BRINGING KOREAN CULTURE TO THE CLASSROOM
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S PART OF AN EFFORT to offer meaningful global experience options for students during the COVID-19 pandemic, an honors special topics program, IDH 2930 Korea Global Experience, was created by academic advisor Mr. Kevin Lee and honors staff Ms. Kylie Pontious. Through primarily online delivery, the course leveraged technology and community connections to create interactive experiences that engaged students with Korean culture, even from their own homes. Though the group was unable to travel to South Korea in Spring 2021 due to the pandemic, the initiative revealed a large population of Honors students interested in learning more about the country. In addition to discussing topics such as Korean history, culture, and traditions, students engaged in various activities including virtual movie nights, cooking classes, Korean language sessions, and a book club. Working with instructors Spencer Bennington (USF faculty) and Adelia Douglas (USF staff), students also participated in an introductory Taekwondo class both virtually and in-person. To deepen the students’ understanding of the course topics and establish a personal connection with the country and culture, the class partnered with the Yonsei University Mirae campus to launch a pen-pal program. The students regularly connected with their pen pals and discussed their daily lives and the topics covered in class. Honors student Ryanne Botardo was able to travel independently to South Korea once restrictions were lifted. “My pen pal and I hit it off right away,” she says. “The connections and conversations we shared—from our love of Netflix to our experiences during the pandemic—helped immensely when I traveled to Korea. I am grateful to her, as she gave me so many recommendations on what to say, what to eat, and which cultural attractions to see when I arrived in her country. She made me feel comfortable in a foreign country and it was nice having ‘insider tips’ over the course of my trip. We even managed to meet up in Seoul for a day, to go to a museum and see the Han River!” Ryanne was not the only IDH 2930 student who traveled to Korea. Jasmine Primus also chose to study abroad in Seoul, South Korea in the semester following the course. The second edition of the program, led once again by Lee and Pontious, is a Spring 2022 course with even more integrated experiential learning activities where students engage with Korean culture. The next study abroad trip is set to travel in May 2023. - Kevin Lee and Kylie Pontious
40 UNIVERSITY of SOUTH FLORIDA
