태국에서의 한국어교육 현황과 문제점

Abstract

The present state of the Korean Education in Thailand and its problems This paper have a goal to investigate the present of Korean education curriculum and its problems. Twenty years have passed since Korean education started in Thailand. Since the subjects of Korean language were opened for the first time in University of Songkla in 1985, Korean education has so remarkably developed that fourteen universities of Thailand have the program. Among them, five universities have departments that major in Korean language. In spite of relatively short history of the Korean education in Thailand, its remarkable development reflects so active economic and cultural exchanges between Korea and Thailand. In particular, the recent 'Hanryu' (Korean wave) fever make a big contribution to encourage Thai peoples' attention to Korean language. By virtue of the dynamics, there is no doubt that Korean education in Thailand will be more popular day by day. However, in order that the Korean education in Thailand may make progress in quality as well as quantity, there are several problems to be overcome. First problem is the lack of textbooks for Korean that are written in Thai language. Second is to upgrade the quality of instructors who teach Korean language. Finally, it is necessary to reconsider the policy of Thai government on Korean education. As a matter of fact, Korean education in Thailand has been dependent wholly on the financial support of Korean government so far. I strongly suggest that Thai government review the history of Korean education and make a long-term plan to upgrade the education in Thailand.