More Korean teachers going to the US for further training.

Went to the US, I mean, but I wanted to make this title similar to the last one. On February 5th I commented on two articles from US newspapers about Korean English teachers visiting American schools as part of their intensive training programs aimed at improving their spoken English and awareness of different methods of teaching the language. The winter vacation that ended on March 2nd has yielded several more articles that are worth a look as we collect information and perspectives on Korean English teacher training, or at least where they go and what they do.

Forty teachers from Incheon spent seven weeks in Wyoming:

When the teachers return to Incheon, they will use their improved skills to teach English in Korean classrooms. Southside kindergarten teacher Holly Howell described her experience with the teachers as “fun and enjoyable.”

“I’ve enjoyed Saewon. She’s another helping hand in the classroom, and she’s very inquisitive. She’s gaining confidence in herself with English and working in a small group of kids.”

Julie Riding, second-grade teacher in Burlington, said a cultural exchange takes place every day sometimes through formal presentations, but often just through daily contact among the Korean teachers, their American counterparts and the students.

“We’ve had such a great time with them,” Riding said. “We’ve had them in our classroom, not only teaching about their culture, but they also teach lessons. They study and work so hard. ... They try to teach like you would do.

“I think the thing that I like the most is, it helps our students understand another culture. It’s amazing to me how attached the students get to those Korean teachers. They’re just very kind and very accepting.”

Riding said watching the teachers work on understanding and speaking English has given her a new perspective about how to teach English to students who speak other languages.

. . .

Student Shelby Gatlin said she liked learning about schools in Korea.

“I liked the part about class periods, classrooms and subjects,” she said. Learning how to write her name in Korean “was pretty cool,” too.

A pair of teachers visited Texas:

After two weeks of experiencing life in West Texas, “Astro Boy” and “Shelley” soon will be heading home.

The two Koreans were participants in the Fulbright teacher exchange program that brings Korean teachers to the United States to see how teachers here teach English. The Koreans used pseudonyms while in the states to make life easier on their host families and the people with whom they interact. Jinsung Kim chose the name Atom, which is the Japanese and Korean name for the cartoon character Astro Boy. Kim thought it was appropriate since he bears some resemblance to the animated youngster. Eun Mi Lee used the name Shelley while in the states.

Okay then. There are several reasons why I'm not big on Koreans using English names, and the tendency to use ridiculous ones is a big one. "Astro Boy" shared some differences he noticed between Korean and Texan schools:

The first major difference that struck him as odd is that students here change classes while students at his high school remain in a classroom setting and the teachers move from room to room.

He also said the amount of time spent at school is far less in the U.S. than in Korea. The high school where he teaches in Cheongju City serves three grades, equivalent to sophomores, juniors and seniors. The sophomores and juniors begin school around 8 a.m. and stay until 10 p.m. The seniors are in school from 8 a.m. until 11 p.m. The students then spend more time studying outside of the classroom.

Nine students from Gongju National University of Education (공주교육대학교) visited southern Utah and did a "learning walk" over four weeks:

Principal Susan Harrah said this has been the best experience for the school, students and teachers.
"The kids love these guys," she said. "They're like celebrities and they will be missed."
Kwang-Soo Heo, 21, said the reason they wanted to come was so they could learn what the U.S. school system was like and expand their views on teaching.
One of things they liked was being able to use English to teach the subjects.
"We will teach all subjects in English (in Korean elementary schools)," said Jiyeon Lee, 21. "English is taught in the third grade and is once a week."
The biggest difference the interns found in the U.S. school system opposed to the Korean school system is it is more relaxed.
"When they're reading, they can just lay down on the floor and read," Lee said.
They all liked the relaxed feel and cooperative learning style.
"It would've been very hard to get this kind of opportunity in Korea," Jin, 30, said.

The same paper has mention of another group who visited another elementary school in a different southern Utah school district:

We had the wonderful opportunity of having 10 Korean education students from Seoul National University of Education with us over the past two weeks. They were part of a program with SUU which allowed them a chance to intern in our school. The Korean pre-service had the chance to work with every grade and a variety of different teachers. It was a wonderful experience for our teachers and students to learn about Korean culture and about their educational system. We are grateful for the opportunity of having them in our school.

A group of teachers visited San Jose State University:

The teachers came from Korea to SJSU and pay private tuition to enhance their own English skills in private classes at the Studies in American Language department, located on South Second street, said Deborah Estreicher, families for literacy coordinator librarian.

Studies in American Language department is a part of the International and Extended Studies Program, Tomasello said.

"These teachers have gotten a degree in English, but the Korean government really wants them to improve their English and fluency," she said.

Spotlight in Korea began last December because teachers wanted to learn about the American education system and work with American children, Yu said.

"It will definetly be good for international students," said Kunar Vikramsingh, a masters in electrical engineering student.

The event is full of programs that educate children on the culture and geography of Korea, stated on the Spotlight Korea flier.

They taught their students about the Lunar New Year and the proper way to bow, and those who bowed properly received, as per the holiday tradition, an envelope full of Korean money.

Some teachers went to Arizona State University, and after completing their program left a little something behind:

Forty-two high school and junior high teachers from Korea, who were studying at the American English and Culture Program, concluded their monthlong stay at ASU with a volunteer project of beautifying the flower beds outside ASU Gammage.

The Korean teachers paid for the flowers, and ASU groundskeepers Paul Hahn, Scott Bair, Jarin Castro and Calvin Lee worked with them to plant more than 200 flowers – lobelia, petunias, geraniums, and yellow and orange calendulas.

“We had a blast with them,” said Deborah Thirkhill, Arboretum volunteer coordinator. “We didn’t have the funding to this, so it was a win-win.”

A pair of high school teachers visited the University of Houston-Victoria in Texas:

During their stay from Feb. 3 through Tuesday, the two teachers are visiting local schools to learn about the U.S. educational system and giving presentations to students about their lives in two very different settings in Korea.

Eunah Kim is from Busan, a city of three million. Yeongsil Ko comes from the small island of Jeju, referred to in tourist information as the "Hawaii of South Korea."

Teaching English is difficult in Korea because students learn mostly reading and grammar and have few opportunities to speak it.

The trip is a way to face Ko's fears and put her English skills to the test. Her previous travels to America proved challenging.

In addition, many of Kim's students ask if she has ever gone to the United States and what it is like. Now she can say "yes" and answer the second question with authority.

The teachers are part of a larger group of about 30 brought to Texas through a cooperative program between the Korean American Educational Commission, a Fulbright organization; and the Texas International Education Consortium, a group that includes UHV and 31 other state universities that cooperate to encourage international programs.

Eighteen teachers from Chinju National University of Education (진주교육대학교) visited the University of Findlay in Ohio.

While in Findlay, the students are participating in an English language enrichment program, and they observe elementary classes in three schools within Findlay’s school district. Chinju has arranged nine categories for specific observation in the American elementary classroom, including the interaction between teachers and students, attitudes elementary teachers should display, how to create a positive classroom environment and even how desks are arranged.

Kim said her students are amazed by the way the classrooms they have observed are freer than those in South Korea, yet they are still controlled.

“I think a lesson our visiting students are learning is that children are children everywhere,” said [coordinator of international education at UF Chris] Sippel. “All children have the same sense of curiosity and wonder that is endearing and really universal.”

The February 5th post and the comments beneath it provide some more opinion on these teacher training programs, so give that a read because I don't feel like sticking too much commentary here.