visa after leaving a job.
Losing your job, your income, your visa, having to move out of your apartment, finding a plane ticket, saying goodbye to your friends, closing your bank account, finding someone to take things like your cell phone or cooking untensils and getting to the airport is a lot in one week!
The teacher who told me this story also thought that Yes Youngdo was unfair to this dismissed teacher.
September 28, 2008
September 27, 2008
Telling the Truth
In doing this, I'm not trying to upset anybody, I'm not trying to hurt this hagwon's reputation and I'm not trying to keep teachers from working there as I said before! I am someone who thinks that all people should be treated with fairness and respect. I don't believe that schools, hagwons or corporations should mistreat their employees. I don't believe anyone should mistreat anyone else. And if they do, people have the right to talk about it.
Consider this: Micheal Moore put together the very famous movie titled Sicko. I know he did this thinking that if he exposed the practice of health insurance companies making people think they're covered and then denying coverage when it's really needed, he could change things for the better. I thought the movie was great. I'm glad he made it. I'm glad it went around the world and I think everyone should see it!
Amnesty International sends letters to leaders of governments who deny their citizens basic rights. They have gotten some people out of jail who were there without reason. When a country's leader knows that people know what's going on, it can make him/her think twice about their actions.
I think all the posts on the internet about Yes Youngdo had some effect on their practices. At one time there were so many bad posts on Dave's Esl Cafe, which I think is the most popular site for teachers in Korea, that it must have worried them. The managers, directors and owners must have paid attention. This is the same site which they have used to advertise for new teachers for a long time. And their students and families could possibly see the posts. (If you haven't already please read my blog on posts being deleted at Dave's Esl Cafe http://www.eslcafe.com/.) This probably led to better treatment for teachers! Yahoo!
***Wouldn't people act differently if they knew anything they said or did could be posted on sites that have thousands of visitors?***
During the time when so many posts were on the ESL websites, these are the posts which stuck in my memory: One teacher wrote he audiotaped a conversation between him and his manager and was going to the police. (I never saw a follow-up.) Another said that some teachers wanted to catch this same manager and basically beat the delights out of him. (Not exact words.) Still another had one teacher writing that he/she was fired 6 weeks before her contract ended for asking for a few days off to go to her grandmother's funeral. She wrote that she couldn't believe it. Bonus and flight ticket home - gone! Still another teacher wrote on the number of teachers who had been fired while stating that the firings were probably timed in a certain way which allowed Yes Youngdo to save money on flights and bonuses.
(If a teacher works for the better part of a year but doesn't receive their bonus, airfare or even their last paycheck due to something called an "11 month firing" the hagwon saves an awful lot of money!!! If the monthly salary and bonus are each 2 million and the flight is at least one million, more like 1.5-2 million, that's 5-6 million won saved!! Unfortunately many hagwons in Korea when faced with this situation chose to let their teachers go.)
Unfortunately, some of these posts which tell these stories are gone. The sites have been redone. There was one great thing one unhappy teacher did. He/she took 10-15 posts, put them together and posted them all at one site. There's no need to name this site as the posts aren't there anymore. But I wish I had copied it at that time.
Consider this: Micheal Moore put together the very famous movie titled Sicko. I know he did this thinking that if he exposed the practice of health insurance companies making people think they're covered and then denying coverage when it's really needed, he could change things for the better. I thought the movie was great. I'm glad he made it. I'm glad it went around the world and I think everyone should see it!
Amnesty International sends letters to leaders of governments who deny their citizens basic rights. They have gotten some people out of jail who were there without reason. When a country's leader knows that people know what's going on, it can make him/her think twice about their actions.
I think all the posts on the internet about Yes Youngdo had some effect on their practices. At one time there were so many bad posts on Dave's Esl Cafe, which I think is the most popular site for teachers in Korea, that it must have worried them. The managers, directors and owners must have paid attention. This is the same site which they have used to advertise for new teachers for a long time. And their students and families could possibly see the posts. (If you haven't already please read my blog on posts being deleted at Dave's Esl Cafe http://www.eslcafe.com/.) This probably led to better treatment for teachers! Yahoo!
***Wouldn't people act differently if they knew anything they said or did could be posted on sites that have thousands of visitors?***
During the time when so many posts were on the ESL websites, these are the posts which stuck in my memory: One teacher wrote he audiotaped a conversation between him and his manager and was going to the police. (I never saw a follow-up.) Another said that some teachers wanted to catch this same manager and basically beat the delights out of him. (Not exact words.) Still another had one teacher writing that he/she was fired 6 weeks before her contract ended for asking for a few days off to go to her grandmother's funeral. She wrote that she couldn't believe it. Bonus and flight ticket home - gone! Still another teacher wrote on the number of teachers who had been fired while stating that the firings were probably timed in a certain way which allowed Yes Youngdo to save money on flights and bonuses.
(If a teacher works for the better part of a year but doesn't receive their bonus, airfare or even their last paycheck due to something called an "11 month firing" the hagwon saves an awful lot of money!!! If the monthly salary and bonus are each 2 million and the flight is at least one million, more like 1.5-2 million, that's 5-6 million won saved!! Unfortunately many hagwons in Korea when faced with this situation chose to let their teachers go.)
Unfortunately, some of these posts which tell these stories are gone. The sites have been redone. There was one great thing one unhappy teacher did. He/she took 10-15 posts, put them together and posted them all at one site. There's no need to name this site as the posts aren't there anymore. But I wish I had copied it at that time.
Then and Now
I know that Yes Youngdo may be a much better place to work for than it was 2, 5 or 10 years ago. (I'm not sure how long foreign teachers have been there.) I'm also aware that there may be a huge difference between branches or depending on which manager you work for.
Some of the pics posted online are much nicer than what I remember. The classroooms seem bigger and nicer. The entrance and office I saw looked better. (Of course that teacher may have been at a different branch.) I think it's great! I don't want teachers to go through what I went through.
This is a short video of a classroom. I'm not sure when this was made. I guess it's recent. I can tell you for sure it's nicer than the classroom I had! As I wrote before it had no space, desks crammed together, no center aisle and only one picture on the wall. It was hard to do much with your classroom. I never saw any decorations we could put up, nor did the managers ever talk about this. http://kr.youtube.com/watch?v=uts7SeLECIc
Some of the pics posted online are much nicer than what I remember. The classroooms seem bigger and nicer. The entrance and office I saw looked better. (Of course that teacher may have been at a different branch.) I think it's great! I don't want teachers to go through what I went through.
This is a short video of a classroom. I'm not sure when this was made. I guess it's recent. I can tell you for sure it's nicer than the classroom I had! As I wrote before it had no space, desks crammed together, no center aisle and only one picture on the wall. It was hard to do much with your classroom. I never saw any decorations we could put up, nor did the managers ever talk about this. http://kr.youtube.com/watch?v=uts7SeLECIc
If a young, new teacher can begin a contract with Yes Youngdo now and finish successfully, receive all their pay, bonus, etc. and have a wonderful time, that's great! ABSOLUTELY! That's the way it should be! It would be great if every sincere teacher who comes to Korea can have this!
Are the Stories True?
1) One can see after reading the entire posts at the various websites that some posts are dated. I think the oldest is from 2002. You may say that was a whole six years ago. Some of the current Yes Youngdo teachers were in college or even high school then and had never heard of this hagwon. However, I have to say that it really wasn't that long ago and even if it has been a few years, or up to six years, based on what the teachers say - these things really happened!
2) One may also think that some stories are made up. Well, it's possible. I'm aware of that. Some stories may also be half-true with extra tidbits added in. Each one could be completely made up. It's possible! Is it likely though that they were all made up? What do you think?
Based on my own experiences, and hearing seemingly millions of stories like these from teachers who worked all over Korea, I would conclude that the stories may not be entirely true but there is probably a lot of truth to them.
2) One may also think that some stories are made up. Well, it's possible. I'm aware of that. Some stories may also be half-true with extra tidbits added in. Each one could be completely made up. It's possible! Is it likely though that they were all made up? What do you think?
Based on my own experiences, and hearing seemingly millions of stories like these from teachers who worked all over Korea, I would conclude that the stories may not be entirely true but there is probably a lot of truth to them.
Black Lists of Hagwons
Many teachers have talked of "black lists" of hagwons in Korea. This one is pretty well done. Yes Youngdo is included here but there are so many stories that it's hard to find. http://blacklist.tokyojon.com/
This is a list of mostly institutes in Korea. Yes Youngdo is number ten on this list. Here's the link. http://groups.msn.com/teachersclub/greylistschool.msnw
I decided to copy the list of hagwons on the first page here in case this site is updated. When I first published this post, one could click on the links below to read stories teachers wrote about working for these places. It is not working at the moment. It seems the site is being updated. I will try it again later.
The stories in these links are dated. Probably many of the hagwons mentioned have closed or changed completely. But I think anyone involved in teaching in Korea should know what has gone on.
This is a list of mostly institutes in Korea. Yes Youngdo is number ten on this list. Here's the link. http://groups.msn.com/teachersclub/greylistschool.msnw
I decided to copy the list of hagwons on the first page here in case this site is updated. When I first published this post, one could click on the links below to read stories teachers wrote about working for these places. It is not working at the moment. It seems the site is being updated. I will try it again later.
The stories in these links are dated. Probably many of the hagwons mentioned have closed or changed completely. But I think anyone involved in teaching in Korea should know what has gone on.
BCM, Seoul, Gangnam
3
teacherteacher!
2007-03-16 오전 10:56
TAX in Korea - Income tax and Pension Plan
2
2CuteNCanadian
2007-03-13 오후 3:22
LCI Kids Club in Pyeongchon, Anyang City
1
BillH041
2007-01-23 오후 3:27
LCI Kids Club in Pyeonchon, Anyang City
1
2007-01-23 오후 3:24
small?
1
h896ca5vofsr
2005-03-05 오전 6:15
Englısh Fırst Istanbul Turkey
1
Ingrıd
2004-12-02 오후 11:24
BRYS Foreign Language Institute
5
1
Local Hero
2004-05-22 오전 5:12
Avoid Kid's College
4
coralee333
2003-12-30 오후 9:19
Korea Feb 2004
1
2CuteNCanadian
2003-12-05 오전 5:16
Yes Youngdo English School
3
1
James
2003-12-04 오전 3:34
Chonan English Friend
1
2CuteNCanadian
2003-12-04 오전 3:32
HELP!!! - LCI Kids Club Mokdong
1
2CuteNCanadian
2003-12-04 오전 12:10
BLACK LIST THIS CO> NOW! "SED"
1
amore-seoul
2003-09-26 오후 2:52
SLP JAMSIL SEOUL
1
MATTH
2003-09-04 오후 10:05
Cheongju City
1
JohnKorea
2003-09-04 오전 3:38
Mr. John of ECC Namyangju
1
Lemon
2003-03-21 오후 2:17
- Private English lesson in Korea -
1
2003-01-30 오전 3:26
LCI Kids Club Mok-Dong
1
2003-01-22 오후 10:38
Tomorrow's School and Kevin Lee
1
coralee333
2003-01-21 오전 5:19
Wils School-MokDong (Full list of details)
3
James
2002-12-24 오후 1:46
any info on Ansan and Swaton Language school
2
tubaman
2002-12-08 오전 2:27
YBM Sisa ECC franchise in Jeonju.
4
James
2002-11-26 오전 8:55
Some Hagwons are now literally demanding blood!!!
2
lostseoul
2002-11-26 오전 8:51
Wils Language School in Mokdong
6
lostseoul
2002-11-26 오전 8:51
OtherBlacklists
2
James
2002-11-26 오전 8:50
English Camp Uijeongbu City
2
James
2002-11-26 오전 8:49
'Oregon Language School' in Daegu
2
James
2002-11-13 오전 11:16
ECC -Dongjak Gu
4
James
2002-11-13 오전 12:04
Stay away from Oe Dae Ilsan!!!
1
James
2002-10-27 오후 6:22
ECC Dong Jak Gu (Isu Subway)
1
BigJim
2002-10-05 오후 4:32
KIDS HERALD SCHOOL: SOKCHO KANGWONDO
3
James
2002-09-08 오후 11:11
SLP School
1
James
2002-08-27 오후 10:48
Kwaks English Country School
1
James
2002-08-25 오전 12:57
July '09: Well, if you click on two links above on stories about YY you can no longer see them. When I posted this you could but now you are taken to another page and find out you can't. Go ahead and click to see that if you want.
Former Teachers' Stories
I found this post some time back and was happy to find it again. It's one of the most important that I've seen. As I recall, I found it the first time at www.eslspectrum.com but that site has since been redone and it's not there anymore. What follows is first the former teacher's post explaining the situation, then his letter to Dave at Dave's ESL Cafe and finally Dave's response.
************************************************************************************
Hi all, I'm new to this board. I used DavesESL all the time as if it was the bible of ESL sites. Last year I worked for a hogwan called Yes Youngdo English School. I won't go into all the details of the problems at this place, but suffice to say, there were MANY. I, and other teachers, have attempted over the months to convey our frustrations on Dave's site, but to no avail. It seems that the forum is not as open there as it may seem.I did manage to get a response from Dave himself, which confirmed our suspicions. So, apart from this email being a warning about the said school, it's also a hope that this forum can overtake where Dave's has halted.Please email me if you need specific details.(Email contact with Dave Sperling below)
admin, there have been several occasions recently where I and other colleagues have attempted to write about our experiences at Yes Youngdo schools. sometimes these messages appear then disappear a couple of days later, other times they just don't show up. these messages are not libel or an attempt to destroy a reputation (if that is what they already have) but a legitimate attempt to inform other potential teachers of what they may be getting into. other schools have many messages written about them far worse than what we have attempted to convey. is there a specific reason for this? quite a few people are becoming suspicious of the school's motives, especially as they have instructed teachers not to post messages about the school on your forum. a reply would be appreciated. a non-reply will obviously raise these suspicions further.
Hi Stephen,
Yes Youngdo had sent e-mail to us requesting the threads to be removed, which we have to comply on the advice of our attorney (I know it's a hassle, but I'm the one trying to keep Dave's ESL Cafe in business). Please feel free, however, to post again, including in the Job Information Journal at:
http://www.eslcafe.com/jobinfo
All the best,
Dave Sperling
Founder
Dave's ESL Cafe
http://www.eslcafe.com/
************************************************************************************
Hi all, I'm new to this board. I used DavesESL all the time as if it was the bible of ESL sites. Last year I worked for a hogwan called Yes Youngdo English School. I won't go into all the details of the problems at this place, but suffice to say, there were MANY. I, and other teachers, have attempted over the months to convey our frustrations on Dave's site, but to no avail. It seems that the forum is not as open there as it may seem.I did manage to get a response from Dave himself, which confirmed our suspicions. So, apart from this email being a warning about the said school, it's also a hope that this forum can overtake where Dave's has halted.Please email me if you need specific details.(Email contact with Dave Sperling below)
admin, there have been several occasions recently where I and other colleagues have attempted to write about our experiences at Yes Youngdo schools. sometimes these messages appear then disappear a couple of days later, other times they just don't show up. these messages are not libel or an attempt to destroy a reputation (if that is what they already have) but a legitimate attempt to inform other potential teachers of what they may be getting into. other schools have many messages written about them far worse than what we have attempted to convey. is there a specific reason for this? quite a few people are becoming suspicious of the school's motives, especially as they have instructed teachers not to post messages about the school on your forum. a reply would be appreciated. a non-reply will obviously raise these suspicions further.
Hi Stephen,
Yes Youngdo had sent e-mail to us requesting the threads to be removed, which we have to comply on the advice of our attorney (I know it's a hassle, but I'm the one trying to keep Dave's ESL Cafe in business). Please feel free, however, to post again, including in the Job Information Journal at:
http://www.eslcafe.com/jobinfo
All the best,
Dave Sperling
Founder
Dave's ESL Cafe
http://www.eslcafe.com/
Here is the link. There are also some comments from other teachers: http://koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4319
Another quick story: It is true that Yes Youngdo has told us that we are to have monthly blood tests for drugs. We have a clause in the contract which basically says we have to comply with every new rule the school dishes out during meetings. If we choose not to comply, then it's a cost effective (for YES) fireing.Also, if we say we are out at lunch, or make excuses. Again, non compliance = no job and most probably 4 hours to vacate your apartment or ----, the General Manager with get the police to kick you out.This school really thinks it owns you.
Update Nov. 13th:: Unfortunately, at the moment http://koreanesl.com/ is being updated and these posts are no longer there. I never copied the name/email addresses of the person who wrote the above comments. I'm very sorry you can no longer read the entire posts. There was an interesting story about a couple being fired and treated unfairly. I wish I had copied it here.Nov. 14th:: I did more google searches for information about Yes Youngdo and found links to posts at http://koreanesl.com and even though it's impossible to see the full posts now, one can read abbreviated versions which I'm going to go ahead and copy here.
Two full versions of posts can be read above. Just six weeks ago I posted the links and there was no trouble finding the full posts. I deleted any Korean writing and the size of each post (i.e. 16k). To find these posts go to http://www.google.com/ and type in key words such as Yes Youngdo, Korea and the site http://www.koreanesl.com/ Doing several searches using different key words, one can find several posts. I copied the posts which seem to be telling a story of mistreatment. And I put ---- in place of two managers' names which were in the posts.
Korean ESL Forum
It is true that Yes Youngdo has told us that we are to have monthly blood tests for drugs. ... Again, non compliance = no job and most probably 4 hours to vacate your apartment or ----, the General Manager with get the police to ...www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4429 (read full post above)
Korean ESL Forum
The general manager (I think he calls himself a director these days) is American -Korean, called ----. .... Yes Youngdo may not be the worst school in Korea, but it certainly is nowhere near the best. Good luck. Back to the List ...www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4356
Korean ESL Forum
First I want to say this ---- sounds like he has no business running a hogwan, if what you say is true. .... YES YOUNGDO MANAGER'S LIES EXPOSED Steve-o (Hits:731). Re:Hmm? One question (Eng/Kor) jade (Hits:779) <-- you are here ...www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4721
Korean ESL Forum
Although Yes Youngdo English school offers an attractive holiday of 6 weeks, it is only a little comfort for all the unpaid report writing hours and camera spying you are succumbed to. The managers ---- and ---- treat the teachers ...www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4421
Korean ESL Forum -
I'll refer to the post given by the manager of Yes Youngdo, and proven liar, -----(http://www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4506). He claims in his post that I was "one of those individual that take no pride in teaching and ...www.koreanesl.com/forummod.asp?ser=4538
Korean ESL Forum -
Last year I worked for a hogwan called Yes Youngdo English School. I won't go into all the details of the problems ... #####And to ----, manager of Yes Schools - why ask your head teacher at Pyongchon to instruct teachers not to ...www.koreanesl.com/forummod.asp?ser=4514
Korean ESL Forum -
... and maybe you come from a background whereby Yes Youngdo seems wonderful. but when i, or anyone else i'm close to, ... ----. ...www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=4526
Korean ESL Forum
DON'T work for Yes Youngdo. You won't get paid. Back to the List. ... BEWARE YES YOUNGDO youngdosurprise (Hits:201) <-- you are here ...www.koreanesl.com/forumdsp.asp?ser=20189
First Story
This is an entire post which can be found here: http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=50933 I divided it into more paragraphs to make it easier to read.
Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2006 8:28 pm Post subject:
I just finished a year contract with Youngdo. I can't speak for every branch or every teacher but my experience was pretty miserable. As far as the day to day working conditions there is nothing stand out about how aweful it is but there were a number of situations that happened at my school and others in the area that were pretty agregious.
I can give you a few examples: My boyfriend and I signed a contract with them that stated we would be placed in a 1 bedroom. When we arrived we were placed in an apartment that was a single room. There were a number of other teachers all beginning at the same time as us and there apartments were the same size, however they were single individuals. I told my manager about the situation and she absolutely refused to even make a phone call or have a conversation with me about it. My boyfriend later talked to his boss and they gave us 400.00 won a month under the condition that they were going to find us another place asap. When that didn't happen and I pressed them about it and ------ told me I was not allowed to discuss the issue with any other staff or teachers. I continued to press it and finally was given an apartment of two teachers who were leaving only because I happened to know them and specifically asked for there apartment. Since it was a relatively dumpy villa and ------ wasn't in charge anymore they gave it to us.
Another example: a couple of teacher's training at my school asked me about my apartment situation. I told them the story and they repeated it to -----. This promted his phone call mentioned above. The couple was later told that the single room they were given was in fact a one-bedroom as their contract ascribed. They argued. They lost the arguement and pulled a runner after payday.
Another example: a teacher who arrived with me arrived on a passport and visa that ran out midway through the contract. He made supervisors aware of the situation on more than one occasion. The supervisors had months to resolve the situation. They never did. When his visa ran out they told him it was his fault and his responsibility and he would pay for the visa run or loose his job. He did.
Another example: a teacher's mother was in intensive care and the doctors were saying she was not going to make it. She asked to leave and according to the contract should not have to pay back her ticket because of a family death. Well they argued that because her mother wasn't dead yet she had to pay her own way home. Her mother died less than a week later and that teacher never recieved anything from the school.
As far as the working conditions, the classes are ridiculously long and there are cameras. Neither of these things really bothered me. The legnth of the classes for some levels are really not substantiated by the ciriculum. I spent a lot of time coming up with supplementary material. However, for me 6 hours is 6 hours.
I liked the cameras in many ways because if there was ever a problem I could just say "Look at the camera and show me." This luckily never happened to me but...
What bothered me is the following: the school I worked at had serious issues with students being placed in levels far beyond their ability or being allowed to continue to move up through the levels despite the fact that they were completely failing in every aspect of the class. This is true at most hagwons from what I hear but not at all at the one I work for now. The difference being that Youngdo's expectations are extremely higher than other hagwons and at least at my old school the student's performances were far far lower than the expectations of the school. The resolution to this problem was not to build a reputation for excellence by forcing out students that don't perform but rather to keep the ciriculum the same and lower the grade scale to the following: A: 100-80 B: 79-60 C: 59-30 D: 30-0 no failure Consider that about a third of all my students were below a 50% grade.
Discipline was also a serious issue. We were told at training that for cultural reasons we were not allowed to discipline students. We were only allowed to send students out to the front desk. At the front desk the students were not disciplined even a little. In fact, after once sending a student out to be disciplined I later went out to see were he was an hour later and found him running around the hallways. When I asked if they had spoken to him they said no.
I know alot of people out there are rolling their eyes saying "that's all Hagwons," that may be true but it's not true at the one I work at now and it's not true at the ones of other teachers I have spoken to so...
Also don't expect you ten vacation days to be at all consecutive. Two here, three here, one there. You may or may not be able to travel outside of Korea depending on whether or not you want to go somewhere for four days.
Bottom line Youngdo should be a last resort for anyone thinking about signing a contract. P.S. Please don't reply to me about my spelling or grammatical errors. It's not work-related it's a website.
Note: I used ----- in place of an employee's name and I deleted info written to explain who this person is. Based on this post the employee left anyway and YY has had hundreds of employees. I don't intend to ever include anyone's name on this blog or any information which would give away their identity. It doesn't seem blogger has rules on this, but it's a matter or respect.
Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2006 8:28 pm Post subject:
I just finished a year contract with Youngdo. I can't speak for every branch or every teacher but my experience was pretty miserable. As far as the day to day working conditions there is nothing stand out about how aweful it is but there were a number of situations that happened at my school and others in the area that were pretty agregious.
I can give you a few examples: My boyfriend and I signed a contract with them that stated we would be placed in a 1 bedroom. When we arrived we were placed in an apartment that was a single room. There were a number of other teachers all beginning at the same time as us and there apartments were the same size, however they were single individuals. I told my manager about the situation and she absolutely refused to even make a phone call or have a conversation with me about it. My boyfriend later talked to his boss and they gave us 400.00 won a month under the condition that they were going to find us another place asap. When that didn't happen and I pressed them about it and ------ told me I was not allowed to discuss the issue with any other staff or teachers. I continued to press it and finally was given an apartment of two teachers who were leaving only because I happened to know them and specifically asked for there apartment. Since it was a relatively dumpy villa and ------ wasn't in charge anymore they gave it to us.
Another example: a couple of teacher's training at my school asked me about my apartment situation. I told them the story and they repeated it to -----. This promted his phone call mentioned above. The couple was later told that the single room they were given was in fact a one-bedroom as their contract ascribed. They argued. They lost the arguement and pulled a runner after payday.
Another example: a teacher who arrived with me arrived on a passport and visa that ran out midway through the contract. He made supervisors aware of the situation on more than one occasion. The supervisors had months to resolve the situation. They never did. When his visa ran out they told him it was his fault and his responsibility and he would pay for the visa run or loose his job. He did.
Another example: a teacher's mother was in intensive care and the doctors were saying she was not going to make it. She asked to leave and according to the contract should not have to pay back her ticket because of a family death. Well they argued that because her mother wasn't dead yet she had to pay her own way home. Her mother died less than a week later and that teacher never recieved anything from the school.
As far as the working conditions, the classes are ridiculously long and there are cameras. Neither of these things really bothered me. The legnth of the classes for some levels are really not substantiated by the ciriculum. I spent a lot of time coming up with supplementary material. However, for me 6 hours is 6 hours.
I liked the cameras in many ways because if there was ever a problem I could just say "Look at the camera and show me." This luckily never happened to me but...
What bothered me is the following: the school I worked at had serious issues with students being placed in levels far beyond their ability or being allowed to continue to move up through the levels despite the fact that they were completely failing in every aspect of the class. This is true at most hagwons from what I hear but not at all at the one I work for now. The difference being that Youngdo's expectations are extremely higher than other hagwons and at least at my old school the student's performances were far far lower than the expectations of the school. The resolution to this problem was not to build a reputation for excellence by forcing out students that don't perform but rather to keep the ciriculum the same and lower the grade scale to the following: A: 100-80 B: 79-60 C: 59-30 D: 30-0 no failure Consider that about a third of all my students were below a 50% grade.
Discipline was also a serious issue. We were told at training that for cultural reasons we were not allowed to discipline students. We were only allowed to send students out to the front desk. At the front desk the students were not disciplined even a little. In fact, after once sending a student out to be disciplined I later went out to see were he was an hour later and found him running around the hallways. When I asked if they had spoken to him they said no.
I know alot of people out there are rolling their eyes saying "that's all Hagwons," that may be true but it's not true at the one I work at now and it's not true at the ones of other teachers I have spoken to so...
Also don't expect you ten vacation days to be at all consecutive. Two here, three here, one there. You may or may not be able to travel outside of Korea depending on whether or not you want to go somewhere for four days.
Bottom line Youngdo should be a last resort for anyone thinking about signing a contract. P.S. Please don't reply to me about my spelling or grammatical errors. It's not work-related it's a website.
Note: I used ----- in place of an employee's name and I deleted info written to explain who this person is. Based on this post the employee left anyway and YY has had hundreds of employees. I don't intend to ever include anyone's name on this blog or any information which would give away their identity. It doesn't seem blogger has rules on this, but it's a matter or respect.
September 26, 2008
Why Am I Doing This?
I'm a former teacher of Yes Youngdo English School in South Korea. I worked for language institutes before and after being employed by this one, so I think I know a lot about this business and am qualifed to write about it.
Whether you know about Yes Youngdo, have worked there, have worked at another hagwon or are interested in learning about Korea welcome. This blog is mainly for teachers who have worked for or are interested in Yes Youngdo, but I'd like for teachers who work or worked at any other hagwon/institute in Korea to read this blog as well.
I'm going to tell some stories about my own experiences, those of teachers I worked with and post stories that I've found on ESL teachers websites. The reason is I want people to be aware of bad experiences which some teachers have had. I also plan to write about what I've learned since the time I was employed by Yes Youngdo, and talk about how it's different now looking back. I've learned so much about teaching in Korea from every perspective.
If one does a simple search online they can find out a lot about this school. Many teachers have posted photos or blogs. Some post on online forums. Some teachers said great things about Yes Youngdo while others didn't. I'm fully aware that by some accounts this is a great hagwon and some teachers had good experiences there, but I think some of the stories of bad times should be told.
I want to make this blog clear and easy to read so I'm taking care choosing colors, fonts and a template which are all easy on the easy and make the blog more readable. I also plan to edit to catch typos or other mistakes, or to add more to each post.
I'm a person who thinks everyone should treat each other kindly and fairly as much as possible. I'm sorry for all the mistreatment of teachers in Korea. I'm also sorry for hagwon owners who hire unqualified teachers.
A few things before I start:
1) I'm not trying to give Yes Youngdo a bad reputation.
2) I'm not doing this to hurt, upset or anger anyone.
3) I'm aware that teachers in Korea have had problems at many schools, institutes, colleges or universities, not only at this place.
4) Because Yes Youngdo is an institute I'm going to refer to it as a hagwon, the Korean name for institute.
5) I may abbreviate Yes Youngdo to Yes or YY.
6) When writing about other teachers I'll protect their identities as much as possible.
Peace
Whether you know about Yes Youngdo, have worked there, have worked at another hagwon or are interested in learning about Korea welcome. This blog is mainly for teachers who have worked for or are interested in Yes Youngdo, but I'd like for teachers who work or worked at any other hagwon/institute in Korea to read this blog as well.
I'm going to tell some stories about my own experiences, those of teachers I worked with and post stories that I've found on ESL teachers websites. The reason is I want people to be aware of bad experiences which some teachers have had. I also plan to write about what I've learned since the time I was employed by Yes Youngdo, and talk about how it's different now looking back. I've learned so much about teaching in Korea from every perspective.
If one does a simple search online they can find out a lot about this school. Many teachers have posted photos or blogs. Some post on online forums. Some teachers said great things about Yes Youngdo while others didn't. I'm fully aware that by some accounts this is a great hagwon and some teachers had good experiences there, but I think some of the stories of bad times should be told.
I want to make this blog clear and easy to read so I'm taking care choosing colors, fonts and a template which are all easy on the easy and make the blog more readable. I also plan to edit to catch typos or other mistakes, or to add more to each post.
I'm a person who thinks everyone should treat each other kindly and fairly as much as possible. I'm sorry for all the mistreatment of teachers in Korea. I'm also sorry for hagwon owners who hire unqualified teachers.
A few things before I start:
1) I'm not trying to give Yes Youngdo a bad reputation.
2) I'm not doing this to hurt, upset or anger anyone.
3) I'm aware that teachers in Korea have had problems at many schools, institutes, colleges or universities, not only at this place.
4) Because Yes Youngdo is an institute I'm going to refer to it as a hagwon, the Korean name for institute.
5) I may abbreviate Yes Youngdo to Yes or YY.
6) When writing about other teachers I'll protect their identities as much as possible.
I plan to write about these things: working conditions, classroom, class size, students, management, other teachers, office and teacher's room, textbooks and storybooks, homework and quizzes, perks, vacation, working hours, owners, office staff. I plan to compare everything at Yes Youngdo with other institutes I've worked for or heard about.
Please understand doing this is so important to me that I'm willing to use my free time to work on this blog. I'm not doing it on a whim - it's serious.
I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions.
Peace
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