(Photo: gotechdaily.com)
Longing to learn a new skill while stuck in self-isolation?
Have no fear because BTS is here! The South Korean boy band launched a web series to assist fans in their Korean language learning.
The boy band will host 30 language lessons on the social media app Weverse—a fan community platform that is popular among K-pop enthusiasts. Each episode will be about 3 minutes long and will focus on Korean grammar and expressions.
Each lesson was carefully designed by researchers at the Korean Language Content Institute and Professor Heo Yong of the Department of Korean Education at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.
Youth is something I never wanna take for granted. I just want to smile and live life#BTSARMY #BestFanArmy #iHeartAwards @BTS_twt pic.twitter.com/0GvUvsabml
— Yenganv (@NguynYnNgn6) March 27, 2020
Big Hit Entertainment founder, Bang Si-Hyuk, said in a statement that the idea for the language learning series came after fans asked for BTS’s videos to be subtitled in English.
Wanting to make language learning easy and fun, “Big Hit has created Korean learning media using artist content for a more rewarding and immersive experience for our fans,” Bang said.
The series will consist of material from the band’s reality show, “Run BTS!”, and from YouTube series like “Bangtan Bombs” and “BTS Episodes.”
Korean has rapidly grown in popularity over the years. Between 2013 and 2016, the Modern Language Association found that Korean courses in U.S. universities rose by nearly 14 percent. Language learning website Duolingo launched a Korean course in 2017 and it has attracted more than 200,000 learners.
Without a doubt the popularity of Korean pop music and dramas has driven people to want to learn Korean, and BTS is riding that wave of popularity while helping fans who are stuck at home.
By: Maytinee Kramer
