I’ve long ago realized that this is not the optimal way to learn English, only one of the more profitable ways. If this student was serious about learning English, and wanted to get more attention to keep up, he would most likely hire a private tutor which costs probably triple what he pays for our school in a month. Some parents can afford this, others can not.

That is why people send their children to our kind schools. They are spending the little money they can afford to get their children ahead on a test at the end of their school career so that can score better than the truly poor that can’t afford any private schools or tutors at all. This is the system that the Korean education department has created by making one test so important to their future. It wasn’t imposed by us foreigners coming here to teach.

The reality of the situation is that we are one of the best, teaching wise, schools in the city (IMO), and we charge one of the lowest fees in the entire city. We are running in debt at the moment, and if we don’t have enough students, will eventually close, which lowers everyone’s opportunity to learn. That’s the business. It’s hard, as there are tons of other programs and opportunities for people that want to spend, and those don’t have the dedicated teachers that we have.

All you can do in an environment of profit-driven education is hope that the students that do need your help stick around long enough to learn something, and the good students do even better. They pay me, and the more students that pay me, the better. That’s just how it is here.

Shame on you