First Day of Training at Avalon and First Impressions

Finished my first day of training at Avalon.  I observed four classes with different ages and skill levels, learned about the different levels and types of classes, and got a look at my schedule starting next Monday.  The school is a LOT bigger than I thought; there are five foreign teachers including me, plus an equal (or greater) number of Korean homeroom teachers.  The school is split into two campuses, of sorts, in adjacent buildings, with the elementary school students in one building and the middle and high school students in the other.  Each building also has its own manager and support staff, including front desk people and assistant teachers (all Korean) who make copies and such.  The elementary school campus also shares space with an Avalon Math hagwon with its own teachers.  Needless to say, it was a big shock walking into the faculty room and seeing over a dozen people there.

For the skill levels, elementary students are divided into Dash, Jump, Glide, and Little Nokjiwon classes, with Dash being the lowest level.  (Nokjiwon students have lived in English-speaking countries before and are generally near-fluent.)  Middle schoolers are divided into Horizon, Mountain, TOEFL, and Nokjiwon.  Each of these levels has a beginner, intermediate and advanced sublevel (with the exception of TOEFL, which is from 1-4, and the nokjiwon classes).  The youngest students are in fourth grade, and the oldest are in middle school.  The high school classes are all taught by the Korean teachers.  The Korean teachers also usually teach the grammar and reading classes, while the foreign teachers handle speaking, listening and writing.  The kids either come on M/W/F or T/Th, with special classes (such as debate) on Wednesdays.

The work day starts at 2 pm, and from 2 - 3 pm is class preparation.  Lunch time is anytime after 3 pm until 4:15 pm, which is when the first class starts.  (There is a free lunch room in another adjacent building, but the foreign teachers I went to lunch with said that usually only the Korean staff eats there and that the Koreans and foreigners don't generally mingle.)  Classes are 65 minutes long with a five-minute break between classes, so from 4:15 - 10 pm it's straight classes (4:15 - 5:20, 5:25 - 6:30, 6:35 - 7:40, 7:45 - 8:50, 8:55 - 10 pm).

My schedule looks like it has some positives and some negatives.  I don't have a 4:15 - 5:20 class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I finish at 8:50 on Friday, though Mondays and Wednesdays I have the full 4:15 - 10 day.  I don't have any of the lowest level elementary school students, though I do have middle school school students from Horizon Beginner (HB) to Mountain Intermediate (MI); no TOEFL at this time.  I will be bouncing back and forth between buildings, however, which is only going to get worse once they finish moving the elementary school campus from the 2nd floor of its building to the 6th floor.  Those five-minute breaks are basically going to be nonexistent for much of the evening.  The school also has intensive seasons in summer and fall for a month each when the kids are out of school; then the workday changes to 9:30 am - 6:30 pm and my daily class load changes from 5 to 6.  I'm not looking forward to it (though I will be paid overtime), but there's no point worrying about it now.

First impressions are generally good; most of the kids I met today were very well-behaved and had surprisingly good English.  The people seem nice, though I've probably already forgotten half their names.  I was worried about jumping into a new school with new students and staff and a new way of teaching, but I feel more comfortable that I'll be able to make a somewhat smooth transition.  Here's hoping I can pick it all up quickly!