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네이버 공유 카카오 공유 트위터 공유 페이스북 공유

Helping Korean Language Education to Take Root in China

“What is the name of the Korean alphabet invented by King Sejong the Great?”, “What is the name of the Korean admiral who defeated the Japanese forces during the Imjin War, or the Japanese Invasions of Korea (1592-1598), and whose face appears on a 100-won coin?”
A quiz contest, similar to the popular ‘Ring the Golden Bell!’ quiz show on Korean TV, was held at the Culture Square of Beijing Foreign Studies University (October 13), as part of the Korean Cultural Festival, in commemoration of the 15th anniversary of Korea-China diplomatic relations. The contestants, students majoring in the Korean language at universities in the Beijing area, carefully listened to the questions about Korea’s language, history, and culture, and showed off their knowledge. The final three contestants were asked: “What is the mobile phone prefix number in Korea, in addition to 011, 016, 017, 018, and 019?” Although a difficult question for anyone not residing in Korea to know, Zhou Ying, a student from the Central University for Nationalities, had the correct answer, and was thus declared the contest winner.



This Korean Cultural Festival, of universities in the Beijing area, which had first been organized by Beijing Language and Culture University in 2006, was the second of its kind. The number of universities in Beijing with a Korean language department has increased from two in 1992, when Korea and China opened diplomatic relations, to eight in 2006, and nine in 2007. Currently, a total of about 1,000 students are enrolled in the Korean language departments of these Beijing-area universities.
From the time when the Foundation’s Beijing Office opened two years ago, I would often hear about a lack of exchanges among universities in the Beijing area with Korean language departments. To help address this situation, the Korean Cultural Festival was initiated by these universities in Beijing to provide an opportunity for the students and instructors of Korean to engage in the exchange and sharing of information.
With the attendance of about 500 students and professors of the Korean language departments from nine universities in the Beijing area, this year’s festival opened with congratulatory remarks from Beijing Foreign Studies University Vice President Zhong Meisun and Minister Lee Hyun-ju. This was followed by a Korean song contest. I felt a tingle of excitement while listening to the Chinese students singing favorite Korean songs or theme songs of Korean TV dramas popular in China.
The most outstanding performance was staged by a student group from the Central University for Nationalities. These sophomore-year students of the Korean language department presented a kind of musical skit that featured traditional music and dance, as well as popular songs. The jury, composed of professors from each university, gave the group high marks, especially in regard to the event’s ive of promoting student interaction and camaraderie. In addition, the event included a taekwondo demonstration, samulnori performance by Korean students enrolled in local universities, and a presentation by a female Korean language professor of Korea’s traditional costume (hanbok) and formal bowing, which enabled students to become more familiar with Korean culture.
In the afternoon, the scheduled sports events included tug-of-war and jokgu, a kind of foot volleyball, popular games often seen on the campus of a Korean university during a festival. During the tug-of-war competition, one side shouted: “Yeongcha! Yeongcha!” an exclamation in Korean, while the other side responded with: “Jiayou! Jiayou!” in Chinese.

In the meanwhile, about 40 professors from the Beijing-area universities participated in discussions on Korean language education, in regard to the current situation and ways to upgrade the curriculum. Many expressed concern about the need to gradually decrease the number of hours of Korean history and culture courses, to comply with the Chinese government’s policy directive to strengthen the education of practical foreign languages.
In addition to the Korean Cultural Festival, Beijing Foreign Studies University, the host institution of this year’s festival, organized a variety of activities, including a special lecture on the occasion of Hangeul Day, screening of popular Korean films, and photography exhibition on Korean culture in commemoration of the 15th anniversary of Korea-China diplomatic relations, thereby creating a Korea-related atmosphere on the campus throughout the week.
Of note, the Korean language program at Beijing Foreign Studies Universities, previously within a department of East Asian languages, has since been established as an independent department of Korean language, which is offering a master’s course on the Korean language, starting this year. In addition, Professor Miao Chunmei, the head of the department, received a Presidential Award from the Korean government for her notable contributions to promoting Korean language education in China, further adding to the celebratory mood on the campus.
To some, the festival might appear to be a kind of student talent show. But this is a simplistic view that does not take into account the opportunity for the Korean language students and instructors to engage in exchange and interaction, which was essentially nonexistent in the past. Although there is much room for improvement, I would strongly recommend that the Foundation continue its support for this festival so that it can be held regularly, in order to sustain its positive momentum.

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