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Bibimbapa Jeollanamdo • Volume 3 • Issue 6Teachers Magazine

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For questions and comments concerning articles please contact the writer via their emails listed at the end of their articles

For general inquiries contact:

BibimbapNews@gmail.com

general managment

Chris Devison chrisofficeofeducation@yahoo.com Dinh Nguyen d11nguye@gmail.com

Lindsay Ross Ross6520@gmail.com

copy editors

Edward ChaneyRob Davies

art director

Dinh Nguyen

production team

Chris Devison Dinh Nguyen

Edward Chaney

Joe Campbell

Elizabeth Anne

Susan Sahab

Lindsay Ross

photographers

Richard TangJoe Campbell Susan Sahab

front cover photo : Susan Sahab

back cover photo : Dinh Nguyen

All non-credited photos, courtesy of creative commons.

EST. 2013 • Volume 3 • Issue 6 • June 2016bibimbap{ {

Chris Devison is the Provincial Coordinator for the Jeollanamdo Language Program. He has lived in South Korea for almost 10 years, and has spent six of those years in his current position. Aside from assisting public school teachers with their contract and school life, he has a keen interest in health and wellness. Having lived in both Western and Eastern cultures, he has a strong understanding of the healthiest practices of both worlds.

Before coming to South Korea, Dinh Nguyen was a Canadian journalist. He has 6 years experience as an editor, reporter, and desktop publishing designer. After obtaining his CELTA in 2012, he moved to Yeosu to follow his passion for teaching and traveling. He recently completed the CELTA YLE, and is working on his DELTA. He is also he co-founder of ESL Nomads.

Copy Editor, Edward Chaney worked for the Hayden's Ferry Review, a literary journal published out of Arizona State University (ASU). He was exposed to the Jeollanamdo Language Program during an internship with ASU’s MTESOL program. Since then, he and his wife has moved to South Korea, and will be finishing up their first year come April.

After completing his degree and travelling around Canada exten-sively, Joseph Campbell recently moved to South Korea to teach English and immerse himself in a foreign and fascinating culture. He is always looking for something new to learn, and you won’t find many topics that don’t interest him.

Lindsay Ross is a Canadian teacher living in Mokpo. After get-ting her bachelor of education in 2011, she taught with JLP for four years at the middle and high school levels. She now works at a university in Naju. Among other articles, Lindsay researches and puts together the event calendar and Korean language sections for Bibimbap.

Starting off in Hong Kong with a Canon 550D, Richard Tang ventured out to experience Asian culture. 3 years later, he is now carrying his Olympus E-M10 across South Korea. As a NET and photographer, he hopes to share the views and culture he experi-ences with anyone who is interested.

The Editorial Team

Susan Sahab is an English teacher in Hwasun and is currently starting her second year in Korea. As an Art History major, she is pas-sionate about both the historical and aesthetic significance of art and photography. Her passions include photography, music, cooking, and illustration. In an attempt to continue her art while teaching, in her free time she teaches traditional art classes at the Gwangju International Center and tries to shoot as often as possible..

Elizabeth Anne has taught at all levels in public schools in South Korea since 2002, and at an International School on China’s east coast. While at University she studied Food Science, Nutrition and Biology in addition to Elementary Teaching. She grew up in multi-cultural New Zealand which influenced her to explore other cultures and food.

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Upcoming holiday and event calendar 4

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Photo essay: Cherry blossoms in the South

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Why young learners fall behind in the class

Letter from the Coordinator: Negative outlooks

Behind the cover

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Photo essay: Teachers of Korea

The Recipe Box: Simple chicken noodle soup18

Healthy Musings: Breakfast for the active teacher20How to renew your ARC at Immigration

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June 1-30: Iris Festival of The Gar-den of Morning Calm 아침고요수목원아이리스축제;

Gyeonggi-do

June 24 - July 11: Daegu International Musical Festival 대구국제뮤지컬페스티벌;Daegu

July 6-10: Seoul International Cartoon & Animation Festival (SICAF) (서울국제만화애니메이션페스티

벌 (시카프)

July 8-17: BuyeoSeodong Lotus Festival (부여서동연꽃축제; Chungcheongnam-do)

July 9-10: Water Gun Fight Festival (물총축제; Seoul)

July 14-19: World Taekwondo Cul-ture Expo (세계태권도문화엑스포; Jeollabuk-do)

July 15-24: Boryeong Mud Festival (보령머드축제;

Chungcheongnam-do)

July 15 - August 21: Hangang Summer Festival (한강몽땅여름축제; Seoul)

July 21-31: Bucheon International

Upcoming holidays and events

June

dinh nguyen

Holidays

July 1 Canada Day

Julyn 4 Independence Day (USA)

July 17 Constitution Day (Korea)

August 15 Liberation Day (Korea)

Septenmber 14, 15, 16 Chuseok (Korea)

July

Fantastic Film Festival (부천국제판타스틱영화제; Gyeonggi-do)

July 22-24: Ulsan Shipbuilding & Sea Festival (울산조선해양축제; Ulsan)

July 23 - August 30: Seoul Fringe Festival (서울프린지페스티벌; Seoul)

July 27-31: Yeongwol Donggang Festival (영월동강축제; Gangwon-do)

July 27-31: Bucheon International Comics Festival (부천국제만화축제;

Gyeonggi-do)

July 27-31: Daegu Chicken and Beer Festival (대구치맥페스티벌; Daegu)

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July 29 - August 4: Jeongnamjin Jangheung Water Festival (정남진장흥물축제; Jeollanam-do)

July 29 - August 2: Hamyang Wild Ginseng Festival (함양산삼축제; Gyeongsangnam-do)

July 29-31: Pohang International Fireworks Festival (포항국제불빛축제; Gyeongsangbuk-do)

July 29 - August 16: Taebaek Sunflower Festival (태백해바라기축제; Gangwon-do)

July 30-31: Geumgang Yeoul

Festival (금강여울축제; Chungcheongnam-do)

July 30 - August 6: BonghwaEun-Uh (Sweet Fish) Festival (봉화은어축제; Gyeongsangbuk-do)

July 30 - August 7: Gangjin Celadon Festival (강진청자축제; Jeollanam-do)

Korean Expressions:

Summer

by lindsay ross • ross6520@gmail.com

Summer 여름 (yeo-leum)

Finally it’s summer! 드디어여름이다~ (deu-di-uh yeo-leum-ee-da)

Onset of summer according to the lunar calendar 입하 (ip-ha)

Because the onset of summer has start-ed, it’s going to get really hot! 입하니깐 이제 정말 덥겠어요! (ip-ha-nee-kaanee-jaejeong-mal teap-kess-eo-yo)

Summer vacation 여름 바캉스 (yeo-leumba-kang-seu) / 여름 방학 (yeo-leum bang-hak)

Where are you going during summer vacation? 여름 바캉스 때 어디에 가요? (yeo-leumba-kang-seuddeyeo-dee-eh ga-yo)

Playing in the water/swimming 물놀이 (mul-nol-li)

Let’s go swimming 물놀이가자 (mul-nol-liga-ja~)

Heat wave warning 폭염주의보 (pok-yeum-joo-eui-bo)

There is a heat wave warning so we should avoid going outside. 폭염주의보에는 야외활동을 자제해야되요 (pok-yeum-joo-eui-bo-eh-neunya-way-hwal-dong-eulja-jae-hae-ya-twae-yo)

Rainy season 장마 (jang-ma)

Because it’s the rainy season, take an umbrella 장마 기간이니깐 우산 꼭 챙기세요 (jang-ma gi-gan-ee-ni-kkanoo-san ggokcheng-gi-say-yo)

August 1-7: Busan Sea Festival (부산바다축제; Busan)

August 4-7: Busan International Magic Festival (부산국제매직페스티벌; Busan)

August 11-15: The Great Battle of Hansan Festival (통영한산대첩축제; Gyeongsangnam-do)

August 11-16: Jecheon International Film & Music Festival (제천국제음악영화제; Chungcheongbuk-do)

August 12-16: Mokpo Port Festival (목포항구축제; Jeollanam-do)

August 12-15: Jarasum Fireworks Festival (자라섬불꽃축제; Gyeonggi-do)

August 12-15: Muan White Lotus Festival (무안연꽃축제; Jeollanam-do)

August 12-14: Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival (인천펜타포트락페스티벌; Incheon)

July and August

dinh nguyen

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Classroom DisparitiesHow English language teachers in Korea are failing young learners

dinh ngyenenglish teacher

The notion that “younger is better” is something that is rarely challenged in South Korea. Parents and English teachers (Native and Korean alike)

tend to - unknowingly or not- cite Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH), to justify the enrollment of children in English classes. They claim that young learners, age two to twelve,absorb languages morerapidly and their language acquisition abili-ties start to deteriorate as they grow older.

But is younger truly better? The problem is that most research that supports CPH is based on first language (mother-tongue) acquisition. When it comes to second languages, like English here in South Korea, there is little conclusive evidence to support these same claims. Studies actually show that older students are able to learn faster and more quickly because they can interact with the world through writing, which transfersinto the English classroom. Their minds are also better able to comprehend complex and abstract thoughts, like structuralized grammar, whereas young children are less likely able to retain and build on the same kinds of knowledge.

This, however, doesn’t mean that teaching young children English is pointless. “Younger can be better” because it can help children develop a positive attitude towards language learning and have a positive effects on their cognitive develop-ment. But, in order to do this, teachers must go beyond their personal justification for teaching the way they do and incorporate the research available on Young Learner Educationinto their methodology. This is, unfortunately, seldom done

in South Korea, as teaching children is often regarded as a lesser or easier job when compared to teaching older people. Little attention is paid to how to teach them effectively.

Classroom management and reward

Some of the biggest issues in the English classroom arethose of motivation and dealing problematic behaviour. To address this, many teachers give out rewards to encourage their stu-dents to complete tasks (e.g. teachers give students a sticker or candy when they get an answer right or when they complete their homework). Unfortu-nately, the way that rewards are often used in Korea tends to deliver only temporary compliance and motivate children to get the reward, not to learn.

According to research by Alfie Kohn, there has been “at least two dozen studies that found that people who expect to receive a reward for completing tasks do not perform as those who expect nothing.”Kohn also found that children who were given rewards initially finished tasks quickly, but they also lost interest in those sametasks over time. Learners who were not promised anything had the same amount of interest they started with, or more. Additionally, children who were promised rewards tended to take the easiest way out, while those who did the work without rewards often chose tasks that were just a bit beyond their level. Doing activities that are slightly challenging, but are not impossible, helps learners to progress; whereas non-chal-lenging tasks lead to little or zero improvement.

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Many experts on classroom management also advise against giving out physical rewards because they can make students jealous of each other and cause behavioural problems that in-hibit learning. If learners are focused purely on getting the reward, they are not building strate-gies, or positive attitudes towards language learn-ing. If the jealously does not generate the poor behaviour, it is surely to follow once students lose interest in the rewards. This leads teachers to another common form of classroom manage-ment in Korea: negative reinforcement.

Punishment and threats are counterproduc-tive as, like rewards for tasks, they often elicit only temporary compliance. Classroom manage-ment using fear models a power relationship between adults and children, as opposed to the nurturing/mentoring relationships that young learners need.They can often generate anger and defiance, which hinder the learning and teaching process.

So how do we then facilitate a nurturing learning environment? The key to manag-ing energetic and disruptive students without causing them to lose interest in tasks lies in a classroom management system (CMS) that rewards students for their behavior as opposed to theirtasks. An effective CMS must adopt both long term and short term outcomes. It must incorporate elements of the real world, as opposed to unrealistic consequences. That is to say, that it must effectively convince students to be well-behaved while, at the same time, get them to work together towards a common goal.

Instead of rewarding individuals for task completion, teachers can try rewarding the whole class for good behaviour. We can outline a set of rules that are expected of students (raise your hand, help each other, be nice etc...), and that they agree to follow. Don't give our rewards after each task, instead, check with the class after the task to see if they have behaved well (fol-lowed the rules).

If they have, they move one step closer to a prize by working together. If not, then the only negative thing that happens is that they do not move closer toward their collective goal. The possibility of designing effective classroom management systems are endless, we just have to put in the time to research them, instead of creating one on a whim.

Grammar, writing and memorization

Korean classrooms tend to favour traditional teaching methods that don’t really suit young learners. Aside from being less likely to compre-hend abstract structures, like grammar, language acquisition happens for young learners when they comprehend and utilize English by testing and making hypotheses about it.

Young learners learn best when they work together to negotiate and discover the meaning of language items with others. For this reason, a grammar explanation by teachers and worksheets with Korean and English translations that students are expected to write out several times, doesn’t teach them language that they are likely to retain. They’ve not worked out the meaning for themselves yet.

Teaching young learners is thenmuch more than language accuracy.It must be a process that everyone in the classroom enjoys. Teachers should choose topics, context, and activities that the learners find interesting and then gear the language to suit that, not the other way around like we do in Korea. Instead of writing lines and translating meaning for the learners, teachers could instead put students in pairs or groups. They could then look at pictures and come up with the Korean meaning and practice the spelling by themselves by quizzing or playing games with each other.

Waygook.org games and teacher talk time

Since language is a form of communication, in order to acquire it, learners must recognize it and learn how to use it. The more they commu-nicate using it, the closer they get to mastering it. Unfortunately (though slowly changing in some aspect) Korea is still stuck favouring the early 1970’s, Grammar Translation Approach, which requires a lot of teacher talk time, and listening and repeating after the teacher or an audio track.

When a teacher speaks a lot in class (be it for instructions or explanations) it takes away from time for students to practice using and acquiring the language. If a teacher talks for twenty minutes in a forty-minute class, the students only have twenty minutes left among themselves to practice the language. Worse, if the class revolves around the teacher asking questions and one studentanswering, each student in a twenty-person class will only have about a minute each to talk.

Most game templates on Waygook.org (bomb and bell games etc...) do just that. They minimize student talk time, which allows strong learners to do well and makes weak to average learners fall behind. Because students don’t get a lot of time to practice the language, they cannot reinforced what they were “taught.” It takes away from op-portunities for learners to work together or for meaning negotiation through peer teaching and peer learning. The best way to counteract this is to include activities and games that require students to work in small groups and teams, allowing multiple students from each group to occupy the same space in time at once. This will help maximize and equalize student talk time in the classroom, and along with the other issues mentioned, will hopefully be a start in changing the teaching culture in South Korea to benefit Young Learners of the English language.

d11nguye@gmail.com

dinh nguyen

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Having a negative outlook in South Korea is something that many people have mentioned

to me before. I can’t really say whether there are more vocal, negative foreigners here than elsewhere, or if we, as foreigners, generally become more negative during our time here.

When trying to decipher the reasons why some expats here may be more negative in nature, I can only infer a few reasons why this might be and hopefully offer some advice on how to avoid becoming that grumpy expat we all too often encounter.

First, it could be that the added stresses of living in a foreign country- the rigid Korean culture, lack of language skills, and general loss of independence- has a negative effect on people. Countless times, I have seen someone blow up at a clerk or waitress because their order wasn’t correct when the reality was the foreigner couldn’t communicate their order correctly in the first place.

These stresses of living in Korea are tough and people often do suffer from culture shock here. We could be encountering people during various stages of this, at times when they are not acting quite like themselves.

It also could be that some of the negative

people here left wherever it is they came from

Letter from the Coordinator

Having a Negative Outlook in Korea Making the best of undesirable situations with what you have

already in a grumpy state of being. I think we are more likely to leave somewhere if we are unhappy in the first place.

Or maybe we as teachers are just generally more stressed, as this is mostly who we en-counter living here. Let’s face it, our job is tough and we often see others on the weekends after what are likely tough weeks for most.

These are just a few possible reasons from

the top of my head. However, there could be any number of reasons for this dour attitude, if it is, in fact, that. To prove or disprove this, it would need to be studied through research measuring happiness levels before, during, and after their time in Korea in some sort of com-parative study similar to those used to measure the happiness of nations worldwide. This is much too complex for me, but one thing I can do is to try to offer some advice.

For me, as the coordinator, I try to be pretty straight forward and as honest as I can. I always say most people have a grand time here in Korea and I think this is true. I also say, that those that do not, often leave not regretting the experience because they have learned a lot about themselves through what could be con-sidered learning through adversity.

Recently, I experienced this myself, and in a difficult situation I learned a valuable lesson about myself; a lesson that we should consider in our lives living here in Korea.

For me, this was not in Korea, it was dur-ing my travels. A recent trip started out great, I couldn’t be happier. I spent the mornings run-ning along picturesque ridges, through jungles filled with monkeys and in villages where locals were just starting their days. I was in one of my favorite places in the world, Ubud, Indonesia. Everything was ideal but suddenly changed. I went from living and loving paradise to run-

ning into one problem after another. I’ll try to sum up the details of my major difficulties as briefly as possible.

They started with my early morning run, my phone (containing my credit card and money) was stolen by a couple of guys cruis-ing by on a scooter. To make matters worse, in pursuit of them I sprained my toe. Urgently I try to cancel my phone and credit card through the hotel reception while watching what little money I had disappear from international rate charges.

Two days later, a flight destined for Lom-bok Island from Bali, which I had bummed a ticket for, had technical difficulties. One of the propellers stopped spinning and we had to re-turn to our departure airport. The plane was noticeably listing to the left and was beginning to lose altitude. It wasn’t long before every-one on the flight noticed and the passengers become anxious. This anxiousness was conta-gious because more and more people seemed to become worried. I was nervous, but knew quite well that a plane can travel a good distance on one propeller. I expected a rocky landing, at best, but the pilot was able to bring us in smoothly.

After waiting about 6 hours, a new

plane became available. Unfortunately, being monsoon season in Indonesia, the weather became horrendous; tacking on an extra thirty minutes to what was supposed to be only a thirty minute flight. With the passengers already stressed from the first flight, every minute after our scheduled time of arrival became more and more worrisome. Eventually, to the relief of ev-eryone, we landed.

Once on the island, I headed to my beach view villa, which was well off the beaten track and by this, I mean the driver couldn’t find it.

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Eventually he did, but because of the monsoon rains early that day the road was pretty washed out and slick leaving me no choice but to finish the rest of trek on foot. Muddy and pitch black I made my way through farm fields and small villages on the dirt road.

I managed to settle in nicely, staying close to my villa for the first two days and living off of the cheap essentials I got from a convenience store and $0.80 nasi bangus. However, on my third day at the villa, I was up early and decided to head down to the beach to catch the sunrise. Because we were on the side of a mountain, the road was quite steep and not well kept. Coupled with the rain, these made for treacher-ous conditions. On the way to the beach, my scooter tire caught a lose rock causing me to lose control in the slick mud and crash.

The left side of my body was scraped and bruised from my leg all the way up to my shoulder. The scooter had a broken left mirror and scratches all down the left side. I had to pay for the damages. This wouldn’t have been so bad, but I was already broke. Luckily though, my injuries were somewhat minor and my own medical care was enough to take care of things well enough.

Still down on my luck, I chummed around the resort with my close friends who helped me out financially. I was lived mostly off of their kindness. One night, I decided to join the others for dinner and a few drinks at the resort restaurant. Just as my friend, and now source of money, went to pay for his food, he realized he lost his card and now had no way to access his money.

After helping my friend try to retrieve his card to no avail, I realized I was with someone who I had been relying on for money who no longer has access to his

own money. Now, like me, he has to bum money from others and I was left bereft a patron.

With the little funds I had, I decided it was best that I headed back to Bali, where a new credit card would eventually arrive. I had just enough money to get to a friend’s office. I made it there with $5 to spare—enough for a nice tea to sit and relax with.

Over the next few days, I took it easy and relaxed at my friend’s place. During this time, I reflected on everything that happened so far. It was quite an experience. There hasn’t been many times in my life where I felt so down on my luck or misfortunate. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized how lucky I really was and am.

The first thing I came to realize is that we have always have a choice. Yes, I could have been miserable and complained the whole time about the problems I faced and wished to go home. This would have been a natural route to take. At times like this you learn the most about yourself, your life, and what you really need or want. Things just didn’t seem to go right, but I learned that regardless of the difficulties we face, we have a choice in how we feel about it.

So, I embraced my misfortune and did my best to enjoy myself regardless. And the thing is, by choosing to do this, I also realized this idea of choice applies to our everyday life. We can decide on our happiness, how satisfied we feel, and on our outlook on life. It is up to us.

I think this is something that really applies to us here in Korea. I see some people who chose to be happy, embrace Korea, and all the wonderful things here despite the numer-ous difficulties and frustration we also face. I see others, and we all know them, who choose

differently and because of it are not enjoying themselves or benefiting as much as they could from the experience

With my newfound outlook from my “va-cation,” I decided to embrace the rest of my journey with a positive mindset, meeting the next problem with a smile. I wish I could say there were no more disasters on this trip, but I would be lying. There were, but not as directly involving me.

My vacation was different a lot different from many in my past, but it was great too. I learned a lot and honestly, I can’t wait to go back to Indonesia. I love the people, the food, the climate, the sights and basically everything about it. But, like anything, it is all how we per-ceive it to be, and if we want something to be terrible, it will be. If we can look past that and try to see the positive things no matter the situ-ation, we will be able to enjoy ourselves despite whatever adversity we are facing.

I hope the teachers who are having a dif-ficult time in Korea can do the same and, through a simple change in their outlook on things, I hope they can enjoy Korea as much as I did my vacation.

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Photo EssayCherry Blossom

s across the province

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As I come closer to the end of my second year in Korea, I realize that it’s my last chance to make up for missed opportunities. Last year I was so concerned with adjusting and living in Hampyeong that I forgot to take the time to appreciate the festivals surrounding me. This will be the last time I can experience cherry blossoms, so I thought why not spend it with those who have made my time here unforgettable? From Hwasun and Yeongwang, we traveled to Ulsan where we met up with close friends. From there we took the slow train to Gyeongju. The day was spent taking pictures and hiking, and ended with a packed lunch we made together. The energy of the crowds, paired with the amazing company made this a perfect day.

Susan Sahab

From Hwasun to Ulsan

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Continued from page 10Cherry blossom season is a big photo opportunity. It was really endearing watching these girls check each other’s hair and makeup, set up their tripod, and get ready to pose. I couldn’t help but ask them if I could take a shot too.

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We decided to pack a lunch and have a picnic at the park after we explored. Lunch was pretty serious.

Continued from page 12

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sausan sahab

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Teachers of Korea

joe campbell

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You've just about spent just about a year in Korea. Try and encapsulate the experience in a few sentences

My time in Korea has been energetic, insane, fun, and full of crazy situations, but it has also been calming, relax-ing, peaceful, harmonious, intimate, and spiritually engaging. All in all, just beautiful. Beautiful because my time in Korea has been like an amazing movie:full of emotional highs and lows, excitement, and sometimes even pain. Yet what I have found has been a sense of awe and appreciation for all my experiences: good, bad, crazy, or Zen.

What aspect of Korean culture do you relate to ,or appreciate most?

One of my co-teachers said it perfectly: “It doesn’t matter where you live; what matter are the people.”

This is hard for me to describe, but there is something about Korean people that I find to be very special. Having traveled extensively and lived in four different countries, I can pick up something distinct here. It’s their temperament – the Korean personality, I guess. It’s calm, easy going, honest, and humble. In America, I found people always “acted out,” meaning they always seemed to have an ulterior motive when they spoke. In Korea, I’ve encountered very little ego. I’ve never had to worry if my communication was cool, tough, or funny. It became kind of meditative for me…everything I did, when I did it the “Ko-rean way,”felt real and honest. It took me awhile to relax into this state, but I am thankful that it became comfortable. Being humble and direct with people will always be a part of me now.

What was the most frustrating thing about living in Korea?

It was during winter when I was sick for nearly four months with some mysterious illness. Going to the doctor twice a week, running the gauntlet of Korean prescription drugs, not being able to see my friends or do anything fun…I felt helpless. The language barrier just multiplied my sense of isolation with the whole experience, espe-cially when my family was so far away.

Bridging the communication gap is, I think, an inevitable frustration when first living in a foreign country. School lunches, for example, were often full of long, awkward silences that sometimes prodded my nerves, especially during the first few months when I was still getting the hang of basic communication in Korean. This is just a natural hurdle though. I found the best just to keep smiling and puzzle it out when I received confused gazes from my students, teachers, or local friends.

Think back to how you felt when you first came to Korea and how you feel now. Please share some words of encouragement for those just starting here who might feel over their heads.

When I first came, I realized I had this amazing chance: I was in a new country, overwhelmed with hundreds of new and fun things to experience; and I only had one year.

My advice: go full on! Go in headfirst and don’t look back. This has been the fullest year of my life. Friendships, smiling faces, eager students, teacher dinners, night clubs, parties, camping trips, bike tours, hikes, dates, road trips, saunas, incredible food, bamboo toothpaste(!), noraebangs, bus rides, beaches, and countless amazing smaller moments, like watching English really click with a student, or sharing a great experience with a new Korean friend. Months after I arrive at home, all that has happened here will still be soaking in.

I was nervous when I first came to Korea, like you will be, and that is just natural. But even if you’re nervous, the best way to have fun is simply to never say “no.” Always go to the dinner, party, extra class, social engagement, movie, adventure, or whatever. You will find countless fun things to do every day of the week.

joe campbell

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Want to get involved with Bibimbap? Good news, we’re accepting new writers.

Looking for volunteer writers for the following:

Anise

Seed

A recipe I find really appetizing

and nutritious is homemade chicken soup. There is a balance

of protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates that make it a great addition to a healthy diet.

Chicken soup is available in Korea, but

it's uniquely Korean. It means that it's ei-ther quite hot and spicy or you can order a whole chicken with ginseng at a restaurant.

The reason I like this recipe so much is that it's something I can cook at home in small quan-tities or in a large batch for a shared dinner or even to freeze for later in small plastic containers.

While it's easier to buy foreign foods in Korea these days, it's harder to get "healthy" foods without too much fat or too many carbs. This is an ideal soup which is a great comfort food yet low in calories. Also it pro-vides a little variation in our daily fare.

Star anise seeds are available from Chinese food stores. I got my star anise from the Chinese food store opposite Megabox in Mokpo. This store also carries chicken stock cubes. If you don't have star anise or chicken stock, you can try adding extra salt, pepper, and soy sauce.

You can also add extra carbs to this soup, if you’d prefer. I like to drop in some frozen dump-lings (mandu) in the last 10 minutes of cooking, or pasta spirals in the last 20 minutes of cooking.

If you want this to be gluten free you can add 3 tablespoons of rice or a diced raw po-tato at the start of cooking as well.

The Recipe Box

Chic

ken

Soup

Ingredients 1.8kg Chicken pieces ( 1 chicken cut up or frozen drumsticks)12 Cups water3 Onions chopped4 Ribs celery or 1 ae hobak (like a zucchini)4 Carrots, sliced1 Tablespoon raw ginger, slivered Salt and pepper to taste2 Star anise seeds1 Teaspoon soy sauce Optional: 1 Chicken stock cube.

Directions 1. Peel and dice onions, celery (or ae hobak) and carrots. Place in large pot.2. Add the chicken and the water.3. Add the raw ginger, salt, pepper, star anise, and soy sauce.4. Cook over low heat for 40 minutes to 90 minutes.5. Skim the fat and scum off, into a bowl.6. Remove the chicken pieces and cool. Cut the meat off the bones.7. Add the chicken meat back to the pot. Heat.8. Taste and adjust seasonings, by increasing salt, pepper or soy sauce.

Variation:During the last 15-20 minutes of cooking you can put several hard boiled eggs into the pot, as the Chinese gold miners did, while they were living and gold mining along the Californian Coast during the Great Gold Rush of 1849.

elizabeth anne

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chris devisonJlP/rlP coordinator

Immigration seems to change their policies a lot and often all the offices in our province are

not on the same page. I’ll lay out the process as it was at the time of our last renewal process; however I always recommend calling Immigration using their English Hotline (1345) to verify the procedure before venturing there.

Renewal Checklist :

• Passport

• Alien Registration Card (ARC)

• Teaching Contract

• Business registration certificate (학교사업자등록증)

• Copy of your teaching schedule

• Copy of housing contract (월세계약사 or 임차계약사)

• 60,000 won fee in the form of a suibinji (수입인지)

• Application form

The schedule can be from the previous semester and you can get the application form when you visit the immigration office. The su-ib-in-ji (수입인지) can be purchased at most main branch post offices and can come in the form of a stamp or a paper, both pictured. Be careful not to confuse this with when you initially applied for your ARC the first time, which you paid 30 000 KRW for. You must use the su-ib-in-ji for renewals. Unfor-tunately, the renewal is double the price and effort.

The business registration cer-tificate, schedule and housing con-tract can be obtained through your co-teacher or the co-teacher of the school you will be transferring to. You can make the schedule yourself if necessary; it doesn’t need to be anything official.

Teachers can renew up to 60 days before the expiry of their ARC card.It is important to check your ARC card’s expiry date to be safe becauseyou must renew before it ex-pires or you could be fined.

Also, it is your obligation to report any important changes involving your stay in Korea. This includes a change of address or employer. Under JLP contracts, your employer is the Su-perintendent and will always be even if you transfer schools. You should check your contract’s final page to verify this. If you were hired indepen-dently by your school, your principal should be listed as your employer. Transferring from an independent school to a JLP contract is viewed as a change in employer and should be re-ported. Also, when you transfer, your address will likely change anyway and needs to be reported. You have up to 14 days to report a change of address or employer to Immigration, and fail-ure to do so can result in a fine.

Lastly, you must go to the im-migration office for your area or the one for the area in which you will be transferring to. You cannot apply for a renewal in an area where you will not be working. Here's a list of the immi-

gration offices for Jeonnam.

If you are taking a taxi, you can show this to the driver: Immigration —출입국관리사무소 (click here).

chrisofficeofeducation@yahoo.com

The Renewal Process Everything you need to know for going to Immigration when the time comes

Top left: Each school should have a Business Registration Certificate for their Native Eng-lish teacher. You can request it from them when needed.

Top right: Su-ib-in-ji (money order) forms can be purchesed at post-offices. You can use them at Immigrations or at other places that accept them in place of cash, or credit.

Bottom: Su-ib-in-ji stamps have monetary values on them. They can also be purchased at post offices, and can be used on place of cash at places that take them.

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Healthy Musings

The Productive Day Breakfast

I strongly believe that we can exercise as much as we want to, but that, without proper nutri-tion, we will never have the results we are striving for. Nutrition is a struggle for many, and, for most, starting the day out with a simple, healthy, balanced breakfast seems to be the

most difficult thing to manage. This month, I hope to provide you with some simple breakfast ideas that are nutritious, yet quick and easy to prepare; ideal for those busy, active people who are looking for more energy and better results before the summer.

Like all my meals, I try to have a balanced breakfast to provide myself with everything my body needs for energy for the day ahead, and to also recover from my previous day’s exercise. I try to incorporate quality ingredients (when possible) and, although some of these may be difficult to find, they can be purchased in Korea, either in the larger marts or online. These ingredients, so-called “Super Foods,” really add the extra nutrition that those of us with a hectic lifestyle need.

Simple ,and healthy breakfast ideas for people on the go

Chocolate Banana Maca SmoothieIngredients1 cup almond milk 2 tbsp. hemp seeds 1 banana

1 tbsp. raw cacao power 1 tbsp. maca powder 1 cup ice

Sweeten with natural local honey to taste

Directions 1 Put all the ingredients in a blender and mix.

Note Almond milk can be found at most larger marts

and can also be substituted with other nut milk, soy milk, or even coconut water. Hemp seeds, raw cocoa

powder and maca powder can all be purchased online. The nut milk and hemp seeds provide a nice

dose of easily digestible protein, while the cacao and maca powders provide a bit of nutritional variety.

Some might be wary of adding chocolate (Cacao) to this, but when eaten in a raw, 100% cacao form,

it’s actually a super healthy food, full of antioxidants. It isn’t until we process it that we kill the nutrition by

adding processed sugars to it.

chris devison

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Chia Seed Breakfast Bowls4 tbsp. chia seeds

1 cup of water

1 cup of nut milkVarious other ingredients to suit your taste

Ingredients

1 Soak the chia seeds in the water over night and then add the nut milk of your preference until the mixture reaches your desired consistency.

2 Add any other additional ingredients you’d like to create the flavor you prefer.

Directions

You can also change the flavors, depending on what’s in season, if you should grow tired of what you’ve been making; so long as the chia seed base remains the same.

One recommended flavor combination is activated nuts, cinnamon and maple syrup. Activated nuts are nuts that have been soaked in water for at least a couple of hours. Nuts are best eaten after being activated because

the phytic acid is removed, making the body better able to absorb the nutrients within the nuts. This can be done to your chia seeds at night.

Although the maple syrup is sweet, cinnamon actually helps balance your blood sugar, as does the fiber in the chia seeds. The chia seeds also provide protein, omega fatty acids, and a list of other beneficial minerals. A second variation I like uses dates, nutmeg and orange zest.

Note

Spiked Kefir YogurtIngredients1 cup of Kefir yogurt

2 tbsp. chia seeds

2 tbsp. hemp seeds

2tbsp. ground flaxseed meal

Maple syrup to taste

Directions I use Kefir yogurt starter kits to make my own yogurt, which has less sugar than most conventional store yogurts. Kefir yogurt is also rich in probiotics. With that as my base, I add chia seeds and hemp seeds for added protein. The chia seeds are also rich in fiber. Additional fiber is added by including ground flaxseed meal. These two high fiber foods in combination with the kefir yogurt will help relieve anyone’s constipation if eaten for a couple days consecutively. Maple syrup is added for flavor, but other sweeteners can be used as well. Also, fresh fruit or berries are welcomed additions to this medley.

These three breakfast ideas are very filling, nutritious, and will help easily provide you with the energy to get you through to lunch. Once you have purchased the ingredients, these dishes require relatively little time and prep. It’s also easy to substitute ingredients in order to make variations which suit your palate. With breakfast meals this healthy and easy, we have no excuses for not starting our day out right.

dinh nguyen

chris devison

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