At the Coffee Shop

By Seo Eun-mi

I like to go to the coffee shop early in the morning, especially on weekends. It's very relaxing and I enjoy watching the people in my neighborhood as they frequent the shop.

Coffee shops have become popular places where people come to read books and study. In fact, it is common to see many college students and youngsters studying there with their laptops. There are many free Internet zones at these shops that allow people easy access to information they wouldn't have otherwise.

In Korea it is no longer awkward to go to coffee shop alone, especially those in bookstores like Kyobo. As a result, I can enjoy reading a book and drinking some coffee without people looking at me funny.

In many ways, this is a reflection of Western influence on Korean culture. When I was in America it was a common experience for me to drink some coffee and read a book at a local store. This is why there are an increasing number of coffee shops in my country, especially in the metropolitan Seoul area.

I was at a coffee shop one Friday morning in Seoul. There I was, with a few other customers drinking coffee and reading books when a beautiful American entered with a group of kindergarten-aged Korean kids. Since the coffee shop was in the Gangnam area of Seoul, these kids seemed to be from some of the more wealthy families who live around the shop itself.

What is the purpose of bringing three- or four-year-old Korean kids to a coffee shop? What kinds of English expressions can they learn from the beautiful American teacher at an American-franchise coffee shop?

I saw them holding expensive drinks as they sat down with their American teacher. I was quite surprised to see three- or four-year-old kids being taught how to order drinks in an expensive coffee shop. All I could say was ``Wow, Korea is changing much too fast, and not for the better, I'm afraid.''

Although taking these kids to the coffee shop might have been the result of a conversation plan devised by the American teacher and the hagwon owner, and the parents may have thought it a good idea, I believe it is yet another example of teaching our kids Western capitalist thought more so than simply English education.

You see, in a capitalist country, it is indeed possible to do many things through a combination of individual freedom. However, it is important that we think twice before initiating certain actions, especially given the danger of ``implicit" education ― capitalist ideology in the form of ordering a drink.

Since there are other English-oriented shops in the Seoul area, it would be a better idea to think through the entire ramifications of an act beforehand. Moreover, there are plenty of good places rooted in Korean culture and history (museums, etc.) where the kids could go that would be culturally beneficial to both the students and the foreign teacher. In short, what's needed is an approach to English education that doesn't implicitly educate Korean kids in Western ideology.

In the final analysis, I think young Korean children should learn Korean language and culture while in kindergarten, with a quality English education coming later. I admit that English is very important to Korea's future simply because it is the ``international'' language, but much more important things need to be taught to little Korean kids since they are Korea's future.

The writer is professor of English at Howon University and an associate adjunct professor at University of Maryland University College in Asian Division. She can be reached at emseo@howon.ac.kr or eseo@asia.umuc.edu.