Taeglish

Posted by Diane Farrug May 28, 2008

What do you get when you combine martial arts and language learning? Taeglish! It's a Taekwondo English class, and it's the new craze for English-learners in South Korea. Children enthusiastically kick and shout out English phrases in this fun, high-energy alternative to traditional language education.

Taeglish is rapidly growing in popularity. Kim Sung-han created the first class at a department store in March 2007 as the answer to boring English classes. There are now 40 Taeglish academies across South Korea.

I have to wonder just how proficient students can become in a Taekwondo class. There must certainly be a limit to the amount of vocabulary, expressions, and cultural contexts a teacher can explore while kicking boards. Yet, Sung-han is definitely on to something. Kinesthetic learners are often overlooked in traditional education. Taeglish is a novel way to expose reluctant learners to a new language. It boosts kids' confidence and piques their interest.

In fact, why stop with Taeglish? I propose Karatlish (Karate and English) and Yoglish (Yoga and English). Just imagine all of the vocabulary for body parts and poses inherent in yoga.

Other foreign languages can also incorporate physicial education and fun, active learning as part of a traditional approach. How about:

• Frenchercize (French + Jazzercize)
• Portulates (Portuguese + Pilates)
• T'ai Chi-nese (T'ai Chi + Chinese)
• Spanaerobics (Spanish + Aerobics)
• Taekwondeutsch (Taekwondo + German)

Add a little kick to language learning.

Resources: New Tang Dynasty Television website, Reuters website "In South Korea they teach English with a kick."