By Kang Hyun-kyung
Staff Reporter
The new government plans to spend approximately 4 trillion won (about $4.2 billion) over the next five years, with the objective of making Korea the best English-speaking country in Asia within a decade, presidential transition team Chairwoman Lee Kyung-sook said Wednesday.
Lee made the remarks at a public hearing on the proposed English education reform plan at the office of the transition team in Seoul Wednesday.
The hearing drew jeers for not inviting experts providing alternative plans to the proposal.
The incoming administration hopes the plan will help parents reduce private English tutoring costs for their children, which amounts to 14 trillion won per year.
Based on the suggestions made during the hearing, the team plans to finalize its plan early next month.
But a group of nine lawmakers of the pro-government United New Democratic Party (UNDP) opposed the plan.
The lawmakers, who are members of the National Assembly's Education Committee, told reporters that the plan would not help reduce household spending on private education as the transition team expects.
They summarized four realities facing schools and teachers, referring to stumbling blocks to the effective implementation of the program.
They said that teachers are not prepared to meet the high standards necessary; there was no consensus-building with stakeholders; the plan would rather deepen the ``education divide''; and parents would be pressed to spend more money on private tutoring.
They urged the transition team to review its plan.
Amid the polarized views, the chairwoman reiterated the need to overhaul English education.
She said the country is facing a ``do or die" situation when it comes to foreign language education.
``We live in an era where people's English skill is a core factor in determining the nation's competitiveness,'' she said.
According to the contemplated plan, the new government will outsource 23,000 proficient English-speaking Koreans by 2013, reform the academic curriculum of English classes in schools and build English libraries for children in collaboration with local governments.
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 (TESOL), obtained master's or higher degrees in English-speaking countries, and other fluent English-speaking professionals.
Those selected through the TEE will get six-months of training before being placed in schools.
However, critics question how the next government will finance the 4 trillion won needed for the project.
They also said the massive outsourcing plan could downgrade the quality of public education, after the transition team failed to present details of the recruitment and training programs for the outsourced teachers.