The language exchange will be held at Hana Korean language school.
This is the address:
20 Kramat Lane #05-05
Singapore 228773
At the event, attendees can engage in practical language use, whether they’re beginners or fluent speakers.
The event will be facilitated by one of Hana’s Korean teachers, and students of all proficiency levels will be in attendance. From new learners who know basic greetings to advanced speakers who can discuss Korean drama at length, everyone will find someone at their level to converse with.
Light Korean refreshments will be served, creating an immersive cultural experience. The event capacity is 50 participants to ensure an engaging and intimate setting. While pre-registration is optional, it is recommended to secure a spot. You can register at https://hanakorean.com.sg/courses/learn-korean-speaking/
Hana Korean’s founder, Candy Lee, emphasises the importance of this in-person event. “Many of our students join live Zoom classes every week, and that works really well. But it brings a fresh dose of energy to connect in person from time to time, and we thought, ‘why not open it up to everyone?'”, she says.
In the near future, Crystal Learning intends to open their doors to the general public for language exchanges on a regular basis. “We believe that language is the bridge that connects cultures. If more people can understand even a little bit of a new language, it will help build a better world”, says Crystal Learning’s co-founder Alex Lim.
Popularity of Korean language in Singapore
Korean is gaining popularity as a third language in Singapore. Crystal Learning, which runs language schools specialising in Asian languages as well as English, notes that Hana Korean, its Korean language school, ranks third in terms of student volume, only behind its Chinese and English language schools.
An obvious reason for the popularity of the Korean language in Singapore is Korean pop culture. Many of Hana Korean’s students share a passion for K-pop and K-drama.
The shared passion for Korean culture means that Korean learners tend to stick together as a group, form friendships and continue learning for longer than is the case with most other languages.
Besides language courses, Singapore has seen a growth in Korea-themed courses pop up focusing on Korean cooking, dance and make-up.
Korean is also a friendly language for beginners. Traditionally, Koreans wrote mostly with classical Chinese characters. The hangul writing method was designed in the 15th century to make the language easy to learn and raise literacy rates among the poor. It’s also relatively easy to learn the fundamentals of spoken Korean and start having conversations.
Learning a new language: Conversation beats grammar
Hana Korean recognises that learning a language is much more than mastering grammar and vocabulary from a book. The most enriching learning experiences come from real-life conversations. To encourage conversation, Hana Korean keeps its classes small, with a maximum of 8 students per group, whether the class takes place in-person or on Zoom.
