By Ines Min
Contributing Writer
Korean teachers around the nation are feeling nervous as they will be required to teach English using only the foreign language, in line with the Lee Myung-bak administration's decision to start the Teaching English in English (TEE) system by 2012.
Park Chang-seok, a professor at Kyung Hee University, said Wednesday that non-native speaking teachers are rushing to adapt to the new curriculum.
A workshop, which opened at the Suwon campus of Kyung Hee University, is part of the program to help more than 500 teachers learn how to teach English only in English.
This week's workshop, which will focus on writing in English, is hosted by the Korean Secondary English Teachers' Association (KOSETA).
The three-day event chooses a different teaching theme every year, ranging from practicing reading and listening comprehension to conversation. At this year's workshop, Park gave a lecture on how to write essays and journalistic news articles.
``English teachers are now feel growing pressure with the upcoming introduction of the TEE system,'' he said. His lecture included a brief explanation of how both Westerners and Koreans approach writing, aimed at helping the teachers understand the structural differences between the two.
Until now, most English classes in Korean schools have been taught by Korean-speaking teachers. The system change will prove difficult for many who are non-native English speakers.
``To teach in English, won't it be hard?'' Park asked about the 180-degree-turn in classroom requirements.
According to the new laws, teachers will also have to earn a TEE certificate ― a prospect that the conference is endeavoring to make seem less disconcerting. After earning the certification, teachers will receive incentives for their work, Park said.
The workshop hopes to help as many teachers as possible, but ultimately, the responsibility does not lie with KOSETA. ``They should be preparing themselves for the change by 2012,'' Park said.
Park Won-yong, a former KOSETA president, said in the opening ceremony that the organization had a duty to constantly improve teaching methods. The organization and teachers across Korea must rise to meet the growing needs of students, including working toward the new TEE regulations, he said.
``We should not shrink from this responsibility, rather, we should work on it," Park said. ``It is time for KOSETA to broaden its perspectives to try and find more practical solutions to teaching and learning English in Korea."