Problems Encountered by Western English Teachers with the Paperwork and Feedback Mechanism

Provided that the course offered to engineering students atisfies the accreditation requirement, faculty members are required to prepare a course syllabus and a report for each course, respectively, in the beginning and at the end of an academic term at a Korean university; native English-speaking teachers are no exception. Although the amount of work or time involved in doing the paperwork was not perceived to be of particular concern, it was found that the English teachers interviewed were quite frustrated with lack of communication regarding its purpose and use. Also troubling was the fact that instructions provided were incomplete and inaccurate. Consequently, these teachers were unable to provide entirely satisfactolY documentation, a situation which rendered this quality assurance measure virtually meaningless. To take full advantage of this type of paperwork, it is urged that an inclusive environment be fostered by debriefing the teachers as needed, supplying them with comprehensible instructions, and engaging them, when possible, in pertinent decision making processes.