Young North Korean defectors aim high by studying English
The English Access Microscholarship Program by the U.S. State Department helps North Korean defectors learn English. gettyimagesbank |
On a recent Friday morning, a small number of mostly teenaged students trained their eyes on their American teacher, repeating short English sentences after her and raising their hands from time to time to ask questions.
At a glance, they look no different from ordinary students in South Korea, where parents are known for their zeal and investment in English education, with the hope that proficiency in the language will help children gain admission to better schools and land better jobs after graduation.
But the class is for defectors from North Korea and their children as part of a program sponsored by the United States, a country that they were told back in the communist nation was their greatest enemy. Many of them had little or no English education before coming to South Korea.
"I like this class," said Kim Hong-woo, a 17-year-old student attending the class at Great Vision School, an alternative school for North Korean defectors, located in Uijeongbu, north of Seoul. "I have little trouble understanding the teacher speaking English. I think the class is just my level."
"I don't know whether English will help me achieve my dream to be a comedian. Why do I study English? I just want to travel to the U.S. some day," he added.
Kim is one of dozens of students taking part in the English Access Microscholarship Program by the U.S. State Department.
Launched in 2004, the program aims to help youngsters in underdeveloped countries enhance their English skills. More than 150,000 people in about 80 countries have taken part in the program.
Earlier this year, the program was launched for North Korean defectors living in South Korea. About 60 North Korean defectors, or their kids aged 13-20, are now studying in the one-year program.
Hwang Mi-jeong (an alias), a 20-year-old North Korean defector, joined the program ― two three-hour classes a week ― but without thinking much about her dreams or of traveling to the U.S. in the future. She just wanted to make it easier to live in South Korea where she had trouble understanding people who incorporate many English words into their speech.
"I bought something at a convenience store and gave my credit card to the clerk for payment. The clerk asked a question but I couldn't understand it. After a few seconds of awkward silence, I took my credit card back and rushed out in embarrassment," she said.
"I realized later that the question was just about whether I wanted to get points on my credit card purchase. I don't understand at all when people use so many English words," she added.
The experience prompted her to study English hard. She memorized English words and sentences every day and joined the Access program right when it was launched at Great Vision School. She now feels the difference that the class is making.
"I had not met or spoken to an American back in North Korea. I just got cold feet only thinking about an American coming close to me for fear that I had to speak," she said. "Now I have little trouble at least speaking to my tutor in English."
English is an important subject in South Korea, where scores on the language can determine what university you go to or what company you can work for.
Parents are enthusiastic about English education for their kids. Some send their children to cram schools or hire private tutors for early childhood education. Others send them overseas for language training.
Many young North Korean defectors struggling to adjust to a new life in South Korea cannot afford those luxuries. Some, like Hwang, come here alone and have no family to depend on.
Moreover, many of them didn't get basic education, in English and other major subjects, when they were in North Korea. That makes it harder for them to catch up with South Korean classmates and challenges can get tougher as they get older.
According to a 2016 survey, the dropout rate among North Korean defectors in elementary school stood at 0.2 percent, but the figure rose to 2.9 percent in middle school and 7.3 percent in high school.
The overall dropout rate among North Korean defectors came to 2.2 percent, much higher than 0.8 percent for South Korean students.
"When most North Korean defectors come to South Korea, their English level is around the level of middle school students here," Choi Kyung-il, head of the North Korean Refugee Employment Support Center, said.
"Even when they enter college, they tend to struggle with English, which makes it hard for them to focus on their majors. Studying English also cuts into the time they need to prepare for job hunting, and that causes a vicious circle," he added.
A survey conducted by the center in 2014 on college students who defected to South Korea showed that over 70 percent said that they didn't have any certified English scores they need to apply for a company in South Korea.
"Many of them lack the necessary education and experience they need in South Korea," Choi said. "Making matters worse, they enter school much later than South Korean classmates. This gives less time for the trial and error needed to get over any challenges in life."
A perhaps more serious problem is the unspoken bias against North Korean defectors held by some South Koreans, who might associate defectors with the poverty and miserable human rights conditions in their northern neighbor.
Experts say that no matter how hard defectors try to assimilate to South Korea and mingle with South Koreans, slight differences in their accents and choices of words can make them seem like strangers.
Makia Thomas, who was recently hired to teach English at Great Vision School under the Access program, understands what it is like to live as a "stranger," as she has experienced it herself as an adoptee who was taken to the U.S. when she was a baby.
"They are North Koreans meeting an adoptee although we face different challenges," the 32-year-old said, referring to her meeting with the students in her class. "We are not fully accepted by the Korean people. So I can kind of relate to them."
Thomas said she not only wants to see her students significantly improve in English by the end of the course, she also wants them to develop self-confidence that could make a difference in their attitudes going forward.
"If they can leave here feeling more confident in their own skill set and their own ability, that's probably my main goal," she said.
Kim Doo-yeon, principal of Great Vision School, couldn't agree more with the teacher. He said that English education should not be an end itself but a means by which his students come to build the self-confidence necessary to pursue their goals and dreams in the future.
"I want my students to get more confident about themselves through this Access program in the process of overcoming barriers posed by a language, which I think will also help them adapt to a new life here in South Korea," he said.
That is exactly what the Access program is all about, said U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Harry Harris.
"Access is not only about learning English. It also provides students with the opportunity to develop leadership skills, cultivate a community-service mentality, and build self-confidence," the ambassador said.
"The U.S. Embassy is proud to be part of the larger effort to assist North Korean defectors, and we are pleased to bring the State Department's English Access program to Korea for the first time to support that objective," he added.
Hwang, the North Korean defector, wants such English education programs to be available to more people like her and for longer durations.
Not as fearful as before, she is now aiming high.
"I have so many dreams. If I have to say one thing, I want to become a nurse to care for people," she said. "I'd also like to go to the U.S. to study English more and other things. That might be what everybody wants (here)." (Yonhap)
(责任编辑:资讯)
相关内容
- Which iPad Model Is Right for You?
- Android founder Andy Rubin accused of participating in 'sex ring' in court docs
- Tesla breaks quarterly record with 95,200 delivered cars
- New era as Mbappe becomes France captain
- NASA says Earth just had the hottest day ever recorded
- 17 Spectacular Outdoor Staircases
- 大手牵小手 共同守粮安! 广东粮食安全守护者大赛报名开启
- Park to mark fourth inauguration anniversary on gloomy note
- Rahm ousted, Scheffler and McIlroy advance at Match Play
- Expanded police surveillance will get us “broken windows” on steroids.
- 广东“村播”:田间地头拍农事,乡村增添新动力
- Google Play Store will soon let Android users download gambling apps
- Westeros can't handle the perfection of this 'Game of Thrones' wedding
推荐文章
-
SpaceX Polaris Dawn mission: How to watch the launch
SpaceXis about to send its human spacecraft farther than ever before in space, and it will do it wit ...[详细] -
本报讯 日前,《成渝经济区城际轨道交通线网规划》已初步完成。根据规划,成渝经济区拟建成12条城际客运专线。今后,成渝经济区所有50万人口以上的城市、三分之二的20万至50万之间城市都将通城际客运专线, ...[详细]
-
Get £75 off the new Casper Hybrid mattress with this code
TL;DR: The innovative Casper Hybrid mattress has just launched in the UK, and you can get £75 ...[详细] -
Rock candy was one of the coolest kinds of candy you could eat as a kid, right up there with gummy w ...[详细]
-
Norris stuns Verstappen at Dutch GP
ZANDVOORT:McLaren's Lando Norris stormed to victory at the Dutch Grand Prix Sunday, a superb dri ...[详细] -
FIFA increases World Cup compensation for clubs
ZURICH:FIFA's compensation paid to clubs that release players for the men's World Cup has be ...[详细] -
Less than half of South Korean students think unification is necessary
A sign for the Ministry of Unification at the government complex in Seoul. YonhapBy Kwak Yeon-sooLes ...[详细] -
Foreign ministers of S. Korea, Britain discuss cooperation on N. Korea issue
South Korean and British foreign ministers on Wednesday (London time) discussed ways to strengthen c ...[详细] -
Expanded police surveillance will get us “broken windows” on steroids.
Across the United States, cities are spending a larger share of the money at their disposal buying a ...[详细] -
Google Play Store will soon let Android users download gambling apps
Non-iPhone gamblers rejoice: The Google Play Store will soon allow gambling apps.There are, of cours ...[详细]
热点阅读
随机内容
18 Places for Epic Outdoor Adventure Across Colorado
Rahm ousted, Scheffler and McIlroy advance at Match Play
- Families of S. Korean detainees in NK appeal to embassies for support
- IBA warns IOC against dropping boxing from Olympics
- 家装案例 小户型装出地中海田园风情
- NK leader guides firing drills involving super
- Spaceship tech slashes energy usage of existing AC systems
- S. Korea urges NK to admit its involvement in killing of Kim Jong
- Ratcliffe makes revised Man Utd offer