Ministry of Culture Holds Meeting for Korean Language Teachers Dispatched Overseas to Sejonghakdang

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 18th that it will hold a meeting at the King Sejong Institute Foundation at 3 p.m. for Korean language teachers dispatched overseas.

The Ministry’s Cultural Policy Officer, the Secretary-General of the King Sejong Institute Foundation, and others will attend to share the current status and challenges of Korean language education with about 10 overseas dispatched teachers and exchange opinions on ways to promote the Korean language and Korean culture. Additionally, the Ministry and the Foundation plan to request the dispatched teachers to continuously strive not only to spread the Korean language abroad but also to promote Korean culture.

Overseas dispatched teachers are Korean language education experts who hold Korean language teacher qualifications. The Ministry plans to increase the number of Korean language teachers from the current 184 to about 300. In the first half of this year, 39 new teachers were dispatched to 34 King Sejong Institutes in 24 countries including Shanghai, China, and Lisbon, Portugal, and about 80 more will be selected and dispatched to places in need of teachers in the second half of the year.

The Ministry and the Foundation are promoting various support policies to strengthen teacher capabilities and enhance their pride in order to dispatch excellent teachers. They provide living expenses necessary for stable activities locally, including housing support and special duty allowances, as well as safety management services. They also offer domestic pre-training and local re-education opportunities for capacity building. Going forward, they plan to continuously improve teacher treatment through diversifying educational methods and increasing living expenses to secure outstanding teachers.

Overseas dispatched teachers not only teach Korean language and Korean culture to local students but also provide training for local teachers and gather information on the demand and trends of Korean language and Korean culture in their assigned regions.

At the meeting, based on the experiences of these teachers, opinions will be exchanged on the direction that the 256 King Sejong Institutes in 88 countries worldwide should take. In particular, the Ministry plans to enhance the execution of Korean language and culture dissemination policies by incorporating field voices into the 'King Sejong Institute Innovation Plan' announced last year, which includes ▲advancing education using artificial intelligence and digital technology ▲strengthening the functions of hub King Sejong Institutes ▲the King Sejong Korean Language Assessment (SKA) and strengthening Korean language teacher capabilities.

Lee Haedon, Cultural Policy Officer of the Ministry, stated, "Overseas dispatched teachers play an important role in enhancing the appeal of the Korean language and Korean culture and contributing to more people getting to know Korea. The Ministry will strive to select even better teachers and continuously improve their treatment so that they can proudly promote Korea."

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