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| Working Conditions | |
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| Location | |
Location: 4FL, 364-24 Osung Plaza, Junggyebon-dong, Nowon-gu
Phone: 02-930-0533
Website: http://wonderland.or.kr/main.asp
Wonderland English – Junggye: Junggyebon-dong, Seoul
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I spent almost year here at this Wonderland franchise in Junggye-Dong. At the time of this writing (August 09) this is the only Wonderland in this area. I actually enjoyed my time and the only con there was the hours. Everything else was perfect. The Foreign teacher were a healthy does of cool and the Korean teachers there were incredibly friendly and very profressional. I had the unfortunate luck of being hospitalized and my boss there was there beside me. She will ALWAYS help you when you need anything. I find her to be the highlight of my experience there. She is honest, fair, straightforward, and will always listen to your side of any situation. She actually DOES take what you say in consideration and runs her business in a professional manner. Honesty goes a long way at this hagwon and there is no shady dealings at this particular Wonderland franchise. I recommend this job to anyone that wants a nice stress ! free work environment. As a side note, the kids there are absolutely amazing!!
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I worked 2 years at Junggye Wonderland. It’s an awesome school for a teacher’s first time in Korea. The owners do everything they can to make sure you get to really experience the Korean culture, and have an awesome time. They will take you on a few trips around Korea. We went to a couple of mountains and temples. Some are overnight. There are also many faculty dinners and workshops to enjoy. My overall experience with the staff is exceptional.
The curriculum is already set, and the Korean teachers make the lesson plans, so it’s very easy to prepare for your lessons. They use a lot of Let’s Go, and English Time. The teacher room is a little overwhelming when you first walk in. Someone really needs to take the time to clear out all the old books and stuff that aren’t used anymore. This makes it hard to find Teacher Guides and books sometimes. Also, there is very limited personal desk space. They have about 6 computers in the teacher room that everyone shares, which makes it a little difficult when all the teachers are trying to prepare at the same time. However, everyone is extremely helpful in the teacher room. If there are any questions, or you need help with anything, someone will always help out. They keep the heat on the winter, and the air conditioner on during the summer without having to beg for it. The classrooms are clean. The only thing I didn’t like where the actual hours. Generally you are there from 9:30AM to 8:00 PM on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Then on Tuesdays and Thursdays, It’s 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM. It’s NOT non-stop teaching during that time, you will have many breaks. However, it’s difficult to get away from the school during your breaks due to the distance of the housing.
The housing was very clean, everything worked. It had all the items that were supposed to be there. (Fridge, TV, Stove, Pots, Pans, etc..) However, I didn’t really care for the housing location. The housing is single, but it’s a good 30 minute walk, maybe 25 if you are quick on your feet. There is a bus, which takes about 10 minutes from the time you get on, to the time you get off. It also happens to be right next to the subway line. It’s nice being close to the subway when you want to go somewhere, but when you want to sleep, it’s another story. It usually comes by about every 10 minutes except from 1 AM to about 5 AM. You will get used to it eventually. Total utilities usually cost around 100,000 KRW each month. The school has the internet, cable, phone, gas, and water already setup, so it just comes out of your check each month. You can choose to not have cable or internet or whatever if you don’t want it as well.
There was never any issue with pay checks, or bills getting paid properly. They are very efficient and accurate when it comes to the paychecks. As far as benefits, if you choose to have it, they will get you setup on health insurance and pension without any problems. For my personal experience, there was a lot of misunderstanding with getting setup on the health insurance, so I never had it. But, by the time I left, they changed the process, so it’s very easy to have it, if you want it. Luckily, I only got really sick one time while I was there, when it would have actually been useful.
So to summarize, I absolutely enjoyed working at this school. It was a lot of work, but it was an awesome experience, and I would definitely do it again, even at the same school. Don’t let the “Wonderland” name scare you!!
DISCLAIMER: Reliable Teacher Hagwon Review does not verify the statements made in these reviews. These reviews are user-generated content and may or may not be accurate. We do our best to weed out ones that are inappropriate or blatantly exaggerated, but we cannot claim responsibility for any misleading information posted by our reviewers. If there is a review that you believe should be removed, please contact us.
I have had the incredible opportunity to work at Junggye Wonderland for the past 18 months. The school is run by a dynamic brother-sister duo, with 5 foreign teachers and roughly 20 korean teachers/staff. My co-workers made work feel more like a home away from home, making sure that I adjusted to life in Korea easily. In the beginning, they helped me use the Teacher’s Guides provided by the school and also provided me with a Foreign Teacher’s Manual full of ideas for classroom management, games and other fun ideas. In a month or so, I felt fully adjusted at the school!
The kids at the school are INCREDIBLE and one of the main reasons that I chose to extend my contract an extra 6 months. Class sizes range from 3 to 10 students with the curriculum laid out for you in lesson plans at the beginning of each month. Mornings are spent with kids aged 4-7. Each week is comprised mostly of teaching from an English language student book (and its matching workbook), but you also teach a period of science, math and activity time/field trip. In the afternoons, you teach children from aged 7 to 12, using higher level English books. On the whole, the children’s comprehension levels are quite high and they are a joy to teach!
Each month I was paid on time as promised. The school also offers to pay for half of your medical coverage or you may choose to opt out. Healthcare in Korea is very cheap and I found medical coverage was only worth getting if you get severely ill.
The school gives teachers two week-long vacations (December and July), in addition to all national holidays. With the exception of these holidays foreigner teachers are expected to work from roughly 9am to 810pm on Mon, Wed, and Fri and 9am to 6pm on Tues and Thurs. Teachers are given about an hour and a half off for lunch and 5 minute breaks between classes. Depending on the schedule, you may be done a bit earlier than listed above, or you may have a 40-minute break or two during the day. The working hours may seem a bit long, but the lunch hour really breaks up the day.
The foreign teacher apartment is a 30 minute walk from the school or a 10 minute bus ride. The review above this one gives a pretty accurate description of the housing so check it out!
This school is pretty amazing. Should you get offered the opportunity to work here, I would recommend it in a heart beat. After working here for a year and a half, I still love it and will be sad to say goodbye in a week or so. The kids are amazing. The teachers are welcoming. And our bosses become a sort of surrogate Korean family. If you love teaching, crave a new experience, and are up for the adventure of a lifetime, there is no better place to find it.
DISCLAIMER: Reliable Teacher Hagwon Review does not verify the statements made in these reviews. These reviews are user-generated content and may or may not be accurate. We do our best to weed out ones that are inappropriate or blatantly exaggerated, but we cannot claim responsibility for any misleading information posted by our reviewers. If there is a review that you believe should be removed, please contact us.
I worked for Wonderland in Junggye for just over a year from 2008-2009. There isn’t much to complain about my stay in Korea. If you have the right attitude everyone at the school will be more than happy to help you out. After hearing stories from other teachers about not getting paid on time or not being paid at all, I can definitely state that was never the case at the Wonderland in Junggye. The owners are great and always went out of their way to help me out with any problems.
DISCLAIMER: Reliable Teacher Hagwon Review does not verify the statements made in these reviews. These reviews are user-generated content and may or may not be accurate. We do our best to weed out ones that are inappropriate or blatantly exaggerated, but we cannot claim responsibility for any misleading information posted by our reviewers. If there is a review that you believe should be removed, please contact us.