SOUTH Korea’s next president Lee Myung-bak recently proposed hiring thousands of new teachers to strengthen English education and improve national competitiveness, The Chosun IIbo has reported.
Lee plans to inject approximately $4.2 billion into English education over the next five years, recruit 23,000 proficient English teachers by 2013, reform the academic curriculum of English classes in schools and build English libraries for children. English language class sizes will be reduced from 35 to 23 students and guaranteed English instruction per week will be increased from the current one or two hours to three. By 2010, most English classes will be taught totally in English.
The incoming government also plans to introduce the Teaching English in English (TEE) certificate for qualified teachers. Applicants eligible for the program are those who have completed regular English education courses including the Teaching of English for Speakers of Other Languages or obtained master’s or higher degrees in English-speaking countries. A limited number of teachers will be sent overseas to gain these qualifications and approximately $1.8 billion has been earmarked for this venture. Those selected through the TEE will get six months of training before being placed in schools.
For decades, almost all South Korean students have been taught English in Korean, with an emphasis on reading comprehension and grammar — a practice that produces few fluent English speakers even among college students. According to Lee, immersing teaching in English is the key to achieving success.
From this year, both middle and high schools in Seoul will have their English classes conducted entirely in English at least once a week. The expansion will take effect from the beginning of the first semester. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, this decision was made to allow students and teachers to adjust before 2010. The Office is optimistic that the transition to the new way of teaching will be smooth for most teachers. Sixty percent of teachers in Seoul say they’re able to teach entirely in English.
