[Korean Cultural Centre India Press Release]

Korean Cultural Centre India begins to conduct 2021 Korean Language Education in Full Swing

⇒ The first registration process for the year

completed in 2 minutes for 600 max-limit seats

<New Delhi>

It is remarkable for India to be heated with the fever of Korean language along with Korean cultural wave like drama, movie, and K-pop. Korean Cultural Centre India announced that 600 people which is max-limit seats completed to register in just two minutes after the first session of "2021 KCCI Online Korean Language Hobby Class" registration began. Two registrations for weekend and weekday class through google flatform opened on 25th and 29th Jan, 2021 and each max limit 300 seats completed within 2 minute each. The notice for each registration was announced one week before each through KCCI website.

"Online Korean Language Hobby Class" is a real-time non-face-to-face Korean language course using ZOOM flatform, first opened by the Korean Cultural Centre India in August 2020 in the pandemic situation. After Korean was adopted as one of the recommended foreign languages for Indian schools in India's New Education Policy in 2020, Korean cultural stream which has recently added to the mainstream of society in India, seems to be leading a surge in demand for Korean Language too.

Korean Cultural Centre India plans to preemptively respond to the soaring demand for Korean language by expanding the course from 300 seats in 2020 to 4,200 seats in 2021 in four sessions, in expectation of increased demand for online Korean language courses in the current situation.

Korean wave in India has just started through online access increase during pandemic situation, and recently it has expended to language study from drama, movie, K-Pop, entertainment field. According to the statistical data of Duolingo, language study application, the number of Korean language students has been drastically increased from 11% in Oct,2019~Feb,2020 to 256% in Mar,2020~Oct,2020. As if it reflects these social trend, National Education policy in 2020 has adapted Korean language as recommended Foreign language subject.

Hwang, Il-yong, the director of Korean Cultural Centre India says, ‘We are in discussion with CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education) for the best ways to expand Korean language education in Indian schools in 2021 as Korean language has been solidified by India's New Education Policy in 2020 as recommended foreign language. Also, Korean language education for the general public will accelerate the expansion of the base of Korean language through the integrated operation of face-to-face and non-face-to-face courses by King Sejong Institutes located in major different cities in India including Korean Cultural Centre India Institutes in New Delhi’.