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[garykasparov]

English-Only Classes to Launch in Seoul

By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter

From this year, schools in Seoul will have their English classes conducted only in English for at least once a week. They will focus more on listening and speaking skills.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Sunday, the decision was made to let both students and teachers get adjusted to 2010, when all English classes will be conducted in the language.

``English will be mostly used, but Korean will be partially used to help students understand tricky parts such as grammar,'' an official said.
The office assumes about 60 percent of the English teachers to be capable, but the change will be made voluntarily to help teachers shouldering too many burdens too quickly.

However, the announcement was not welcomed by all teachers who are to take the actual classes. They said the move was made too hastily.
``The teachers, too, are aware that English should be taught in English. However, we need more time to refine our English skills, educational perspective and methods together,'' Shin, an elementary school teacher in southern Seoul, said.
``Also I bet the word `voluntary' is not effective. We will all have to just do it in order to survive,'' she said, adding that relatively old teachers are already scared of having to make the change.

As part of plans for all-English-only English classes, 22 elementary or middle schools were selected to facilitate multimedia devices to enhance English listening and speaking abilities and to have diversified teaching methods and materials. The schools will also have English-only zones.

More native English teachers will be employed under tightened qualification screening. The educational office will receive all the applications from individual teacher candidates and will verify their university degrees.

The Ministry of Justice has already tightened regulation standard for E-2 visas for the native English conversation teachers where the hopefuls should submit their health and criminal record check up.

The educational office has also requested that the government ease the regulations on the nationality of teachers, by which teachers from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and other English speaking countries were favored for selection.

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[binjibadgy]

well simply...

LOLs

Tightened visa regs, eased nationality yeah they're gonna get some "top grade" English teachers now... a whole new definition for the term native English speaker

I wonder if anyone from Philippines, Pakistan or India cba with the hoop jumping?

[Mi Yum mi]

Same thing made the news last night. I forget what station, but it sems they might be serious about this. It only took them about 40 years to figure out that english sould be spoken in english class. What's next? Only gernan in G-class?