Page 6 - ELG1601 Oct Issue 440

Page ii ELAsia Pacific 2016

Kan independent national Korea adapts to change pages driven by a ‘fill the gap’
orea Tesol (Kotesol) was
established in 1992 and is
approach to learning.
Conversation
instruction
affiliate of the US-based Tesol is often oriented to job inter-
International Association, as well views or job-related functions.
as an associate member of UK- Brian Dean, Robert Dickey and Kathleen Kelley describe the The traditional general Eng-
based Iatefl. The membership lish conversation classes that
of Kotesol includes elementary constantly shifting world of South Korean English language teaching were taught for many years are
school, secondary school and now seen to be no longer good
university English teachers and enough.
professors, as well as ELT teach- The national government, instructors in after-school pro- All this change has been a
ers-in-training, administrators, meanwhile, strives to improve grammes. Most of the English key focus of teachers and lead-
researchers, materials writers, education and results. Attempt- Villages have closed or drastically ers in Korea Tesol. The principal
curriculum developers and other ing to combat the perceived reduced their throughput. Ansan theme for Kotesol’s 2016 inter-
interested people. Approximately need for expensive private closed a couple of years ago and national conference is ‘Shaping
30 per cent of our members are schooling, the government has another major English village, in the future with 21st century
Korean nationals. created an educational television Gyeonggi, shut its doors after ten skills’. This follows from the
Families in Korea pay more channel which covers all the years in May 2016. theme of last year’s conference,
for English language learning material needed for the univer- Even in private language schools ‘Transitions in education’. n
than residents of other countries sity entrance exam. and universities, the number of
but don’t get comparable results. The government has also cre- English teachers has dropped sig- Brian Dean is professor of
Much of the education process – ated ‘English Villages’, where nificantly, with English teacher ESL at Dongseo University,
for all subjects, not just English students can spend a week in visas issued falling from 30,000 in Kathleen Kelley is president of
– is driven by the demands of the a simulation of a town of Eng- 2008 to less than 15,000 in 2015. the Busan chapter of Kotesol
university entrance exam (Su- lish speakers, with the first one, Korea is the most internet- and teaches at Andong
neung), with the Korea Scholastic Ansan English Village, opening wired (and wireless-accessible) National University, Rob
Aptitude Test university entrance in 2004. Most English Villages country in the world, but online Dickey is a past president for
exams for English taking place Courtesy Jeroen Root / Kotesol were run by non-profit organi- English education has not grown Kotesol and professor of public
across Korea over a single day. sations under the control of much beyond video-on-demand administration at Keimyung
This year it’s on 17 November and national or local government. lectures and interactive web University in Daegu.
listening is now included (see the The goal was to save parents the
December 2015 Gazette for the cost of sending a child overseas.
latest exam reforms). Rote memo- EMBRACING CHANGE The theme for last year’s popular In another attempt to improve Korea Tesol: 15–16 October 2016
risation is still a key element of Kotesol conference in Seoul was ‘transitions in education’ ESL, native-speaker English The 2016 Korea Tesol International Conference (https://
success. teachers were hired to work in koreatesol.org/ic2016) will be held 15–16 October at
Grades are important and education levels. by government to mitigate the most elementary and middle Sookmyung Women’s University in Seoul. Speakers
competition is extreme, with Among the many private ‘negative impact of excessive schools. include Thomas S.C. Farrell of Brock University in Can-
many young people complain- schools and independent educa- private tutoring’ (see the April Whatever the value of the ada, author of many books on reflective practice for EFL
ing about ‘Joseon Hell’ (Joseon tors in Korea, even at pre-school 2016 Gazette for the Consti- ideas, the results were not sat- teachers, Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, teacher on the
being an ancient name for level, there is a focus on ‘test- tutional Court upholding this isfactory. Government-funded Neuroscience of Learning course at the Harvard Uni-
Korea). The suicide rate for able’ English – or at least ban on early-years English). teaching positions for foreign versity Extension School, William Littlewood, honorary
young Koreans is the highest completing workbooks (‘tangi- Grades 4–6 are conversation- native-speaker teachers (the Eng- professor at Hong Kong Baptist University and Chuck
among OECD countries. ble evidence of learning’). based, while in middle and high lish Programme in Korea, which Sandy, teacher trainer with the International Teach-
Korea also has among the English is not allowed in pri- school the focus is on multiple- recruits native speakers for public ers Development Institute, educational activist and
lowest birthrates in the world – mary schools during the first choice test preparation despite sector classrooms, and similar) are co-author of the Connect and Active Skills For Commu-
schools are closing and hiring is three grades (the first two years a curriculum that leans more to being replaced with recent Korean nication textbook series and of English for Scammers.
being reduced in all fields at all of primary) as part of a pledge communicative activities. university graduates as part-time

Taiwan looks southwards

Matt Salusbury reports how the country is using more English-medium
courses for international students to lessen its diplomatic isolation

aiwan has launched ‘a English-teaching diploma in Taiwanese history would benefit national students annually, and
strong push’ to recruit Taiwan. from learning in English. is also open to foreign univer-
Tmore international stu- The National Taiwan Uni- The Star national newspaper sity teaching staff. The figure
dents from other South East versity ranks in the top 160 of in Malaysia reported Taiwan’s includes grants for Taiwanese
Asian countries, with an increas- the World University rankings, deputy education minister Chen students to study in India or in
ing proportion of these expected which gives Taiwan the edge Liang-gee as saying that Tai- other Asean countries. Students
to study on courses that are over many South East Asian wan is now becoming a popular from Vietnam in particular are
Now available on mobile partly or fully English-medium. nations. Its medical school in destination for Malaysian stu- expected to benefit from the Tai-
wan Fellowships. According to
dents, with just under 15,000 of
particular has a good reputation
The New Southward Policy,
launched with its own office by internationally, and its univer- these in Taiwan – up from under the China Post, they have been
President Tsi-ing Wen in June, sities have a greater degree of 10,000 in 2012. unable to afford to study in Tai-
Download our envisages student exchanges autonomy and greater use of graduate courses on the island wan up until now and have had
While most university under-
student
international
to study in the People’s Republic
English language materials than
and
their counterparts in the People’s
recruitment as part of a strategy
are delivered in Chinese, there
instead.
app for free of ending Taiwan’s diplomatic Republic on mainland China. has been more demand from seen more students enrolling
In recent years Taiwan has
Postgraduate courses in Tai-
isolation. (The island nation,
Malaysia for university courses
which styles itself the Republic wan are often English-medium, taught in English, including from mainland China on Chi-
of China, is not fully recognised while Taiwan’s university teach- enquiries from ethnic-Chinese nese-medium courses, although
by many countries.) New schol- ing staff have a reputation for Malaysians, while Taiwanese there are ‘security restrictions’
arship schemes for incoming being prepared to explain in universities exhibiting at the in place which prohibit main-
South East Asian international English for the benefit of inter- Higher Education Fair in Malay- land Chinese studying subjects
students are part of the New national students if needed. sia were ‘encouraged’ to promote with a ‘military application’
Southward Policy. Not all of Taiwan’s academ- their English-medium offerings such as medicine. Study in Tai-
New Southward Policy ics are so enthusiastic about in particular. wan for mainland Chinese is a
Office director James Huang more English-medium teach- Five Taiwanese universi- way round the highly competi-
told the Taipei Times in August ing though. The News Lens ties have signed agreements for tive gaokao entry exam for the
that Taiwan’s low birthrate reported back in March that courses for Malaysians to train People’s Republic’s universi-
had led to ‘skewed’ student– National Chengchi University’s to teach in independent schools ties. (See the October 2010
teacher ratios, meaning that the announcement that ‘all new in Taiwan, a sector currently Gazette.)
nation’s universities weren’t recruited teachers should offer facing a teacher shortage. A While formal contacts
operating at capacity – there English Taught Courses (ETC) Taiwan Education Department between Beijing and Taipei
were spare places that could every semester’ was vigor- official also highlighted the were recently ‘suspended’,
be filled by recruitment from ously opposed by some staff. availability of prayer rooms and as we went to press a Shang-
other Asean countries or from Communications professor Fen halal-friendly canteens at many hai–Taipei forum was opening
India. Indonesia’s govern- Chien-san was quoted as saying Taiwanese universities to suit in Taipei. Shanghai Mayor’s
ment already funds its ‘finance the move ‘adds too much burden the many Malaysian students Office representative told the
officers’ to study in Taiwan- to the faculty’ and discriminated from Muslim backgrounds. Taipei Times that ties – includ-
ese higher education, while against those international stu- This international student ing higher education exchanges
Taiwan’s representative to the dents who did not have English recruitment drive is backed – between the two cities were
Philippines Gary Lin reported – presumably Chinese speak- by 1 billion Taiwan new dol- ‘strengthening’ and that there
that there have been many ers from other Asian countries. lars (£239,000) in Taiwan were already 1,000 Taiwanese
enquiries from recent gradu- He questioned also whether a Fellowship scholarships from students studying in the city of
ates there about taking an student of Chinese literature or the education ministry for inter- Shanghai each year. n
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