Colombia introduces Korean language classes at public schools for 1st time

Instructor Park Jung-mi, center, explains Korean grammar to intermediate-level students at the King Sejong Institute, the regional hub for Korean language education, Thursday, May 4, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Yonhap

In a milestone for Korea’s quiet but expanding cultural diplomacy in Latin America, the Korean language is set to enter Colombian classrooms as an official subject for the first time this summer.

Beginning in August, three prominent secondary schools in Colombia will integrate Korean language classes into their regular curricula, Korea's Ministry of Education said Monday. The rollout follows an agreement signed on Friday between the Korean Embassy in Bogota and the participating institutions: the Institute for Pedagogical Research and Action — which is affiliated with the National University of Colombia — alongside Colegio Nueva Granada and the Fundación Hogar Nueva Granada.

The initiative makes Colombia the seventh country in Latin America to introduce Korean into its formal primary or secondary school system, joining Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Paraguay.

For years, the global surge of interest in Korean culture has driven a demand for language learning in Colombia. But until now, that education was largely confined to King Sejong Institutes, weekend diaspora schools and university courses. These programs primarily catered to adults and the Korean immigrant community, leaving younger local students with few options.

Fulfilling the demand required some diplomatic improvisation. Because Colombia does not host its own state-run Korean Education Center, the initiative was brokered through a rare crossborder collaboration between the Korean Embassy in Bogota and the Korean Education Center based in Paraguay, whose officials worked with Colombian administrators to clear regulatory hurdles.

Seoul has systematically funded global language programs since 1999, dispatching textbooks, teachers and financial aid to foreign school boards. By last year, the program had expanded to 2,777 schools across 47 countries, reaching roughly 236,000 students globally.

Education officials hope the new courses will go beyond mere language acquisition, fostering a new generation of bilingual professionals capable of navigating the growing economic and cultural ties between Bogota and Seoul.

"This initiative in Colombia demonstrates successful, creative cooperation between our diplomatic missions and education centers in neighboring countries," said Lee Nan-young, the director general for international education planning at the ministry.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.