CURRICULUM/CURRICULAR FRAMEWORK

Reformulating and utilizing five Cs standards and progress indicators included in Standards for Learning Korean (2012), the Standards-Based College Curriculum for Korean Language Education presents a full-fledged curriculum that begins with level 1 and level 2 or heritage Level, proceeds to level 3 and level 4, and culminates at level 5 and level 6. The successive levels, from 1 to 6, correspond to the development trajectory of proficiency from novice to advanced high. While the overall curriculum is based on a spiral model, it is designed in modular forms for ease and flexibility of use in meeting various needs and interests of students and accommodating divergent instructional settings and conditions. Each level is organized around a series of themes, composed of communication functions and settings in level 1 and level 2, content topics in level 3 and level 4, and subject areas in level 5 and level 6. Each macro-level theme comprises two to four subtopics that serve as the unit of curricular specifications. Each unit is in the form of a comprehensive template of guidelines and lists of resources for developing teaching materials, instructional activities, classroom tasks, and student projects. More specifically, it includes (a) explicit learning objectives with respect to the five Cs (i.e., Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities); (b) key words and content topics to be explored; (c) suggested tasks and activities; and (d) lists of useful texts and audiovisual materials in published textbooks or from other authentic sources. The curriculum aims to be a blueprint for development of innovative and imaginative Korean courses and materials that realize the vision of Standards for Learning Korean. It is intended to be a practical template for revising and expanding an existing curriculum as well as for designing of new courses or curriculum.