Tacoma adopts Seoul-administered Korean test

By Na Jeong-ju

Middle and high schools in Tacoma, the third-largest city in the State of Washington, will give credits to students who excel in the Korean-language proficiency test administered by the Korean government.

The move came as more U.S. schools adopt Korean as a second language as Korean pop songs, dramas and movies continue to gain worldwide popularity.

Under an agreement signed Wednesday between Tacoma's education office and the Seoul-based National Institute for International Education part of the education ministry, 14 secondary schools in the city will adopt the Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK).

Students who learn Korean as a second language there can be awarded up to three credits depending on the level they achieve.

Tacoma is the first U.S. city to adopt TOPIK as an official language proficiency measurement for students. The ministry is now talking to other municipal governments to further promote the use of TOPIK, the ministry said.

The number of U.S. schools that teach Korean as a second language has gradually increased. The figure stood at 57 in 2009, but rose to 71 in 2010 and 91 in 2011.

Applications for TOPIK have also increased sharply since the first test in 1997 as the exam has become a must for foreigners who want to study and work in Korea. Last year, more than 120,000 people from 47 different nations took the test, compared to 2,600 applicants from four countries in 1997.

The institute plans to upgrade the test by adding a speaking section by 2015 and send better textbooks and teaching materials abroad to make Korean a more widely-adopted language. The test is currently divided into four sections ― vocabulary & grammar, writing, listening and reading.

In Washington, TOPIK is available only once a year. The institute said it administers the test more than twice a year and will increase the number of test places to meet the growing demand for TOPIK there.

"We expect more American students to practice Korean as the country's global presence continues to grow. Korean language education in the U.S. is important from cultural and diplomatic aspects as well", said Ha Tae-yun, the institute's president.

The education ministry is now demanding TOPIK scores from foreigners who are studying under Korea's state scholarship program, called the Global Korean Scholarship. It has held discussions with universities and firms to promote the test to evaluating Korean proficiency among foreign applicants.

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