Wondergirls made their highly anticipated comeback performance yesterday to mixed reviews. Nevertheless, it’s big news and is the #1 search term on Naver, at the moment and is fodder for ESL discussion in your classes.
Springboards
-What did you think of their ‘So Hot’ comeback performance?
-Do you think they can live up to their past success, like ‘Tell Me’?
-Which girl band is the best, at the moment?
The insanely popular Korean singer, Park Hyo Shin, is being insanely swooned over due to his song ‘화신’ that is the theme song for the insanely popular Iljimae, starring the insanely androgynous popular Lee Joon Ki.
Pretty much any mention of the above TV series, singer, or lead actor will be enough to trigger spirited discussion with your students (or yawns from the boys in class, but what else is new).
A topic of conversation that is likely to yield opinions out of any age group and gender is ‘who do you think is the prettiest/hottest female celebrity/actress/talent’. I suppose there should be a male version to this, but you’re not going to get many male students to chime in with their thoughts, whereas both genders tend to have preferences (ie., “Can you do my hair like XYZ”, “Can you do surgery on my cheekbones to look like XYZ?”, etc…) over who is the fairest of the fairer sex.
There’s a handful of current names that are most frequently talked about and I’m happy to profile each one. Let’s start with the 3 popular names uttered in plastic surgery-seeking circles:
The above picture shows Kim Taehee, Han Ga-in, and Song Hyekyo, plus quotes on how much it would cost to have plastic surgery to look like them.
1. Han Ga-in is the better deal, surgery-wise, but that doesn’t sway the vote as to why we think she is #1. It’s hard not to find any massive billboard with her face plastered on it. And its even harder to look away.
(From Naver Cafe)
2. Kim Taehee is hard not to make a case for #1, as she is another one that you see everywhere and steals your eyes right out of your head.
(From Image Bingo)
3. Cute, wholesome Lee Nayoung made her mark in Please Teach Me English and has never stopped rising. A tough call to make for #3, with Hyori nipping at her heels (Wow, I can get used to staying that sentence over and over.)
(From ImageBingo)
4. Any list cannot be without the Big Nasty. Despite being 29, Lee Hyori (pron. Hyo-lee) can be considered the elder stateswoman of most lists. Another one that makes people stop and stare in mid-sentence during any of her commercials.
(From Gombox Cafe)
5. Ivy‘s emergence onto the music scene with her sexy songs and jaw-dropping (by Korean standards, anyways) videos makes her a lock on any list of hot Korean celebrities.
(From’s Moonshomme’s Cafe)
Here’s a good debate topic for your intermediate to advanced classes. The recent, high profile breakup of Ok Sori (pron. ‘Oak Soh-lee’) and Park Chul (pron. ‘Pahk Chawl’) has brought the nation’s attention to its antiquated adultery law that treats extramarital affairs as a crime, which could lead to jail. The Herald Tribune has a good article that gets your feet wet on the subject material. Lots of potential for this one with your classes, such as breaking the class into teams for debate and rebuttals on whether one feels that the law should be scrapped or kept.
A popular show these days is 더스타쇼 (The Star Show), which is an SBS variety program which invites popular celebrities to come on and get candid and personal. A relatively easy conversation-filler for classes with girls aged middle school and up.
Conversation Springboards
Wikipedia’s fabulous 무한도전 (pron. ‘moo-han-doh-jeon’) article is just one reason why Galbijim’s wiki gravitates to writing more about city and living guides, moreso than cultural information. Their article on Korea’s famed comedy program is a great starting point to familiarize with what could amount to a full hour of discussion in your classroom.
Conversation Springboards
I Am Your Pet (나는펫) is a really popular reality TV show these days amongst Koreans, specifically middle and high school girls, and 20-somethings. It’s a show where women in their late 20s-early 30′s are given a a young male as a pet to take care of for 3 months. It may sound odd or somewhat borderline S&M, but its said to be quite funny and has attracted a strong following. The show is currently on its third season.
If you bring this up as a discussion topic, you’ll likely need to refer to it as being 나는펫 first, to trigger everyone’s connection.
Some springboards could be:
*Recollection of the funniest moments.
*Personality clashes between pets and owners (on the show, but also in RL)
*The challenges of raising/grooming pets in Korea
Most Korean guys seem to be familiar with at least some knowledge of what`s happening in Korean baseball, so if you have any in your class, ask them about Woori Heroes knuckleballer Ma Il Young. The above knuckleball video is currently one the hottest searches on Naver, at the moment.
Springboard discussion
Here’s something for a conversation starter in your classes, if you are teaching any girls in middle school or older. News just broke that Kim Heesun is 4 weeks pregnant. Her Cyworld hompy is being flooded with visits from well-wishers right now. Some ideas for springboard discussion can then get into:
*Other Korean celebrities who are pregnant
*Western celebrities who are pregnant (ie., Angelina Jolie)
*The problem that celebrities might face with being pregnant/raising kids in the public eye
*Asking students about how they would raise their kids, if they were a celebrity.
(Image from esports)
You want to get the ear of a bored Korean child? Ask them ‘What’s your Maple level?’
Korean children, specifically, boys, are bonkers for computer games. So much as that they have their own lingo that you can hear them stammering to each other during class.
6. Kart (카트; pron. ‘kaht-eu) stands for Kart Rider, a racing game that was #1 amongst all games a few years back, but has dropped down somewhat.
5. Star (스타; pron. ‘stah’) is short for Starcraft. A ferociously popular game, mostly played by middle and high school students, right up until their college years. This is actually become an industry, where pro gamers of Starcraft can earn over $100,000/year in contest winnings. And yes, this is a contributing factor to why students suffer from poor grades or drop out altogether and spend huge hours in PC bangs, some of whom even become hospitalized or die due to malnutrition.
4. Maple (메이플; pron. ‘May-peul’, not like how we would say ‘may-puhl’) is slang for Maple Story, the Viagra of internet games for Korean elementary school boys. It simply does not tire in the ever-changing sea of Korean games that come out every year. It appeared in 2003 and has made an impact on every little kid with a zit on cheek or finger in nose. Your Maple level equates to your social status among peers, so much so that some Korean mothers allow for their boys to play Maple for at least an hour everyday, to ensure that they don’t become a 왕따.
3. Sudden (서든; pron. ‘seo-deun’) means Sudden Attack. A first-person shooter game that you can see older kids playing together or using headsets to coordinate attacks with other players in other PC bangs.
2. Kepa (케파; pron. ‘keh-pah’) is derived from Keroro Fighter, which stems from a popular Korean cartoon originating from Japan. Kepa has been surging in popularity of late.
1. Dunpa (던파; pron. ‘Deon-pah’ is Dungeon and Fighter, the reigning champ of games that occupy the thoughts of glazed-eye students in your classroom.
Creating dialogue and/or activities around these topics will be a slamdunk for you being a popular teacher and getting everyone actively interested in the class. Well, it still might be a tough sell on girls, who are usually more interested in talking about Cyworld hompies or Sayclub IDs.
