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Korea in the Classroom

Workshop on November 27 and 28, 2015, at Freie Universität

№ 353/2015 from Nov 09, 2015

On November 27 and 28, 2015, participants in a workshop at Freie Universität Berlin will explore the experiences of teachers in classrooms in Germany in presenting knowledge about Korea. Participants from several German states will discuss how they have been able to incorporate various aspects related to Korea in their classroom teaching. They will give examples of problems that have arisen as well as possible solutions. The event is public, and admission is free. Advance registration through Dr. Holmer Brochlos: brochlos@zedat.fu-berlin.de.

For several years now the Korea Foundation in Seoul, South Korea, has been supporting researchers at Freie Universität in passing on their knowledge about Korea to secondary school teachers and in holding free workshops for this purpose at secondary schools in Germany. This expertise is generally social sciences in the broadest sense, for example, the basics in history, politics, economics, and language. So far four of these workshops have taken place at Freie Universität, with a total of roughly 70 secondary school teachers from all over Germany participating. In this year's workshop the participants will examine the effects of the four previous ones. To date, some thirty teachers have signed up. A regular workshop is being planned again for 2016.

"As a rule, Korea hardly plays a role at German schools," said Dr. Holmer Brochlos, who organizes the workshops at the Institute for Korean Studies at Freie Universität. Each federal state has its own approach, but usually the country is discussed in geography class as an economic power of East Asia or in connection with the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, which led to the partition of the country. "Few people in Germany, however, know much of anything about South Korea," said Professor Eun-Jeung Lee, who heads this project at the Institute for Korean Studies. North Korea and the regime in Pyongyang are portrayed much more often in German media.

A book was prepared at the Institute for Korean Studies to accompany the workshops. Entitled Hanguksa (Korean History), parts of the book are available online in a free e-learning program.

Further Information

Time and Location

  • Friday, November 27, 1:30 to 6 p.m. and Saturday, November 28, 9 a.m. to noon.
  • Seminaris Campus Hotel, Takustraße 39, 14195 Berlin. subway station: Dahlem-Dorf (U3).

Contact

Dr. Holmer Brochlos, Department of History and Cultural Studies, Freie Universität Berlin, Tel.: + 49 30 838-56895, Email: brochlos@zedat.fu-berlin.de