메인메뉴 바로가기본문으로 바로가기
네이버 공유 카카오 공유 트위터 공유 페이스북 공유

Korean Language Textbooks Developed with Kookmin Bank’s Support

The Korea Foundation organized a workshop on the development of textbooks specifically designed for Korean-language learners in Vietnam, Mongolia, and Indonesia, with support from Kookmin Bank, which was held at the Korea Foundation Cultural Center on November 1. The efforts to develop Korean-language textbooks, tailored to the needs of learners in these three countries, was launched in June this year, thanks to a designated donation from Kookmin Bank, one of Korea’s leading commercial banks.
A joint development team, comprising 14 educational specialists from Korea and the three subject countries, presented a summary report of the proceedings of nine working sessions, on the efforts to develop Korean-language textbooks for beginners. Following the presentation of the report, which covered such areas as curriculum, syllabus, and organizational principles, the team members, outside advisors, and relevant specialists evaluated the development activities and discussed ways to make the textbooks more effective, based on local circumstances.
In particular, they discussed how cultural exchange and additional cultural elements could be integrated into the Korean-language textbooks, but without resulting in hasty cultural generalizations or comparisons, along with incorporating local cultural aspects, based on a multiethnic and multicultural perspective. They also suggested ways to make the Korean-language textbooks more responsive to the interests and demands of local educators and students.



Significance of the Project
Although the number of overseas universities offering Korean-language classes, as either a general or major course, has seen a dramatic increase recently, there is a noticeable lack of Korean-language textbooks tailored to the local curriculum and situation. For example, the ”Integrated Korean” textbook series for English-speaking learners was developed by the Korean Language Education & Research Center (KLEAR) over a ten-year period (1994-2003), with support from the Korea Foundation. But there are practically no Korean-language textbooks that can be utilized for the systematic education of learners in non-English-speaking countries.

Public-Private Cooperation
This project might well be the first such effort, aside from the KLEAR initiative for English-speaking countries, in which a joint team has been formed of experts from Korea and the participant countries for Korean-language textbook development, based on extensive survey activities and working sessions in order to reflect local conditions and better address the needs of the targeted learners.
Earlier this year, the Foundation commenced discussions with Kookmin Bank to solicit its assistance as part of the Foundation’s Designated Donation Program. During this process, the representatives of Kookmin Bank, having been interested in the Korean-language education overseas, expressed their interest in providing financial assistance for a KLEAR-type project for learners of Korean in Asian countries. As such, this endeavor can well be thought of having established a new model of public-private cooperation for the effective promotion of Korean-language education abroad.
It is worthy of note that these textbooks are being developed primarily for undergraduate students, majoring in the Korean language, at prominent universities in Vietnam, Mongolia, and Indonesia. However, the textbook organization and content have been designed with certain flexibility so that the material can be used by various levels of Korean-language learners, including self-taught learners and general readers.

SEARCH

통합검색

통합검색버튼
통합검색닫기

전체메뉴

전체메뉴 닫기