[RAS Korea] Dongducheon's young scholars shine again

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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RAS KoreaDongducheon's young scholars shine again

Posted : 2021-01-05 19:23

Updated : 2021-01-05 19:28

From left: Lee Min-hyoung, Cho Yoon-sung, Kim Jong-seo and Kim Jae-hyoung / Courtesy of Dongducheon Foreign Language High School

By Steven L. Shields

Four students at Dongducheon Foreign Language High School (DFL) recently published their new book: "RAS Korea Report." The teammates are members of the new Royal Asiatic Society Korea-Dongducheon Foreign Language School Branch. They continue to explore Korean Studies with RAS Korea while completing their final year of high school. The RAS Korea connection with Dongducheon Foreign Language High School began two years ago when a group of students submitted a series of essays exploring Korean history and culture. Their essays were published in volume 93 of Transactions, the annual journal of RAS Korea started in 1900.

In 2019, four RAS Korea representatives traveled to DFL and spent an afternoon with about 200 students. Presentations included a history of the RAS, changing gender roles in Korean society and a photo-essay of North Korea. After the general session, there were four concurrent sessions to continue the conversations in a smaller group setting.

Cho Yoon-sung, 2020 president of the RAS Korea-DFL Branch, coordinated this latest project with RAS Korea officers. The original plan was for several RAS Korea representatives to visit the school in person, provide lectures and workshops for interested students again this year. Unfortunately, because of the severity of the continuing pandemic, in-person visits were not possible. Cho, quick with "plan B," approached RAS Korea about doing some independent research and writing projects, with some guidance and suggestions. The final project, though, was the team members' efforts.

The book produced by the DFL team / Courtesy of RAS Korea

Realizing there are many unique Korean terms that many foreign residents might not understand well, Cho's team set out a list of dozens of words and phrases to include in their work. They defined the terms, included illustrations and explored the cultural background of the ideas. Their final selection of 60 terms was grouped into four broad categories: history and literature, lifestyle, art and linguistics. The team also wrote several essays for inclusion in the book. Essays include writing about the 1980 Gwangju Uprising and a review of Daniel Tudor's fine book, "Korea: The Impossible Country."

Team member Lee Min-hyoung is an English and Japanese major at DFL. He plans to study international business at university. We're told that his dormitory room is filled with books like no other. Lee is an avid reader of English literature. His focus for the project was translating and explaining historical and cultural terms.

Kim Jong-seo, who comes from Uijeongbu, is interested in journalism. He has majored in English and Chinese at DFL and dreams of a career in international media. After earning an undergraduate degree in Korea, he hopes to undertake postgraduate studies abroad.

From Gimpo but having lived for several years in Australia, Kim Jae-hyoung is a Japanese major and spends a lot of his free time watching Japanese-language anime. He hopes to become a director. Cho added that Kim successfully struggled with making sure he got "just the right" translations for his assigned terms. He was responsible for festivals and holidays. Kim also wrote the essay on Gwangju.

Cho plans to do his undergraduate studies in the United States, so he will not be taking the Korean university exams this fall, unlike other team members. Instead, he will take the SAT. He has mastered the English language, so he was chosen as the group president and overall project manager.

As these four seniors move on to the next chapter of their lives, they have also made sure the RAS Korea-DFL Branch continues to engage students at the school actively. The project adviser and the students have chosen Shin Su-hyeon, a native of Uijeongbu and a senior at DFL majoring in English, to be the 2021 president of the branch.

The officers and RAS Korea members are proud and honored to be engaged with such a good group of young people. We are delighted with our relationship with DFL and look forward to our continuing engagement.

Steven L. Shields, a retired cleric, is president of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea (www.raskb.com) and is a columnist for The Korea Times.

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