Korean Skills a Must for Future Teachers!

Danielle Henderson

By Danielle Henderson

I chose to live and teach in Korea because I heard that it is a safe and clean country in which to live. After being here for nearly one year, I must agree with the people who told me this information. I feel safe not only in the classroom, but also walking home alone at night after making a trip to the supermarket.

I think that it is natural to experience difficulties, especially in terms of cultural differences while living in a foreign country. In the beginning, I was so embarrassed by my inability to speak Korean. I did not know how to say thank you or the magic word please! My decision to teach in Korea was, however, rather last minute, which made it difficult to learn Korean prior to my arrival.

Even if you are an English teacher, having knowledge of Korean can not only help you when out and about, but it will also impress your students and your school’s staff, thus gaining their respect. I wish I had at least a weekend crash course in the Korean language. I was only given a few travel brochures and tourist maps of Seoul and Cheongju, which were of little help to me since I live in neither of those locations.

In regards to schedule changes and exam dates, it appears that the last people to be informed are the native English teachers, in my case anyways. For example, I would go to class and, either it would be empty, or my students would have a confused look on their face. I would then return to my desk in the office and my co-teachers would find me and inform me that the schedule had changed. There was another time when I arrived to school only to be told to go home because the students had an exam and that my classes were cancelled. I soon realized that things are done differently here. So I had to adapt and expect that my schedule may change at any moment.

Tips for future EPIK teachers: get to know your students, ask them questions and do your research. For example, find out what music groups or singers are popular. I did just that. When I told my students that I enjoyed listening to Big Bang and the Wonder Girls, not only were they impressed that I knew of these groups, but they were proud that I took an interest in Korean music. Finding a commonality can also open many doors with regards to mutual understanding.

Danielle Henderson is from Canada and has worked at schools in North Chungcheong Province with her master's degree in early childhood education. She can be reached at danielle_mj_henderson@hotmail.com

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A light-hearted look at 2008

BUSAN - It has been an eventful year here in "Sparkling" Korea. Here is a light-hearted look back at the highs, the lows and all else in between.

Korea kicked off 2008 with a new president. Lee Myung-bak was inaugurated on Feb. 25, pledging to boost the Korean economy from the 13th largest in the world to 7th, to raise the average yearly salary to $40,000 a year, and achieve 7 percent annual growth. He nicknamed his economic plan, "747" -similar to Boeing`s famous airliner of the same name. In retrospect it was perhaps not the best analogy, considering that the Korean economy - and nearly every other economy in the world - has crashed.

In February, a tragic fire burnt down the wooden structure atop the historic Namdaemun gate in Seoul. Fire starter, Chae Jong-ki, 69, was convicted of violating the "Cultural Properties Protection Law" and sentenced to 10 years in prison. For centuries it has been the Japanese who thoughtlessly burned down Korea`s cultural treasures. Now Koreans enjoy the freedom to do so themselves. My, how far the world has come.

In March, South Korea held its first-ever trial by jury as part of several reform measures aimed at increasing public confidence in the judicial system. For Korea`s first "trial" trial, a nine-member jury in Daegu heard the case of a 27-year-old man accused of assaulting a 70-year-old woman while burgling her home.

The jury`s "guilty" decision was non-binding, though, as the traditional three-judge panel had the final say. Apparently, the government has judged that the people are still not ready to judge, although some might say this shows a lack of judgment by the government.

In April, Koreans cheered as a Russian space capsule carried Korea`s first astronaut, Lee So-yun, into space. It was also a month that saw health officials dispatch 200 soldiers to chicken farms across the country to slaughter more than 100,000 chickens following the outbreak of bird flu. It was a monumental month when Koreans expanded their reach to the stars while at the same time taking a stand against chickens.

In June, a puzzled world looked on as tens of thousands of South Koreans demonstrated against the government`s decision to import U.S. beef. A health scare ensued, based on wild claims that American beef contained the "Mad Cow" virus.

The at times violent protests continued for well over a month, reaching a peak of 700,000 people gathering in Seoul. On the bright side, social scientists now have a new phenomenon to study: "Mad People Disease." The symptoms include irrational reasoning, ignorance of scientific fact and an unyielding desire to gather in the streets for no apparent reason. Oh, something for you trivia buffs: The historical tally of people dying from American beef worldwide? Zero.

July gets off to a bad start when a North Korean soldier fatally shoots a South Korean tourist at a mountain resort in the North. The tourist, Park Wang-ja, had gone for a stroll from her hotel at 4:30 a.m., somehow wandering 1 kilometer into an off-limits military area.

It was there that she was shot twice in the back as she fled from a North Korean soldier. Surely, there must have been something in the travel brochure about not trying to feed the North Koreans.

Also in July, arguments with Japan over the disputed Dokdo islands reached a low-point.

Korean government officials retaliated against Japanese claims by removing Japanese condom advertisements from subway stations in Seoul. Following the incident, I scanned the paper for several days longing for a Korean government official saying something to the effect of, "Screw Japan and their condoms!" Or from the Japanese saying, "Much like Dokdo, the Koreans will no longer be adequately protected."

In August, Korean athletes brought home a spectacular 31 medals from the Olympic Games in Beijing. The most heralded of those medals was the gold in baseball, where the scrappy Korean team went undefeated in eight games against the world`s best amateurs. After clinching the gold against Cuba in game seven, the team didn`t let up - tromping baseball powerhouse the Netherlands 10-0 in the final game. Take that, Hiddink!

September played host to this year`s celebration of the Korean Thanksgiving Day, Chuseok. According to a survey by the Korea Transport Institute, 53.4 percent of Koreans traveled to their hometowns to commemorate the occasion.

The estimated 46 million trips caused massive congestion on Korea`s roadways leading me to speculate that people were most thankful this year for actually reaching their destination before the holiday was over.

The month of October witnessed a bizarre innovation in the method of murder.

A 31-year-old man, identified only by his surname Jeong, killed six people by first setting fire to his apartment in southern Seoul, and then stabbing residents with a sashimi knife as they fled the building. While Jeong told police he went on the rampage because "everybody looks down on me," some nationalists placed the bulk of the blame on the Japanese for inventing the sashimi knife.

As the weather turned cold in November, an even deeper chill spread across the economy.

Exports dropped 18.3 percent from the same time the previous year, and the won hit an 11-year low of 1,513 against the dollar. The Bank of Korea also released estimates that the economy would grow by only 2 percent in 2009. No word from the Lee administration on a new "18-1,500-2" economic plan.

Also in November, North Korea announced it would seal its borders with the south. To counter this, South Koreans increased the practice of sending balloons carrying anti-Kim Jong-il pamphlets over the border. Should there be a shortage of balloons, people can always inflate Japanese-brand condoms to further enrage the North Korean leadership.

In December, South Korean actress Ok So-ri fought in vain to overturn a ban on adultery. After admitting in court to having an affair, Ok was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years. Her lover also received a six-month suspended sentence.

Lastly, in December the government announced ambitious economic plans. They are aimed at creating 190,000 new jobs in a 4-year, $10.35 billion bid to improve the country`s four main rivers and their adjacent areas.

While I applaud this measure, I can`t imagine it taking only four years. South Korea`s labor force has one of the highest university graduation rates in the world. How many people with a bachelor`s degree are willing to rebuild rivers for a living?

Happy New Year everyone.

The opinions expressed here in no way are representative of The Korea Herald. Bobby McGill is a freelance writer based in Busan. He can be reached through his blog at www.idlewordship.com or idlewordship@gmail.com - Ed.

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Tokyo seeks cordial ties with Seoul

After months of renewed tension over a territorial issue, Korea and Japan are moving to put their often-prickly ties back on track.

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso will likely visit Korea next month for a summit with President Lee Myung-bak before the launch of the Obama administration in the United States, signaling a full-scale resumption of the biannual summit between the sides.

"We will give more consideration to Japan`s position in setting a date for the summit, as it is them who have to pack up bags and come here," a senior Korean foreign ministry official said.

Korea`s presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday that Tokyo has proposed a three-day summit from around Jan. 10, which falls on Japanese holidays. The Japanese prime minister is required to get approval from the country`s bicameral legislature for travel abroad when the legislature is in session.

Japanese media said Aso is seeking to improve ties with Korea before U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, whose Asia policy has yet to materialize, comes into office.

Japanese officials have a bitter memory of "Japan passing" during the Clinton era. Japan endured strained ties with the Democrats at that time.

"In the trilateral summit among Korea, China, and Japan on Dec. 13, President Lee invited Prime Minister Aso to visit Korea," the official said, refusing to comment on Aso`s possible political intentions behind his push to hold such an unusual New Year summit with Lee.

"We don`t need a lot of time to prepare for the summit since it will be held in a casual way to meet the purpose of the summit," he said. "An exact date and venue have yet to be fixed."

Seoul`s flexibility follows Tokyo`s recent move to drop the designation of Dokdo, the rocky islets at the center of decades-old diplomatic spat between the two countries, in its draft of a new teaching manual for high school students that was released on Monday.

Dokdo, lying in the East Sea between the neighboring nations, is effectively controlled by Korea but also claimed by Japan.

In July, the Japanese education ministry announced an educational guideline for middle schools urging instructors to teach in school classrooms that Dokdo`s ownership is disputed. The step ruptured the cordial mood between the two sides after President`s Lee`s trip to Tokyo just months earlier.

Seoul recalled its ambassador to Tokyo Kwon Chul-hyun for three weeks in protest and also rejected Tokyo`s offer of routine foreign ministerial talks on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum held in Singapore in late July.

Relations between Seoul and Tokyo have often been marred by disputes over history and territory, in part a legacy of Japan`s colonial rule of Korea from 1910-45.

Japanese and Korean leaders began one-on-one shuttle diplomacy in July 2004, but the exchanges stopped a year later due to South Korea`s anger over then Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi`s repeated visits to the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which honors Japan`s war dead, including war criminals.

Meanwhile, Aso said yesterday he would not call a snap election despite opposition demands, saying he needs to focus on the country`s sputtering economy.

Aso, who took office in September, has seen his popularity plummet in recent months and the opposition has called for him to prove he has a public mandate.

Aso can dissolve parliament and call elections at any time, but he does not need to do so for the lower house until their terms run out next September.

Aso said that it was not the right time to call elections as he needed to monitor the economy to make sure it does not weaken further.

"We are not in a situation in which we can discuss such things," he said at a news conference.

The world`s second-largest economy fell into a recession in the third quarter, and signs since then point toward more misery ahead.

The latest outlook by the Cabinet Office projects Japan`s economy to shrink this fiscal year and manage only flat growth the following year.

Public support for Japan`s government has plummeted amid disappointment over the new prime minister`s economic efforts.

Surveys earlier this month by three major newspapers - the Yomiuri, Mainichi and Asahi - showed backing for opposition leader Ichiro Ozawa had risen above Aso for the first time.

The surveys, which show Aso`s approval rating hovering near 20 percent, signal serious trouble for the prime minister. He took the helm of Japan`s unpopular ruling party with a promise to revive public support and high expectations that he would call elections soon.

Earlier in the day, Aso`s cabinet approved a record-high budget proposal to battle the recession. Aso described the spending planas a "bold budget to protect people`s lives."

"I think the public understands the importance of implementing our plans," he said.

From news reports

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Uniqueness of Christmas in Korea

By Chad Meyer

Contributing Writer

Christmas is a holiday reflecting on the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, whose nativity marks the origins of the Gregorian calendar, still used today. Decorated trees, red and green lights, and holiday music are commanding symbols that remind people of this season. People around the world observe Christmas as a spiritual and secular holiday that celebrates Santa Claus and gift giving.

On the Korean peninsula, the recognition of Christmas dates back over 300 years. Catholic missionaries first arrived in the late 18th century, followed by Protestants in 1884.

The uniqueness of Christmas in Korea today comes from the government's recognition of this date as a worker's paid public holiday. Outside of India, few other Asian countries recognize this day. Similar to most Chinese speaking countries, Korea's roots are based in traditional Confucianism.

In a 2005 census, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported that nearly 50 percent of the population declared themselves to be religious. Of those, Catholics and Protestants represented the largest group with over 30 percent of the total population. Of the remaining religions, Buddhists represented the next largest group with 23 percent of the populace.

For Koreans, Christmas is an intense and exciting occasion during the closing of the year. Restaurants and bars are packed for most of December. Friends, both old and new, reminisce and share anecdotes of experiences from the past year. It's not uncommon to see large groups of reuniting friends from university or high school. And be warned, this is one of the few times of the year where large groups should make reservations in advance.

A trip to the amusement parks Everland and Lotte World are evidence that the cold doesn't keep people away from celebrating the Christmas festivities outdoors. The Christmas holiday season starts as early as November.

Holiday-themed parades and attractions attract many guests on the weekend leading up to December 25th. Around this time, the city comes alive in white, red, and green lights. Businesses in Gangnam, such as Meritz and Prudential decorate, their tall buildings in bold lights wishing Christmas greetings to those passers by.

Holiday events and promotions are found in nearly every chain store, too. Cosmetic stores such as Skin Food offer gifts for purchases worth over 20,000 Won. Shoppers are also automatically entered into drawings for prizes such as the Apple iPod at the Gap at the Gangnam Shinsegae Department Store .

Most Seoul area department stores easily rival the best interior and exterior decorations and displays seen in New York City. The Galleria Department store in Apgujeong has a programmable array of 5,000 color changing LEDs on its facade that can accommodate any holiday theme.

Resembling a massive Lite-Brite set, the entrance glows in Christmas greens, displaying a large blue gift fashioned with a red bow. In Korea, nearly every business is open on Christmas day, the foremost gift giving time of the year. Since the population is not working or going to school, businesses are teeming with shoppers. The US National Retail Federation states that the winter shopping season represents 25-40 percent of U.S. retail sales for the year.

With Hanukkah and Kwanzaa also celebrated between November and December, clearly this is a busy time for U.S. stores. The biggest shopping difference between the two cultures is that American supermarkets, gas stations, and shopping malls remain closed all of Christmas day in honor of religion and family.

Christmas day begins with gift unwrapping, followed by a relaxing day at home, and a dinner ham or other special meal in the evening. Cinemas are among the few businesses that remain open. And like the movie theaters in Korea, they become very hectic in the afternoon and are teeming with teenagers and university students there to see the latest holiday releases.

Another interesting aspect of the Christmas season in Seoul is the holiday music. Nearly every shop, cafe, and department store can be heard playing popular

Christmas music. Ironically, it is unlikely that you will hear any American business playing songs with Christmas lyrics. Instead, shops play muzak, or elevator music. These are the low quality instrumental versions of Christmas classics without the singing.

Christmas music unequivocally represents the largest and most well known collection of holiday music globally. From popular classics to jazz and contemporary

interpretations, Korean performers have re-envisioned Christmas.

A quick visit to Friday's events section of the Korea Times will reveal a complete listing of upcoming performances and shows. Lee Hyo-ri and Lee Soo-young are two big singers with Christmas concerts scheduled on the 19th and 23rd, respectively. Park Jin-young and Lee Seung-chul even have concerts on Christmas Eve and Day, which is unheard of in the US.

For Americans, Christmas is a holiday for families. Visits to grandparents', aunts' and uncles' homes are common. Children awaken early on Christmas morning with a dash to the presents beneath the Christmas tree. Children are undoubtedly the most excited, as the gifts are often better than those received on their birthdays. The retail market heavily promotes must-have toys, videogames, and anything else they can persuade children to include on their wish lists. The act of gift giving, however, is not limited to children. Nearly every family member exchanges gifts with one another.

The phrase 'Merry Christmas' is used uniquely in Korea. In the U.S., it can only be heard in churches and privately among family members who recognize the holiday. You will not find businesses advertising 'Christmas sales' or giving 'Christmas greetings'.

Instead, wishes for 'Happy Holidays' and 'Season's Greetings' are used. In 2005, the American broadcaster Fox news reported that 95 percent of Americans celebrate Christmas in one form or another.

Yet in recent years, concerns over the separation of church and state have led people to use alternative phrases instead. Annual televised Christmas Day parades will not yield floats displaying 'Merry Christmas'.

So I found it unusually pleasant to see the words 'Merry Christmas' strung in lights along the window panes of skyscrapers and shops around Seoul.

Even in small towns outside of Seoul, such as those in Gyeonggi-Do, you will find 'Merry Christmas' glowing at night in the town center. The human side of Koreans truly shines during the cold Christmas season as well. Here, people take time to reflect on what they have and to consider the less fortunate around them.

Whether it's volunteer work, gift donations, or giving away spare coins, Koreans are willing to assist others in need. Numerous charities and fundraisers can be found around Seoul. The Yeoksam Global Center, a government funded organization, hosted a performance concert on December 15 to benefit underprivileged children. Foreigners were encouraged to sing and dance and play the instruments of their homelands. The ringing bells of the local Salvation Army also demonstrate the good nature of Koreans. These volunteers are found collecting donations near major subway stations and department stores in Seoul. They have a substantial presence in the city and are hard to miss. I am impressed at the sheer number of them and their diligence in assisting others. Every coin counts, so

remember to pass your good fortune onto others during the Christmas season.

The writer is an engineer and the author of six previous 'Uniqueness of Korea' articles. He can be reached at:food.korea@hotmail.com

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