Learning a foreign language often involves a lot of boring memorization and verb conjugation, except in South Korea where flying punches and killer kicks are part of the curriculum.6 l/ y( D- i" u
More than 40 academies nationwide teach what is known as "Taeglish," where Korean children are trained in Taekwondo by English-speaking instructors who say the martial art gives the students confidence in the language.
" W8 @6 _- l- z4 t7 q South Koreans spend billions of dollars a year on English instruction for their children. The language is seen as a must for entry into a good university and a good job.6 J0 [( @$ z1 G0 h; T9 y
"After English is combined with Taekwondo practice, children can have fun learning the language and do it in high spirits," said Kim Sung-han, the founder of Taeglish.
& |- ?7 A" O; E& b' M Taeglish, a combination of the words Taekwondo and English, was introduced in March 2007 as an activity offered by a department store for children. In about a year, academies had spread throughout the country.
# l, Y M: p5 b9 @$ A Taeglish students are far more energetic in the classroom than their peers who study through traditional methods but their language skills are often not as good as their peers." |; |# o" d& N
学外语常常需要进行大量枯燥的记忆以及掌握动词的各种变位,但在韩国,拳打脚踢也成了外语课程的一部分。: |9 V3 R; }& s3 r+ h2 b
目前,韩国已有40多所院校教授所谓的“跆拳道式英语”(Taeglish)。在这些地方,教练们用英语向学生教授跆拳道,他们认为跆拳道能增强学生学习外语的信心。
0 p0 }! e9 N1 B. l* S# T 韩国人每年在孩子学英语上的投入达到数十亿美元。在韩国,英语好被视为进入好大学和找份好工作的必要条件。9 i, k9 ^% B( h8 p6 ?# X- a
“跆拳道式英语”的创始人金宋汉说:“将英语与练跆拳道结合起来后,学生们能够开心并且精神饱满地去学习英语。”
5 }& e+ M4 }: a6 W' |- j “Taeglish”(跆拳道式英语)是Taekwondo(跆拳道)和English(英语)两个词的合成。这一方法于去年三月推出,当时是一家百货商店为孩子们组织的一项活动。而在之后的约一年中,教授“跆式英语”的院校已遍布全国。
# ~9 A9 F+ m4 g, g 与用传统方法学英语的学生相比,接受“跆式英语”训练的学生在课堂上要活跃得多,但他们的语言技能往往不如前者。 |