The latest statistics from the Korean MEST (Ministry of Education, Science and Technology) show that there are about twenty thousand homecoming students annually. Most of the returnees are elementary and middle school students, so the insurance of the students’ adjustment to the Korean education system has become an important matter more than ever.
But whether the returnees would be able to adapt to the Korean culture and its educational environments is skeptical. According to the latest research by a professor in Sookmyeong University, the majority of the returning students were unable to get used to the public school system in Korea. In the survey issued on Sept. 18, more than 88% of returnee students answered that they “wished to study abroad again.” Many of the students complained about the difficulties of overcoming cultural differences and having a good control of the Korean language.
As a countermeasure, the Korean MEST and SMOE (Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education) have been providing a special returnee program that can function as a stepping stone for these students. In Seoul, Gyeonggi, Daejeon and Busan, 16 schools currently operate the program. Any students who have resided in foreign countries for more than 2 years and less than 6 months in Korea since their return are eligible to apply for the program. These students are then assigned to different classes based on their age and their learning ability test results. For the first semester, the program mainly focuses on enhancing the students’ Korean language skills and their cultural adaptation. During the second semester, an intensive and individual education is given in subjects such as mathematics and social studies, in accordance with the curriculum of Korean schools, for the students’ successful transfer to regular classes.
“We have special returnee classes from grade 4 to grade 6, and the maximum number of students for each class is strictly limited to eight to guarantee effective individual guidance,” says Mrs. Shin, a teacher from the elementary school attached to the Seoul National University of Education. “What we expect from our students is more than just gaining fluency in Korean. We want them to fully adapt to our culture, and become a true part of the Korean community.”
Despite of the SMOE’s effort to operate a web site (http://return.sen.go.kr) to publicize the program, most people are still oblivious of its existence. Therefore, it is essential for the educational authorities to promote these programs and increase the number of classes, while continuing to develop suitable education systems for different students from different cultures.
