India to offer Korean as elective for 2nd foreign language

The Indian government will offer Korean as an elective for a second foreign language in its public education curriculum.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Aug. 6 said the Indian government on July 30 announced that Korean was among the recommended electives for a second foreign language under Indian education policy for this year.

New Delhi stressed the importance of Korea and its language by listing Korean first among the eight choices for a second foreign language.

The Korean Embassy and the Korean Cultural Center in India actively promoted the Indian government on the need to designate Korean as an official subject.

The center has focused on spreading the popularity of Korean in India through a cultural exchange agreement with 105 schools there and events like contests on writing essays about Korea-related topics.

Demand for Korean in India is rising, with 2,500 students there attending four King Sejong Institutes last year to learn the language. The ministry and the King Sejong Institute Foundation will also build by June next year three more institutes in the cities of Pune, Imphal and Bengaluru.

To assist India in adding Korean as an elective for a second foreign language, the ministry will also develop related curricula and textbooks, run training programs for teachers of Korean in India and send professional teachers of the subject there.

Source: www.korea.net