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Essay Contest Result

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Creating a Video Series Based on Understanding of Korea Materials

'How about Korea?'

Korea's worldwide popularity is growing thanks to various contents in movies, TV dramas, and idol groups. Thanks to hallyu (the Korean Wave), interest in Korea is growing more every day. In light of these trends, I believe that it is important to share Korean cultures outside of popular culture and deepen the world's understanding of Korea. Various educational material published by AKS's Center for International Affairs contain a wide variety of correct information about Korea, and these publications are a great help to foreigners who seek to learn more about Korea. However, due to the abundance of content, it may be difficult for foreigners who live abroad and are not familiar with Korean studies to have access to these materials.

As the rhythm of modern life becomes increasingly rapid, people prefer to use their free time to acquire information by reading short material. This is heightened everyday as we enter the information age where people prefer smartphones over books, videos over printed words, and audiovisual media that quickly gives information, knowledge and entertainment. In light of this, I would like to propose creating a series of videos based on the educational material on Korea.
Introductory video made by Chinese video site creator
First, we will make a video series called "What Do You Think about Korea?" using educational material on Korean culture. The video should be around two or three minutes, and the text must be as short and concise as possible. Korean dialogue and explanations will be accompanied by subtitles in different languages. Each episode will be focused on one aspect of Korean culture. For example, the first episode might focus on an overall view of Korea and titled "Korea by the Numbers – What Do You Think about Korea?" Viewer interest can be secured by intuitively explaining and disseminating graphs and other visuals about Korea's geographic conditions, population, employment situation, and economic growth using information from Infokorea. It will be more effective to compare Korea with other countries including my native China. This is because it is necessary to show what role Korea has in the world and also because foreign viewers will be able to understand the material much better when viewing it from their own country's perspective.

'Cultural Landscapes of Korea' is a book that introduces many different aspects of Korean culture. This book could be used to create a series of videos introducing life in Korea. This series might use a motif similar to the very popular drama series "My Love from the Star" to show a day in the life of Koreans from ancient times to modern times. This series would show how Korean consciousness has changed and will be a great opportunity to introduce different cultural aspects such as hanok, hanbok, and Korean food.
drama series 'My Love from the Star'
It would also be nice to produce a special series on issues faced in Korean society. For example, the drama "SKY Castle" was a big hit last year because it showed the real situation regarding competition for jobs and parents' over expectations. Many foreigners who are interested in Korea want to learn about Korea's actual educational environment.

In addition, I suggest producing a series with contents showing Korean history and culture from various angles by focusing on historical figures. For example, ancient Korean history can be easily explained using the myth of Dangun, Korea's mythical first ruler. The story of King Sejong can be used to introduce the history and characteristics of Hangeul. Korea's wonderful artistic accomplishments can be introduced while talking about the mid-Joseon period artist Shin Saimdang, and General Yi Sunsin's story will allow the videos to portray Korea's important historical wars and events. Using historical figures to express various aspects of Korea's splendid history will be an effective way to convey Korea's charm to foreigners.

Secondly, these videos will be uploaded and promoted on the Center for International Affairs' website and many other platforms. AKS can share these videos on popular sites like YouTube and China's Weibo. This will increase the number of viewers and the amount of mutual cultural exchange. Quizzes about Korean culture or text asking the viewers what they liked best about the video or if they have any questions can be added, and viewers can leave their responses in the comments section. These viewer opinions can also be a source for deciding which videos to make next. Also, a link or QR code can be added to direct viewers to more detailed information from book excerpts or summaries about the subject in the video. That way, viewers who want to learn more can access detailed information directly from their smartphone.

Third, workbooks and online tests can be developed along with the videos. The workbooks will be made by selecting around three points from each video and writing multiple choice questions under the header "Things to Know about Korea." This will be an easy way to approach readers because they will be able to know the main points of each video at a glance. The Center for International Affairs can also post a column corner on their webpage called "How Much Do You Know about Korea?" where online tests are provided. If the test taker chooses a wrong answer, they will be provided with the correct answer along with a link to a related video or Understanding Korea material.

These are my suggestions for producing video series using educational material about Korea. I hope that the Understanding Korea project will continue to succeed in the future, and I hope to contribute in some small way to the worldwide spread of Korean culture.

[Excellence Prize]
Zhu Zhunaer

(Country of Activity : China)

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