It's Friday, December 29th in Korea or December 28th in the West. A Hakwon holiday has commenced in Korea and all the school children get a few days of rest from their regular 6-day academic week. The Hakwon is an academy where English is taught in after school programs throughout the year. Teaching consists of 1-2 hours of preptime and 8-45 minute sessions, 3 days per week (Mon/Wed/Fri), 7-45 minute sessions, 2 days per week (Tues/Thurs). It's a long exhausting day teaching in Korea. The compensation is usually 2.0-2.5 million KRW/month, plus 20,000 KRW/hour teaching in overtime hours. Overtime is calculated using the conditions signed in the original contract. Therefore, it is important to know teaching contracts thoroughly, before signing the dotted line. Accomodations are normally provided, but the rent is deducted from the monthly salary. Their is contract- completion bonus paid at the end of a 12-month contract. Working in Korea requires an E-2 Visa, provided by the sponsor/owner (Won-Jon-Nim) of the institute.
Since it's holiday time in Korea, as a Foreigner, I can't complain about having "time out" from the rigorous teaching schedule. The 40+ hours spent at my current employer is demanding since an hour of teaching is packed into each 45 minute lesson. Students range from elementary (primary) to middle school (grade 9), so with so many students ranging in ages and curriculum,this isn't an easy job by any means.
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