AI Korean teacher development...King Sejong Institute also expanded to 300 schools

[Anchor]
Today is the 578th anniversary of Hangul Day.

As Korea's status has grown due to the Korean Wave, the number of foreigners trying to learn Hangul has increased to an extent that it is incomparable to the past.

In line with this demand, King Sejong Institute, which teaches Korean in foreign countries, has increased to 300, and AI Korean teachers have also begun development.

Reporter Park Soon-pyo's report.

[Reporter]
It is a Korean speaking contest in the United Arab Emirates.

Office workers and college students who learned Hangul at King Sejong Institute participated.

Recently, the national university in Sharjah, called the Arab cultural capital, even has a base of King Sejong Institute, which has gained momentum in Korean language education in the Middle East.

[Aisha Binsemel / Korean language class student: My major is international relations, and learning Korean will open the door to working internationally and give you a chance. I started studying because I wanted to work at the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Korea.]

However, Korean language education is not easy in real life in areas without Sejong Institute, which was created by the government for foreigners' Korean language education.

In the evening, Korean language classes for office workers are also in full swing in Macau.

Private Korean language institutes are emerging, but it is true that instructor education and textbooks are lacking.

[Lung Shu-ting / Korean language academy instructor: I studied at the Chinese University of Hong Kong for about a year and a half. In Macau, there are not many Korean language institutes, so I couldn't do it. Later, I went back to Korea and studied the language.]

Even in the area where King Sejong Institute is located, there are more than 15,000 people waiting to take the course.

Accordingly, the government has decided to increase the number of King Sejong Institutes abroad to 300 by 2027 and the number of regional bases of King Sejong Institutes to 10.

Still, we decided to introduce AI Korean teachers for foreigners who have difficulty learning Hangul due to physical distance or cultural barriers.

[YONG HO SUNG, 1st Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism: We plan to carry out various R&D projects to utilize AI teachers for about three years in earnest. Through this, we plan to support each individual's customized education through online and through computers or mobile devices.]

At the same time, Sejong Institute decided to focus its budget on securing various cultural events and contents so that it can become a forward base for the spread of the Korean Wave beyond Hangeul education.

I'm Park Soonpyo of YTN.



Filmmaker: Park Jae-sang

Design: Lee Nayoung