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Ways will be sought to sack elementary and secondary English teachers from giving classes if they are deemed unqualified after they undergo state-funded training. Elementary and middle schools in Seoul will more than double their current English classes under a plan by the presidential Transition Committee and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education to drastically overhaul public English education. It is related to the committee's program to have all nationwide high schools conduct English classes only in English starting 2010.
Lee Joo-ho, a member of the committee's social affairs, education and culture subcommittee on Sunday said, "We've already formulated a three-strikes-and-you¡¯re-out system that will ban English teachers from teaching if they fail to pass a certain level in more than two of several evaluations during a five-year period. We're thinking seriously whether we should adopt this as part of the committee's English education policy."
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A street of private English tutoring institutes in Jongno, Seoul.
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Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Kong Jong-tack in an interview with the Chosun Ilbo said, "As part of public English education, we'll more than double English classes for students between third grade and eighth grade. For example, seventh and eighth graders will see their English classes increase to six to 10 from the current three to five a week." Kong added that the additional classes will consist of regular lessons, discretionary activity classes and after-school programs.
The office also said it will start so-called immersion for non-English subjects at a total of 22 elementary and middle schools on a trial basis beginning this year, increasing the number of such schools gradually later. From 2009, office will introduce an English teacher certification whereby English teachers are evaluated and placed at middle and high schools according to their ability.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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