Another thing that you immediately notice as a Westerner in Korea, in the first few hours in fact, is how homogenous Korea is: there are very few white people. For the first time in my life, I felt very conscious of how my white skin set me aside from others in society, as I walked the streets of Korea. Korea, I remember reading a year ago in the Korean press, is made up of close to 96% Korean and only about 4% non-Korean people. Take a walk around London, England and you will notice how multi-cultural the city is. Seoul is, I understand, the most homogenous capital city in the world - or at least in the developed world.
If we travel abroad from our home country we all become foreigners. As a Korean in England you would be a foreigner and as an Englishman in Korea I became the foreigner. The only thing is, in Korea as a foreigner one becomes far more aware of the fact because of the homogeneity. My experiences were though, very positive, as I first stayed in the area of 'Miasamgeori' in Seoul. Children automatically would say 'hello' in English and start giggling and people in most situations were almost always very friendly - although sometimes too friendly. A few times on the subway within the first few months, a few people started testing their English out on me, at times when I sometimes did not feel like teaching English out of work. Within ten minutes I would also usually have a business card thrust into my hand without asking.
During the first few months in Seoul, with the Iraq war on (as 2003 approached), I was also conscious that, as a white person, I would be automatically presumed to be American, such is the influence of America on Korean culture and politics. There was the odd negative stare, but it was always from middle or older aged men. Comparing to landing in the U.S. for the first time, such as J.F.K Airport in New York, with the policemen walking around with guns and people twice the size and twice the weight as Koreans, Korea from the first moment felt pretty comfortable to be in. The expected culture shock did not happen, maybe perhaps because I have travelled a lot over the last few years.
No British Please. American preferred
I came to Korea without already having a job set-up, but I knew that English teaching jobs are plentiful in Korea. Searching for an English teaching job in Korea was a strange experience though. In England, English people talk about American English as though it is a bastardised version of the Queen's English. I have travelled and lived in the U.S.A. extensively and personally I really enjoyed America and I like some of the American English expressions. If you go to America they usually love the English accent. In Europe though, Europeans usually dislike the loud, brash American accent. It was thus a surprise on attending my first interview for an English teaching job and then being rejected, because I was from England. I was told that an American or Canadian accent is preferred. The perfect country I would have expected, to be from if teaching English, was England. Clearly when first arriving in Seoul, I was a virgin in terms of knowing how much of an influence America has been on Korea.
Let me use this opportunity just clear up three things that I was asked literally a hundred times and which even to British people can be confusing.
What is the difference between the U.K., Great Britain and England?
Answer: The U.K. is a country that comprises of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Great Britain excludes Northern Ireland and England is just England - a territory in the U.K. Confused? Don't worry about it.
2. How come England, Scotland and Wales all have separate International football (soccer) teams?
Answer: I don't know. Please can someone tell me the answer by emailing me.
3. How did President Bush in the U.S. manage to get elected 3 times?
Answer: I have no idea.
The 386 generation that I taught, always seemed far more interested in American English. Many of these students were planning to study and work in the U.S hence the emphasis understandably, on the American style of English. The 386 generation by the way, is a Korean English (popularly known as Konglish) expression that some Koreans seem to know and other do not know. The meaning '386 generation is used to express someone who:
- Is now in their 30's
- Graduated in the 80's
- And was born in the 60's.
Teaching Koreans
Teaching one-on-one is very different to teaching groups of children. My many Irish friends who were in Seoul, told and still tell me that teaching children can be tough but very rewarding. As a teacher though, who taught one-on-one, I had a very rare chance to meet and talk with people from such a variety of backgrounds and knowledge. Rather than worrying about how to manage and control a dozen or more young children, I could sit back and take notes and teach with only one student at a time. The beautiful thing about this is that the majority of students are open to discuss anything, even though I had heard that Koreans can sometimes be a little shy. Koreans are very curious about how they themselves are perceived by foreigners and about many issues. Many times the Korean War came up in discussions concerning North Korea, usually brought up by the student rather than by myself. Many students seem surprised that I know the dates of the Korean War, which I guess I may not have known if I had not decided to travel to Korea. That is what I love about travelling and experiencing new cultures: the chance to learn about such a variety of areas including history, culture, foods and customs. Korea I found to be rich in all of these areas and as a teacher, the opportunities to discuss these subjects face to face, was enjoyable and made the job enjoyable. |
