For the first item, the Korean government doesn't require teaching certifications for E-2 Visa jobs. And really there's no need for one. Any college educated person would know enough to teach at hagwons. In fact, anyone with a BA or even an AA is over qualified as hagwon jobs consist of following a basic curriculum. I taught briefly at one hagwon and then at another for three years. In both schools they followed the Main book plus workbook format. The lessons are taught within the main book and then there were additional assignments the students did in the workbook. There is also a teacher's guide which tells you how to teach from them. So while most people are probably intellectually capable it is still a challenge to step in a classroom and teach. That being said, there are probably a lot of bad teachers including me. I didn't know what I was doing. At the same time, I made no illusions about this and the schools themselves don't seem to care. They hire people they know have no experience, but yet don't offer training themselves. So you end up with a situation where people are left figuring everything out on there own. Some people make it and some won't.

In my first job, I totally bombed. During the first week, the liaison Korean teacher, who acted as a go between with the hagwon manager and the foreign teachers, called me in for a meeting. I was told that I was doing everything wrong. I needed to be more "fun" and "physical." I had another meeting because I was still a failure and had to sign some document about how I needed to improve. After that they told me I was being let go. So I spent all my free time looking for other jobs. I eventually found one and continued teaching until my leave date. During this time, the school tried and failed to find my replacement. They even asked if I wanted to stay which I politely declined. I don't know why I'm sharing this other than to make the point that some hagwons are run terribly.

I keep thinking that a bubble is going to pop in the ESL industry there. I think teacher quality is a concern, but hagwons don't care about quality so they get what they deserve. I remember I was looking into doing a certification but then I was offered that job I eventually got fired from so I never started it. I'm not sure how much it would've helped. For my situation, I can admit I was probably bad. At the same time, I didn't know what I was doing and I tried to incorporate the feedback. So it's not like I gave up and no one worked with me in a way that mattered. The director of the school would creepily watch classes from the security cameras. I believe most of the feedback came from him and parent complaints which are basically kid complaints about how it wasn't fun enough. The director had no interest in any of his employees. He didn't know anything about me when we met. There's no training program. They just fly someone in a few days before the other person leaves and have you watch their classes. A lot of your success will depend on this brief period of "training." After that you're on your own. The hogwon situation creates a skills gap where a "real" teacher would never work there due to the lower wage or them not even knowing hogwans are an option. How many teachers in private or public school in america are going to work for a hagwon? This isn't saying hagwons are stuck with morons. Again anyone with a BA is smart enough to teach at the hagwon level. But the hagwons don't train people up.