The Korean governments new TALK (Teach and Learn in Korea) initiative has begun with the arrival of the first cohort of teachers. For details on the TALK program, see its website.
Fulbright Korea’s own ETA grant program has provided a model for other English teaching programs in Korea. For detailed information on the Fulbright ETA program, see the Fulbright website.
Officials from the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology have announced plans to strengthen online etiquette education in South Korea’s grade schools. Currently students receive instruction on internet ethics beginning in the fourth grade. Starting next year, such instruction will be given in the second and third grades.
According to the Donga Ilbo, “Twenty-two pages on Web etiquette will be included in ethics textbooks and supplementary teaching material. The chapter “My Friend, the Computer” will cover prevention of overuse and addiction to the Internet, and teach students to use polite words on the Web. The ethics textbook for fourth graders to come out in 2010 will have 20 pages on Internet etiquette. That for fifth graders to be introduced in 2011 will also contain 20 pages on preventing Web addiction.”
Interest in learning English is so pervasive in South Korea these days that official government statistics can hardly capture the scope of the activity. An article entitled “The English Frenzy in Korea” recently appeared on the KBS website. With regard to the size of the English education market in South Korea, the article suggests that ”The scope of the English-language education market in Korea reaches 4-5 trillion won annually, including private institutes, textbooks and overseas language programs. The Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development estimates the official number of English-language private institutes nationwide to surpass 3,000. But people in the private education industry say the actual number of private English institutes nationwide is at least 10,000, with their profits exceeding 2 trillion won a year.”
The article also noted that “The amount of private tutoring costs paid by students for overseas language courses or for studying TOEFL and TOEIC in order to find a job is enormous as well. After polling 2,348 college seniors, the School of Education of Ewha Women’s University found that each of the respondents spent 12.61 million won over four years on average on private education in order to find a job. Of that, 11.94 million won was spent on studying English.”
According to an official of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology quoted in the Korea Times, South Korea has set a goal to increase its international student enrollment to 100,000 by 2010. The plan is part of the revised “Study Korea Project” introduced in 2004. Included in the plan will be an increase in government-funded scholarships, more English-only and Korean language classes, more dormitories for students, and an easing of the rules for working while on a student visa. Ministry official Shin Kang-tak said, “Attracting overseas students has become important not only for education but also the economy and diplomacy. If the number of foreign students increases to 100,000, we can earn 160 billion won. Foreigners graduating from Korean universities will also serve as a driving force in this country, which is suffering from a low birth rate.’’ The number of foreign students in Korea has jumped three-fold over the last four years to 55,000 this year.
Nearly 70 high school administrators, teachers and counselors from seven different nations attended the first AP Summer Institute in Asia, co-sponsored by Fulbright and the College Board. To see the Institute brochure, use the following link.
The powerpoint presentation given by Dr. James Larson of Fulbright on the morning of Tuesday July 29th may be downloaded here. (double click on the link below to view the document or right-click and save to download it to your computer).
According to a recent article in the Chosun Ilbo, more and more Korean parents are enrolling their children for pre-school or kindergarten study of English, partly in response to the Lee Myung Bak administration’s broad English initiative. The government plans to increase English classes in elementary schools from the present 1-2 times a week to 2-3 times a week. In order to give their children an advantage when they enter elementary school, many parents begin teaching their infant children English. The Chosun Ilbo article futher notes that “Since the presidential Transition Committee announced its English education policy, at least 45 English-language schools have newly opened in the Gangnam and Mapo areas.” Staff members at English language kindergarten programs are reporting that enrollment levels have approximately doubled.
The Korea Times reports today that a group of illegal foreign residents from Middle East and African countries were apprehended Wednesday for teaching children English at 30 private language institutes in Seoul. See the full article for details.
Following last year’s presidential election, it immediately became clear that English education would be a priority of the new government. Multiple programs and initiatives have been announced to improve English education in South Korea. Of particular interest are the plans by the island province of Jeju to become an English-Education Hub. The local, self-governing administration of Jeju is promoting the development of an “English City.” (click on graphic to see a full-sized map with proposed location of the city) In that city by March of 2011, Jeju plans to build elementary, middle and high school programs in which students take courses entirely in English. For further detail, see the article in today’s Korea Times.
According to press reports, the number of elementary and middle school students studying overseas doubled over the past two years. The Korea Times reported that “In 2007, a total of 15,237 children from elementary and middle schools left Korea, compared to 7,090 in 2005. Most studied overseas for six months or longer, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education. The departure of those in primary schools has shown a two-fold increase each year since 2005. It rose to 8,298 in 2007 up from 2,453 in 2005. Middle school students showed a moderate increase from 2,520 in 2005 to 4,379 last year. However, the number of high school students studying overseas is falling. Peaking at 3,466 in 2006, the figure dropped to 2,560 last year”
An article in today’s Korea Times reports that the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education plans to allow hagwons to run until 11 p.m. from July. Currently, private cram schools have to close before 10 p.m. The curfew reflects concerns about students’ health and growing private education costs. However, teacher’s groups are protesting the move.
Citing information from the Korean Statistics Information Service the article reports that “last year 77 percent of students received private education paying on average 220,000 won per month; 89 percent of elementary school students, 75 percent of middle school students and 55 percent of high school students.”
