[Guest Post] Why Teach English in South Korea?

Published on 2013/11/02

This was a contribution by How2become

Why does anyone ever become a teacher? Is it because they love helping people learn new things? Is it because they love the learning process and want to share that passion for learning with young, impressionable minds? Maybe it is because they love children and want to teach as many as they can morals along with the book learning. It might be one of those reasons or a combination of more than one and it might even be for a completely different reason but nonetheless there are always people looking to teach in one way or another.

So now the question at hand is why English? More specifically, why English in South Korea?

Learning a New Culture

In striving to bring the joy of learning the English language to people who only speak Korean, the teacher will be living in South Korea. That means that a whole new culture is opened up to them that the average tourist does not see. The teacher will learn what shops are frequented as well as enjoying the rites and traditions on Korean holidays. In short, all of the little things that are mundane to a South Korean will be new and interesting to a foreign born teacher and this often an incentive in itself to get people on the plane for a career teaching English in South Korea.

Money

Many of the teachers that decide to ply their trade in South Korea do so for the fiduciary value. In South Korea the cost of living is low and many foreign born instructors are given living quarters as well as a salary and benefits. This is a great way to earn money as well as experience a new culture and pad a nest egg all at the same time.

American and British are Novel

In South Korea there are not too many British or American tourists. Being British or American over there, a person may be submitted to many questions regarding their place of origins and reasons for being there. This is not in an effort to be rude or prying, it is just genuine curiosity. Also, the English accent is one that is prized above all other accents in South Korea so an English person may be bombarded with requests for private English lessons. Also, because of the high value placed on the English accent an English person can command a higher rate of pay when compared to other accents from the Western world.

South Korean Lifestyle

To paraphrase a quote: "When in Korea do as the Koreans do". While in South Korea one will find that they are a very studious people. During the days all is sedate as people are either working or in school. At night and on the weekends, however, there is a great deal of nightlife to be explored. Karaoke is an activity that is taken very seriously over there. There are karaoke bars almost everywhere people go and Westerners appearing in them are greatly encouraged to get up and do their thing.

There are lots of shops to be explored and many beautiful Buddhist temples to be visited. There are beautiful beaches as well as gorgeous mountain areas. When a Brit oran American is teaching English while living in South Korea it is almost as if a whole new world has been opened up to them.

Richard McMunn is a writer for How2become.com; a leading career and recruitment specialist for public sector careers. For the last 8 years How2become has helped numerous people prepare for and pass tough recruitment processes and assessment centres in order to secure their dream job.