Forecast of Transmedia Language Learning With a Chance of Meatballs

English Fever In South Korea

English language learning is a key priority in South Korea’s Education. In fact, South Korea has focused so much on English learning that many household pays an extensive amount of money to educate their children in ESL (English as Second Language) (H. Kim, 2011). In addition, English in Korea is more than a communication tool; it is considered to be the status quo. For instance, graduation requirements for many top universities demand a high score on an English proficiency test, such as TOEIC (The Test of English for International Communication) or TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) (S. Park, & D. Shin, 2019; W. J. Shim, & D. Shin, 2017). Moreover, fluency in English improves your chances of getting a job, being appreciated by society, and choosing a spouse. It even determines where you will live. Given the great importance of English, many educators and students have become very curious about the “how-to” series of English language learning. For example, multiple English learning apps are published on a monthly basis and private institutes known as “hak-won” consistently focus on English testing and speaking (W. J. Shim, & D. Shin, 2017). Both apps and private institutes are focused toward income generation rather than language learning. Each company emphasizes in their advertisements that English can be learned “differently” or more “effectively”. The issue does not stop there, as English fever has spread into the public education system as well. Universities have multiple classes that only focus on English learning, and there are entirely too many academic organizations and conferences that focus on English learning. Even big companies looking to recruit new employees require TOEIC or TOEFL test scores. The list goes on and on. In other words, the English language in Korea is not just a language. It is the status quo and it shapes your identity.

Park & Lee (2014) drew attention to multiple issues in Korea’s English education system. First, too much money is invested into English learning, and the return on this investment is not readily apparent. Second, language structure differences between English and Korean pose learning difficulties. Third, there is limited exposure to English in Korea, but the expectations that parents have for public English education are too high. Fourth, there is a lack of English teachers in public schools. Park & Lee (2014) continue to argue that the majority of English language teachers do not have the proficiency needed to teach conversational skills, so they only focus on grammar and reading during English classes. The result is that Korea’s English education system is based on straightforward lecturing that requires extensive vocabulary memorization and readings (M. Kim, 2010). Furthermore, Li (1998) noted that Korean teachers are reluctant to change their approaches to CLT (Communicative Language Teaching) because of their own deficiencies in speaking. Teachers in Korea feel very positively about their writing and reading skills, but their ability to speak is a different story. The reality of ESL education in Korea is that deficiencies in speaking are commonplace.

It should be noted that Koreans take education very seriously for several reasons, one of which reflects the influence of Confucianism. According to this ideology, education leads to prosperity, which is the ultimate goal of many (T. Kim, 2010). Yoon (2016) reported the results of a survey conducted by a private education provider in South Korea, YBM that the majority of respondents felt that students need to study English “for development”, “for a better job”, and “for promotion”, a finding which emphasizes the extent to which English is recognized as an important factor for success in Korea. Instead of learning English to speak the language, students primarily view the English language as an opportunity to achieve success. In a more recent report, which presented the survey results of 1000 adults (ages 19 to 59), Park (2019) found that 86% of Koreans had a desire to be fluent in English, and 46% believed that learning English would bring new opportunities. Respondents also felt that fluency in English would help them improve their personal competitiveness (43%) and gain a better future (41%). As noted, many English learners in Korea relate English with success.