The South Korean government funds an educational program that teaches and promotes the Korean language at more than a hundred branches around the world.
And this week, the King Sejong Institute celebrated its 10th anniversary.
Our Choi Si-young attended the celebration -- a conference for hundreds of Korean language educators.

Around 200 people, including staff from King Sejong Institute branches in 44 countries, gathered Tuesday at the 10th World Korean Educators Conference.
To celebrate its 10th anniversary, the foundation invited the heads of its regional institutes and honored their achievements with awards.

This year's event was made all the more special by actor Song Seung-whan, who gave a keynote speech.
Song was the producer of the electrifying ceremonies at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

"I hope more Korean language educators from overseas can learn all about Korean culture. In addition to K-pop or Korean TV dramas, I hope they learn here about our traditional culture."

The foundation welcomed the foreign Korean educators with traditional cultural performances like drumming and dance.

"I first got interested in the language watching Korean dramas. That made me interested in the country, too, so I started learning Korean."

"My interest in Korean grew because the Korean culture and language were beautiful. So, I wanted to learn Korean."

"At the four-day event, visitors will also be able to enjoy some traditional Korean culture, including Nanta, a non-verbal comedy show directed by keynote speaker Song Seung-whan."

At a separate venue, the foundation also plans to give its staff more training and share success stories in teaching the Korean language.

Choi Si-young, Arirang News.