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uncomfortable when they speak English with native English speakers and foreigners in
public areas in Korea. One of the 15 Korean students, Thomas, stated:
Honestly, I have learned English for 10 years through the public schools and the
private institutes. However, I was surprised that I could not say ‘Hi’ to
Australians when I visited Australia because I did not feel confident to
communicate with them. When I had a chance to see foreigners, I was always
afraid of speaking English with them.
In addition, another student of the 15 Korean students, James,
felt that English education
in Korea has never helped him to improve English speaking skills. He said:
Korean students know English grammar really well; I am sure that some Korean
students could know English grammar more than American students. However,
the majority of Korean students do not feel comfortable to speak English with
foreigners. When I watched the educational TV show which showed the
difference in the English educational systems of Europe and Korea, I recognized
that more Europeans could speak English better than Koreans. Interestingly, the
TV show indicated that Europeans were not focused on learning English grammar,
reading, listening, and
vocabulary, but they started learning English speaking
skills when they were very young. After watching this TV show, I clearly
understood that English education in Korea would not be much more effective
than English education in Europe. Furthermore, knowing English grammar could
not help me confidently speak English to foreigners.
Because of the lack of English speaking skills, a great number of Korean students
consistently look for English institutes which specialize in English conversation and
speaking.
Through the interview process, all 30 Korean students mentioned that they had
experiences attending this type of English institute at least once. Interestingly, 10 out of
30 Korean students stated that learning English speaking skills through these English
institutes was not effective or efficient because the number of native English speakers
was limited. In other words, the ratio of Korean students to native English teachers was
very high. Furthermore, two out of the 10
Korean students, Maria and Nancy, said that
the majority of Korean attendees in the English institutes did not fluently speak English,
44
so it was very difficult for them to learn appropriate English speaking skills by
alternatively speaking with each other through English lessons in the English institutes.
Another reason it has been difficult for Korean students to learn English in Korea
is that the environment of English education has not been pleasant for Korean students to
focus on studying English. As described above, 26 Korean students
mentioned that they
always used numerous English workbooks and materials, and their English teachers
intensively pushed Korean students to memorize English grammar, reading skills, and
listening skills; the only reason for them to study English extensively was to enter a
prestigious college or university and find a nice job in Korea. That is why 6 out of 30
Korean students indicated that their experiences of English education in Korea were
unpleasant. One of the 6 students, Jennifer, stated:
When I was a high school student, I did not know the
reasons why I should study
English. I remembered that my Korean English teachers always forced me to
study English because I needed to enter a good university or college. Even
though I did not have any interest in studying English, I kept studying English.
Moreover, the 6 Korean students felt that they did not know the specific purpose for
learning English in spite of numerous hours they spent studying English in middle school
and high school in Korea. Due to this reason, these students mentioned that it was very
difficult for them to study English in Korea.
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