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State Deputy Maria Victoria received the director of the Korean Education Center in São Paulo, Sung Geun Park, and the honorary consul of South Korea in Paraná to advance the implementation of Korean language teaching in public schools in Paraná. The South Korean government offers free training for teachers, teaching materials, and complete pedagogical support, connecting students to one of the most innovative countries in the world in technology and international trade.
The Paraná has just taken a concrete step to become the first Brazilian state to include the teaching of the Korean language in public schools with official support from the government of South Korea. The initiative advances through the articulation between State Deputy Maria Victoria and the Korean Education Center, the official body of the South Korean government that works to promote the language in various countries. The project is not limited to offering classes: it provides for free training for teachers, provision of teaching materials, and complete pedagogical support for implementation in the state network.
The proposal connects Paraná students to opportunities that go far beyond learning a new language. South Korea is a global reference in technology, innovation, and international trade, and mastering the Korean language opens doors for academic exchange, scholarships, and careers in South Korean companies operating in Brazil, such as Samsung, Hyundai, and LG. For Paraná, which hosts one of the largest communities of Korean descendants in the country, the initiative also has a cultural dimension that recognizes and values the presence of this population in the state.
What the Korean Education Center Offers to Paraná
According to information released on the profile of State Deputy Maria Victoria, the Korean Education Center is an agency linked to the government of South Korea that operates in dozens of countries with the mission of disseminating the language and Korean culture through partnerships with local education networks. In the case of Paraná, the offer includes free training for teachers who will be responsible for the classes, eliminating one of the main obstacles to introducing a new language in public schools: the training of qualified professionals.
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In addition to teacher training, the center provides teaching materials developed specifically for Portuguese speakers, with methodology adapted to different age groups. The pedagogical support includes continuous monitoring of the implementation, ensuring that the schools have technical assistance throughout the entire process of introducing the Korean language into the curriculum. For the state, the cost is significantly reduced because the human and material resources are funded by the South Korean government.
Why the Korean Language and Not Another Asian Language
The choice of the Korean language is not arbitrary. South Korea occupies a prominent global position in sectors such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, gaming, entertainment, and the automotive industry, areas that require bilingual professionals capable of navigating between cultures and markets. The so-called Korean wave, or Hallyu, which popularized K-pop, dramas, and South Korean cinema in Brazil, has created a generation of young people with a genuine interest in the culture and the language, which facilitates students’ adherence to the program.
From an economic perspective, South Korea is one of the largest Asian investors in Brazil and maintains trade relations that generate billions of dollars a year. Mastering the Korean language gives Paraná students a competitive advantage in selection processes of South Korean companies operating in the country that often seek professionals with knowledge of the language and Korean business culture. Paraná, with its industrial and technological hub, is a natural territory for this demand.
What the project can mean for students from Paraná
For **students** in **public schools** in **Paraná**, access to the **Korean language** represents an expansion of horizons that English and Spanish alone cannot offer. **In addition to linguistic learning, the project can open doors to scholarships at South Korean universities**, which are among the best in Asia and offer programs specifically aimed at foreign students who master the **language**.
Cultural **exchange** is another direct benefit. **Students who learn Korean begin to understand a culture with millenary traditions that influence everything from gastronomy to business practices**, knowledge that goes beyond the school curriculum and forms citizens with a broader worldview. For young people from low-income families attending public schools, the opportunity to learn an Asian **language** for free can be transformative in a job market that increasingly values international competencies.
How Paraná can become a national reference in this model
If the implementation is successful, **Paraná** can create a model replicable by other Brazilian states. **The structure offered by the Korean Education Center, with free training, materials, and pedagogical support, removes the financial barriers that normally prevent public schools from offering languages other than English and Spanish.** The format of direct cooperation between a foreign **government** and the state education network is innovative in the Brazilian context.
The presence of the honorary consul of **South Korea** in **Paraná** at the articulation meetings signals that the project has diplomatic backing that goes beyond a specific initiative. **The expectation is that Korean language teaching will begin as a pilot project in selected schools** and, depending on the results, gradually expand to other units of the state network. The implementation schedule and the selection of the first participating **schools** should be defined in the next stages of negotiation between the state and the Korean Education Center.
The cultural context that makes Paraná the ideal state for this initiative
**Paraná** is not just a state with strategic interest in **South Korea**: it is a territory with concrete cultural ties. **The community of Korean descendants in the state is one of the largest in Brazil**, and Curitiba hosts cultural institutions, churches, and associations that have kept South Korean traditions alive for decades. The introduction of the **Korean language** in public **schools** recognizes this presence and offers descendants the opportunity to deepen their contact with the **language** of their ancestors within the formal education system.
For **students** who do not have Korean ancestry, the program is equally valuable. **Contact with a language and culture different from those that dominate the Brazilian school curriculum stimulates cognitive skills**, expands communication capacity, and prepares young people for a world where economic and cultural relations with Asia are increasingly decisive. By embracing this initiative, **Paraná** positions its **students** ahead of a trend that other states will take years to achieve.
**Would you like your child’s school to offer Korean classes, or do you think the focus should only be on English and Spanish?** Tell us in the comments if you would learn the **Korean language** and what you think about Brazilian public schools teaching Asian languages.
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