동아시아 한국학 교육의 현황과 문제 = CURRENT SITUATION OF KOREAN STUDIES EDUCATION IN EAST ASIA, AND ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This research was motivated by the obligatory yet sincere notion that several countries in East Asia should endeavor to achieve peaceful co-existence and mutual prosperity by accumulating deeper understanding of each other. Examined in this article, is the situation of Korean studies education that is either beginning or continuing in several East Asian countries such as China, Japan, Vietnam and especially Mongol. Those situations, in fact show us the most visible efforts that would grow mutual understanding in the future. Yet there are also problems to be found in many Korean studies education programs in those countries. So options that could be used to resolve those problems and ultimately enhance the effectiveness of those programs, are suggested and discussed in this article as well.
In many East Asian countries, demand for education programs of the Korean language and Korean studies in general is rapidly growing bigger and bigger, due to social, cultural, and economical reasons inside those countries. Yet those demands are not met by sufficient supplies of education programs. As a result, the education efforts are experiencing staggering difficulties instead of continuously expanding, and the quality of the education is deteriorating as well. Also, education of existing Korean studies in particular has been considered a sort of secondary priority, compared to Korean language education and actual researches in Korean studies. In other words, the issue of educating existing Korean studies has received lesser spotlight than it deserved.
So, in order to considerably enhance and develop Korean studies education, not only Korean scholars who should be leading Korean studies abroad, but also the institutes and centers in charge of Korean studies education in foreign countries should step up, and actively engage the task. In Korea, the academic and administrative relationship among branches such as Korean language education, Koreanology education, and Korean studies research should be defined in no uncertain terms, and plans for education program enhancement in terms of levels and areas should be established in details. On the other hand, the institutes and centers in charge of Korean studies education in foreign countries should monitor the Korean studies projects in progress inside Korea, and express determination to actively participate in those efforts.