Writer홍보협력팀
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2023-08-31
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On August 7, 2023, a Talk Concert was held under the theme “Dreams of Future Generations made with Korean” at the opening ceremony of the 2023 World Korean Educators Conference — with Lucky, Honorary Ambassador of the King Sejong Institute, moderating the conversations in Korean among four foreign learners who are heading toward achieving their dreams by learning Korean; and three Korean educators who have been nurturing global talents at KSI. Shall we find out about their stories from the talk concert now?
Lucky: Hello. I am Lucky, an honorary ambassador of KSI who will be hosting the Talk Concert “Dreams of Future Generations made with Korean,” the highlight of today’s event. I truly believe that if a native language was your home, a foreign language is a window that opens your home to a new world. At KSIs around the world, which act as a window to Korean language and culture, many foreign learners are studying hard to make their dreams come true. And the Korean educators are also working hard for the education of learners at KSI. Today, as an honorary ambassador of KSI, I would like to help make today"s event a meaningful and enjoyable time through the participation of the four representative learners of KSI and three Korean educators who have been working hard for the sake of Korean education.
Ms. Lia, please tell us what motivated you to study Korean?
Well, I actually fell in love with Korea after watching a Korean historical drama. The drama was Jewel in the Palace, and there was a king and the palaces! It was fascinating to me because we don’t have kings in Brazil. (Laughs) That"s how I learned that the cultures of Korea and Brazil are very different. I felt that learning the language would help me better understand the culture of another country, and so I started learning Korean. In 2016, I heard that a KSI had opened in Brazil and immediately applied to start studying. The following year, I won the first place in the speech contest held at KSI Campinas. Afterwards, I came to Korea for the first time through outstanding learner training, and I fell more deeply in love with Korea’s charms. Currently, I am studying at a graduate school in Korea.
Ms. Ndiangui, I heard that you became a Korean teacher. How did you achieve your dream?
I am currently teaching Korean at KSI Nairobi, Kenya, where I learned Korean. After graduating high school, I did plays at the National Theater in downtown Nairobi, and I was recommended to go to KSI by a friend I met there, and went there for the first time out of curiosity, but as I learned Korean, it was so much fun that I gave up the theater I was in and started focusing on studying Korean. I had given up college because of my family circumstances, but a teacher at KSI recommended me as an outstanding learner, and I was able to get a scholarship to finish graduate school at a Korean university. Actually, my dream was to become a teacher when I was young. Thanks to KSI, I was able to make my dream come true!
Here is another incredible person with us. After studying at KSI, she graduated university in Korea, and is currently a university professor in Korea. Ms. Och Bileg! I wonder what kinds of efforts you"ve made.
Hello, I am currently working as a professor at the International Education Center, Tech University of Korea. I finished intermediate level at KSI in Mongolia and came to Korea. I studied really hard at a Korean language institute. When I first came to Korea, I wanted to talk to Korean people but didn"t have any friends, so I went alone to cafes after school and talked to Korean people there in three sentences. “Hello, I am a foreigner. I am doing my Korean assignment and there is something I am not sure about. Please help me.” When I took the courage to say these words, the conversations continued naturally.
I heard that you have a special connection to Korea.
I was born in Germany, but my parents are Turkic, so I am a Turkic German. My grandfather was a veteran of the Korean War. So Korea did not feel unfamiliar to me. I also fell in love with K-drama and K-pop, and started learning Korean at KSI Korean Cultural Center, Germany, in 2017. When I came to Korea for the first time in Korea in 2018, I saw a photo of my grandfather at a museum. When I told the people around me that he was my grandfather, they applauded and welcomed me. That is when I learned the warm nature of Korea and wanted to stay in Korea.
First, you won the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award at the Outstanding Teacher Contest at the 2023 World Korean Educators Conference. Congratulations on winning the award! What is the most challenging or the most rewarding thing about teaching in Tashkent?
Thank you. Working as a teacher, you go back and forth between hell and heaven several times a day. For example, I prepared a class really hard, and the class didn"t go as I expected. Then I saw the faces of my students and thought, “Ah, I messed up in this class. I must be really bad at this. I should start preparing to become a civil servant now.” Then in the next class, the students really enjoyed the lesson, and everything went smoothly, so then I thought, “Wow, I must be really talented in teaching Korean. This is my true calling.” And now I feel very rewarded. (Laughs)
I understand that Vietnam has the most KSIs in the world!. Why is Korea so popular in Vietnam?
I think Vietnam currently has the highest interest in the world in learning Korean. Korean language learning is increasing due to the influence of Hallyu, but there are also many other reasons. First of all, the numbers of universities with Korean major and middle and high schools who offer Korean as a second language are increasing. And it is the only country in the world that has adopted Korean as their first foreign language. So, I believe that the demand for learning Korean language and culture will continue to grow.
Are there a lot of students learning Korean in Pakistan? I wonder how people there relate to Korean.
The popularity of Korean language learning is growing in Pakistan. The number of students learning Korean for employment purposes is increasing day by day. The cultural academy operated by KSI is particularly popular. Inquiries about classes are also growing, so we even need to worry about selecting students because the number of students is fixed.
