From May 21 to June 18, KSI Montreal, Canada, ran the 2026 Korean-French Bilingual Exchange Club (2026 Bilingual Exchange) over five Thursday evenings. The program was designed to give participants opportunities to practice Korean and French freely with partners from diverse cultural backgrounds and gain a deeper understanding of one another"s languages and cultures.

Each session was held for three full hours, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Participants met a new partner every 30 minutes for conversation, and each session was structured in three stages: an icebreaker, a core topic, and an in-depth discussion. This format supported both structured language learning and organic conversation.

The weekly themes were as follows: Session 1, Travel and Learning; Session 2, Everyday Life and Well-Being; Session 3, Culture and Codes; Session 4, Identity and Media; and Session 5, Imagination and Choice. Conversations expanded into in-depth social and cultural discussions, including why people learn foreign languages in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) and cultural differences between Korea and Canada, drawing enthusiastic responses from participants.

The program brought together participants with a shared passion for learning Korean and French. Reflecting Montreal"s identity as a multicultural and multilingual city, local participants from countries such as Canada, Colombia, and China came together with Korean participants in the same space. Learner Tamara Rousseau skillfully led the program, who served as the dedicated facilitator.

“Based on what we learned through trial and error in the first session, we gathered participant feedback to improve the later sessions. It was deeply rewarding to see participants communicate with such enthusiasm in Montreal, where many languages and cultures intersect. I am happy that this gathering became a welcoming community where people respected and cared for one another"s cultures.” ___ Learner Tamara, facilitator


“At first, I wondered how many stories we could share in just five short weeks, but the participants became close enough that we still continue to meet every week. In many cases, exchanges between Koreans who want to learn French and local residents who like Korea fade out before long, so I am grateful to have met friends who are building such a vibrant, mutually supportive community together.” ___ Learner Kim Seung-yeon, facilitator

“The passion of my friends in Montreal, who continue to challenge themselves in order to learn Korean, was a great source of inspiration for me as well. It was a time that helped me realize that communicating with courage, rather than perfection, is the beginning of language learning. By sharing conversations on new topics each week and naturally correcting one another"s expressions and pronunciation, we also built practical language skills together.” ___ Teacher Yoo Jin-hee, Hangeul School

Article by Ma Hyun-joo, Correspondent at KSI Montreal, Canada