The Korea Foundation, K-pop powerhouse Big Hit Entertainment’s education business unit Big Hit Edu and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies are working together to develop and provide Korean language learning programs.

As their first project together, they will provide a program for KF‘s e-school lectures for universities overseas, including Middlebury College in the US, Ecole Normale Superieure and EDHEC Business School in France this year. The organization has been providing content for Korean studies and Korean language lectures to foreign universities through its e-school project since 2011.

This lecture will be taught using Big Hit Edu’s education textbooks titled “Learn! KOREAN with BTS,” which was co-developed with HUFS professor Heo Yong to help K-pop fans learn Korean language through BTS-related cultural content.

“As cultural products like K-pop sensation BTS and director Bong Joon-ho‘s film ‘Parasite’ become recognized worldwide, we see that the interest in the Korean language has rapidly increased. ’Learn! KOREAN with BTS’ lectures will greatly contribute to encouraging Korean language learning abroad and promoting Korean language and culture,” KF President Lee Geun said in a statement.

The three entities added that they will continue their cooperation by creating programs such as the Korean Fellowship, which will provide opportunities to study Korean language by taking classes at universities in Korea.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)