Seoul Global Center is an organization run by Seoul Metropolitan Government to provide activities and services to foreign residents in Seoul. It offers several kinds of free Korean language classes. The learning objective of the very beginner’s class is about Hanguel and the first few lessons of the textbook. Because I had learned Hanguel and some lessons by myself, I was allow to register for the beginner’s level class.The registration date was one week before the class began. The beginner’s class is at 1-3 pm every Saturday, starting from 18 August to 14 December. On 23 December, there will be a small ceremony and party for certificate issue. Students who pass the exam will receive the certificate and be allowed to register the next level’s class.
The class is totally free. Only 30,000 Korean won must be paid as a deposit. Students who skip class over a certain number of times will not get the deposit back. The purpose is mainly to encourage students not to waste the resources which are supported by the taxpayers.
We use the textbook published by Kyung Hee University. There are six levels of the textbooks: Beginner’s Book I, II, Intermediate Book 1, II, and Advanced Book I, II. Each book includes 2 audio CDs and costs 20,000 Korean won. There is also a workbook for each textbook and it costs 14,000 Korean won. They are all available at most bookstores, such as Kyobo Bookstore.
My teacher, Kim Nam Hyung, is very interesting and humorous. He teaches us not only the Korean language but also the Korean’s history, lifestyles and the ways of thinking. His lectures help me understand more about Korean people and cultures. I enjoy every class during these 4 months very much. Sadly, he will not be the teacher of the next level class.