Global Teachers – South Korea 2024
Day 4: Tuesday, June 18
The day started with a visit to Seonhak Middle School, where the teachers had the opportunity to meet faculty, visit classrooms, engage in Q & A and tour the school. After a quick lunch, the group headed to KBS Studio to learn about K-drama production and tour different sets. After a great tour and visit, there was a brief period of free time, before everyone once again assembled to head to the welcome dinner.
Mrs. Kimberly Hunt & Mr. Jamie King
Robeson County & Sampson County
“This day started with a bus ride to Seonhak Middle School. It was amazing to see that teaching and students are universal. We visited a math classroom that was completely in Korean. Although we could not understand what was being said, we did understand the lesson that the teacher prepared. Students were engaged and participating, there was a unique and positive culture between the students and the teacher, but what spoke most was the productive struggle that the teacher created with her students. She provided her students with problems and then circulated to ask them questions. Although we could not tell what they were saying, the response by the students was the same in any language. The students struggled, but in a positive way. She explained to students step by step and had students explain their answers. Although the students seemed to not understand, they all were able to participate in the entire activity. The productive struggle that each student felt was something that spoke to us, no matter the language.
Our second classroom was an English classroom. The teacher spoke in English only and it was remarkable that everytime a student answered her in Korean, she discussed the answer and then told them however it is not correct because you didn’t answer how I asked, in English. Once again, the relationship between teacher and students was evident and the school principal shared that this was something they had been working on to improve.
In the afternoon, we visited the state run TV broadcast system, KBS. There we learned about green and blue screens, make-up effects, 3-D shows, set design and had an opportunity to learn about KBS drama shows.
In the evening, we had a welcome dinner where we were lavished with no less than 13 courses for dinner. Those consisted of squid, yellowfin tuna, bulgogi, steak, fish, rice, and much much more. This meal filled us with more than just food, it also provided important social and bonding time with all of us.”
Christian Salinas – Vance County
