|
.jpg)
Main building of Kyung Hee University in Seoul |
By Kang Shin-who
Staff Reporter
 Kyung Hee University will seek ways to restore some of the dignity in university education that has got lost along the way.
Choue In-won, president of the university, said that he will lead the school against the commercialization trend common among universities these days.
``Universities are obsessed with professionalism today to meet the needs of corporations and government. Hence, many have become institutions churning out students with only professional skills while neglecting the creative and personal aspects of education,’’ Choue said in an interview with The Korea Times, showing his concern for an ``unbalanced’’ educational system.
``Universities should be guided by issues in the real world but not controlled by them. I will stress the important role of universities in society and regain the fallen dignity of university education,’’ he said.
Choue thinks that the excessive emphasis on professionalism has driven university students to be motivated solely to obtain high scores on English certification tests and prepare for the civil service examination.
He expressed concerns on the direction of the university students. ``Students should spend more time thinking about their future and developing their sense of self-worth as it is critical period of their life,’’ he stressed. `` How long can this narrow focus just on knowledge and skills continue? In this sense, it is very good that we are aware of the `humanities in crisis.’’’
As part of the steps to solve current problems at universities, the president will introduce various programs in cooperation with overseas universities and organizations.
``I want to create more opportunities for students to go overseas and experience the wider world. To this end the school will support them with administrative and financial aid,’’ he said.
Choue served as dean of the Graduate School of NGO Studies before he took over the president’s office in February. Hence his strong interest in NGO activities.
``In the past, Koreans saw NGOs as groups against the government ever since the country went through its dictatorship period. However, NGOs are the means for various people to voice their opinions and needs today,’’ Choue said.
The Global Academy for Neo-Renaissance (GANR) at the school was established as a multi-vision organization to embrace common civic values around the world through NGO activities, the president said.
Choue stressed that university curricula ought to change in accordance with globalization. ``I don’t say that it is less important now to find our roots and identification as Koreans. But we need to think about where Korean people were before they identified themselves as `Koreans,’’’ he said. ``Globalization asks us to learn about and embrace other peoples.’’
Choue, who became the 13th president of the school this year, is also a distinguished political scientist. He served as a board member of the Korean Political Science Association in 2002, was a member of the Transition Committee of the President of the Republic of Korea to Establish National Visions in 1997, and has been chairman of the Committee for the Global NGO Complex since 2000.
He graduated in 1977 from the Political Science Department at the school and continued his studies at the University of Pennsylvania where he acquired a Ph.D. Since then he has served as a professor of political science, a professor in the Graduate Institute of Peace Studies, dean of the Graduate School of NGO Studies, visiting professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and executive director of the Board of Trustees at Kyung Hee University.
kswho@koreatimes.co.kr
|
yistory@koreatimes.co.kr
