A Korean government agency has signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with three American universities this week to recruit hundreds of American students to teach English at rural Korean schools, Yonhap News Agency reported in Washington.
The three universities are George Mason University, the University of Northern Iowa and the University of Iowa, said Chung Sang-ki, head of the National Institute for International Education (NIIE), the partners of the three universities.
Under the Teach and Learn in Korea (TaLK) program, the NIIE, an affiliate of the education ministry, intends to provide rural Korean students with native English-speaking teachers while giving foreign students chances to learn the Korean language and culture.
The NIIE plans to recruit more than 300 native English-speaking students across the world this year, Chung said. They will be given a monthly stipend of 1.5 million won plus round-trip air tickets and lodging.
The initial contract period is six months and is renewable for up to two years, he said.
The NIIE already maintains similar MOUs with seven other universities, including the University of North Texas, Eastern Michigan University, the University of London, Nottingham Trent University, the University of California at Davis, De Anza College and Toccoa Falls College.
More than 600 foreign students are currently serving as English teachers in Korean rural schools under the TaLK program. More than 1,500 foreign students have joined the program since 2008 when it was initiated.
"The TaLK program has emerged as a successful scholarship program in such a short period of time due to a keen interest by second- and third-generation Korean-American students," Chung said, noting that more than half of the students participating in the program are Korean-Americans.