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Language education policy rarely attracts headlines in Korea or elsewhere. English education policy makes the news on and off in Korea, but news about other languages is rare. This is regrettable because the language education policy needs greater coordination so that it can effectively promote individual development and the national interest.
An overview of the current situation reveals the lack of coordination. Two languages are required in the elementary school through the first-year of high school: Korean and English. Both languages are also an important component of the university entrance examination.
Korean is required as the national language and dominates the early years of elementary school education. Literacy in Korean, the native language of nearly all students, is essential for success in all school learning. This is similar to most other countries in the world where literacy in native and national languages is required for success in the educational system.
English has been required from third grade of elementary school since 1997; previously, it began in middle school. Like Korean, English has been required since 1945, though the reason has not always been as clear. Currently, the main reason appears to be promoting national competitiveness in an increasingly globalizing economy.
Korean and English are not the only languages taught in schools. Classical Chinese is offered as an elective in middle and senior high schools, and ``second foreign languages" as electives in almost all high schools. The national curriculum includes Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish. Among these, Japanese is by far the most popular language, followed by Chinese. For years, French and German were most popular, but they have declined rapidly since the 1990s. The other languages are rarely taught.
Taken together, most students leave high school having studied four languages: Korean, English, Classical Chinese, and another foreign language. The problem, of course, is that few Koreans are satisfied with the outcome. Many students take extra language classes as part of university entrance preparation, but these classes focus on developing communicative language skills. Policy-makers and media pundits continue to complain about the poor overall level of English proficiency in Korea, arguing that it affects national competitiveness. The short amount of time for studying second foreign languages makes it difficult for students to develop much proficiency in the language beyond a few greetings.
The current paradigm in foreign language education emerged in the 1990s when the United States was overwhelmingly dominant after the end of the Cold War and English was extending its reach through the Internet. Policymakers logically pushed English, giving rise to elementary school English education and the listening component of the university entrance examination. Pressure to open the economy in response to the 1997 economic crisis added fuel to the fire, causing a brief flirtation with the idea of making English a national language along with Korean in 1999.
The 1990s are fading deeper into history as the rise of China changes the global balance of power. The idea that English is the only foreign language that Koreans need to know no longer fits the national interest. China has been Korea's largest trading partner for a number of years. Many Korean companies have a strong and expanding presence in China. By far the largest number of foreign students in Korea is from China, and the number of tourists from China is increasing rapidly. On all levels, interaction with China is vastly more active than in the 1990s or the early 2000s.
The importance of Chinese underscores the need for a three-tiered language education policy based on Korean first, English second, followed by a regional foreign language. Of the second foreign language taught in Korea, either Chinese or Japanese are the most important. Other languages are important for specialized needs, but they can be taught in specialized schools and at the university level.
Fortunately for Korean students, Chinese and Japanese share a common vocabulary based on Chinese characters with each other and with Korean. Knowledge of Chinese characters not only helps learn Chinese and Japanese, but it also helps vocabulary development in Korean. This is a great resource that the current curriculum ignores, forcing many parents to turn to private education for Chinese characters instruction.
The easiest and most effective solution to the problem is to teach Chinese characters in Korean classes beginning in the first grade of elementary school. This would give all students a basic knowledge of Chinese characters that they can apply later to learning Chinese and Japanese. It would also help them develop their Korean vocabulary through knowledge of word roots. It would make the Classical Chinese class more interesting for those who choose to take it.
Teaching Chinese characters in Korean class is an important first step toward creating a comprehensive language education policy that enriches Korean while giving students an advantage in learning Chinese or Japanese. Problems in English education, however, will require other measures.
The writer is a professor at the Department of Korean Language Education at Seoul National University. He can be reached at fouser@snu.ac.kr.
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