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[KF Mailbox] Making Korean a Global Language

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People > [KF Mailbox] Making Korean a Global Language
[KF Mailbox]Making Korean a Global Language

I am Dr. Choi Yeol, a KF visiting professor at the Prince of Songkla University (PSU) in Thailand. In 1986, PSU established Thailand’s first Korean language course, and in 1999, it was the first Thai university to open a Korean language department. Ranked among the top 10 universities in Thailand, PSU is a prominent institution. The school is headquartered in Hat Yai, Songkhla, in Southern Thailand, and has five campuses in the region. The department of Korean language is located at the Pattani Campus in Pattani. Many professors and teachers who currently teach Korean language at Thai universities and high schools are PSU graduates, as the school has played a significant role in the establishment of Korean language education in Thailand since its early stages. Under the influence of Hallyu, many universities in Central and Northern Thailand have established Korean language departments, and PSU functions as the home base for Korean language education in Southern Thailand today.

Southern Thailand, home to the prosperous Islamic culture of the ancient Pattani Kingdom, shares cultural, societal, and linguistic characteristics with nearby Malaysia. Unlike other Thai regions, where Buddhist customs are more established, Southern Thailand is largely Islamic, and its residents mainly use the regional Malay language instead of Central Thai, Thailand’s official language. PSU students, in most cases, use both Central Thai and Malay. Due to frequent incidents in the region involving armed struggles that aim to achieve independence from the central government, the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a travel advising Koreans to reconsider going to Southern Thailand.

Even under such circumstances, the Korean language enjoys steadily increasing popularity in Southern Thailand. It has been designated as an elective subject for college examination and is taught in a growing number of secondary schools. Still, schools in Southern Thailand lag behind those in Central and Northern Thailand in the number of Korean language teachers, students’ exposure to the language, and access to educational materials. In recognition of this situation, the KF has been offering active support and cooperation to foster excellent Thai instructors of the Korean language and hold annual Korean Studies workshops for secondary school teachers in Thailand. The KF also selects aspiring Korean language teachers in Thailand to complete the Korean Language Training Fellowship in Korea. Through its collegiate exchange program between Korean and Thai universities, the KF provides a semester of language training in Korea and the opportunity to experience Korean culture to third- and fourth-year students at Thai universities. This has garnered a positive response from high school students in Southern Thailand who are applying for PSU’s department of Korean language. Fourth-year students enrolled in the department experience teaching the Korean language at high schools in the region, and the required administrative steps for the establishment of a graduate school of Korean language education at PSU are currently being taken. In order to give practical help to graduating students, a business Korean language class has also been launched to introduce Korea’s corporate culture and teach effective Korean language skills for on-the-job activities.

To make the language global, it is best to achieve systematic and localized Korean language education carried out by excellent Thai teachers. To this end, the current Korean language education system led by native Korean teachers needs to be replaced by a system led by Thai teachers and assisted by native Korean teachers. With the support of the KF, the PSU department of Korean Language has embarked upon enormous efforts, including an overhaul of the curriculum, to produce qualified Thai teachers of the Korean language and to establish a localized Korean language education system with substance.


Prince of Songkla UniversityKF visiting professor, Dr. Choi Yeol

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