Korea’s English Curriculum : Review, Issues and Future Directions

Korea’s English Curriculum : Review, Issues and Future Directions

English education in Korea started in 1883 at its first government-established English school, Dongmunhak. Korea’s national-level English curriculum, however, was not issued until 1946. The purposes of this study were to briefly review the changes that have occurred to the English curriculum, which has been amended a total of 11 times, from the initial 1946 syllabus-type version to the amended 2015 English curriculum, and to conduct detailed review of the 2015 curriculum, the latest version as of 2017. Identified problems include: (1) non-English core competency application; (2) vague achievement standards; (3) lack of diversity; (4) gap between real world and classroom; and (5) insufficient theoretical grounds. Suggestions are presented for improvement.