23 Trainees from the Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals Set to Be Hired as Teaching Assistants

23 outstanding trainees began training at 8 KSI branches in September
Catherine Evangeline and Hoang Minh Nhat Han underwent a successful transition from learners to teaching assistants

23 outstanding trainees from through the first-ever Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals implemented by the King Sejong Institute Foundation (KSIF, president: Kang Hyounhwa) in 2020 will serve as teaching assistants at KSI locations.
Training Locals as Korean Language Teachers to Resolve Shortages On September 22, the KSIF announced that 39 locals were trained in the Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals in Vietnam and Indonesia. What is notable is that 23 of those who finished the program will receive 3-month training at eight King Sejong Institute (KSI) locations in Indonesia and Vietnam starting in September and work as teaching assistants.

The Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals was launched in 2020 to train locals as Korean language teachers in areas where there are shortages of native teachers. This year, it was organized in four countries, Vietnam, Indonesia, Turkey, and India, with the program taking place from May to August in Vietnam and Indonesia, from July to October in Turkey, and from August to December in India.

The 23 outstanding trainees will be given an opportunity to create teaching plans together with the KSI teachers and sit in classes to learn how to teach Korean. They will also aid learners by explaining grammar in the local language and more.

Two Former Learners Take the First Step as Korean Language Teachers at KSI Among the trainees recognized for their excellence, some were former learners at the KSI. Catherine Evangeline (22), who is working as a baker in Jakarta, Indonesia, has taken the first step as a Korean language teacher at the main KSI branch in Indonesia, where she studied Korean for 3 years from 2018. Catherine started learning Korean on her own in middle school while watching the drama, “Boys Over Flowers,” before taking formal classes. Her skills gradually improved, and she went on to win the silver prize at the KSI Korean Speaking Contest in 2018 and the gold prize at the KSI Korean Writing Contest in 2019. She said, “I’ll become a Korean language teacher whose classes are perfectly tailored to Indonesians like me.”

Hoang Minh Nhat Han (20) is another outstanding trainee, who learned Korean at the KSI in Vietnam. In just 3 years after she began her studies, she is helping learners as a teaching assistant. In Vietnam, proficiency in Korean gives advantage to those in the job market, which is one of the main reasons Hoang Minh Nhat Han actually started studying at the KSI. While getting to know Korean culture, she grew even more interested in the language, and she honed her skills by translating K-pop lyrics. Aspiring to become a Korean language teacher, she signed up for the Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals. She said, “Those who are studying Korean for the first time can gain more help from local teachers. Even as a teacher, I’ll keep studying so that I can teach Korean even better using my Vietnamese skills.”

Lee Eun-gyeong, the Dean of the Department of Korean Language at Sejong Cyber University which conducted the lectures for the Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals in Vietnam, said, “Prospective teachers in Vietnam were more enthusiastic and proficient than I had expected. I can’t wait to see their accomplishments in the future.”

Usmi, Professor of Korean Study at the University of Indonesia who gave lectures in the program, said, “It was a golden opportunity for prospective Korean language teachers to gain knowledge in the Korean language and also contemplate effective teaching methods befitting local conditions.”

raining Locals Teachers to Address Shortages in Vietnam and Indonesia Vietnam and Indonesia are two of the top regions with shortages of Korean language teachers. In Vietnam, there is a high demand for learning Korean as a result of 3,031 Korean companies setting up offices and factories in the country as well as the immense popularity of Korean popular culture attested by 46 hallyu (Korean) clubs. 29 universities offer programs on Korean studies, and nearly 12,400 people studied at the local KSIs in 2019. There are also around 4,180 elementary, middle, and high school students studying Korean as a second language. Yet there are not enough teachers to meet the growing demand. Plus, with reduced international exchanges of human resources due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for local teachers has skyrocketed. Amid this situation, the training program for locals is expected to contribute to addressing the shortages.

The imbalance between the interest in Korea and the Korean language and the infrastructure for related education is also observed in Indonesia. According to the 2020 Overseas Hallyu Status Survey Report published by the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE), favorable attitude toward Korean cultural content in Indonesia is 89.6%, the highest among all 17 countries surveyed. However, there are only four universities offering specialization programs related to Korean, and only one of them is a university of education, indicating that there are limited opportunities to learn how to teach Korean.

Han Ju-Hee, a teacher at the main KSI branch in Indonesia who participated in the Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals in Indonesia, explained, “Indonesia is a country where people have a favorable attitude toward Korea and where there is a considerable demand for Korean education, but there are not enough Korean language educators. Through the enthusiasm shown by the trainees in the education program and the high level of satisfaction they reported, we were able to see how such an opportunity was eagerly sought in Indonesia.”

Training Local Korean Teachers Will Pave the Way for Further Dissemination “The Korean Language Teacher Education Program for Locals is creating a virtuous cycle where advanced learners who have studied Korean in depth are turning into teachers to teach new learners. We will provide the support necessary to further promote the program,” said Staff An Ha-nee from the KSIF who was in charge of the program.

The KSIF kicked off the program in Vietnam and Indonesia this past May. After a 120-hour education program, trainees put their knowledge and skills to practice by sitting in actual classes and giving mock classes for a duration of 20 hours each. In Vietnam, 24 people signed up, and 19 people finished the program, while in Indonesia, 20 out of 28 trainees completed the program. In Vietnam, 68 people applied for the program, which had a quota of 24, so the competition to get in was fairly high at 3:1. The program is currently being conducted in Turkey and India, and completion ceremonies will be held this coming December.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) is planning to develop and run a broad range of teacher training programs, based on the Korean Language Propagation Plan (2020-2022), so as to enhance the professional expertise and skills of teachers at the KSIs. Also, there are plans to train local teachers in areas in the New Southern and New Northern regions where there are shortages of Korean language teachers in order for the demand for Korean education to be met locally.