Educational Collaboration between Myanmar and Korea
강연자 : Tun Aung
목차
- 1 1. Introduction
- 2 2. Education System in Myanmar
- 3 3. Human Resource Development Programmes to Promote Qualified Human Resource
- 4 4. Enhancing International Co-operation
- 5 5. Educational Partnership between Korea and Myanmar
- 6 6. Korean Studies in Myanmar
- 7 7. Research Centres in Myanmar
- 8 8. Conclusion
- 9 발표문 목록
1. Introduction
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar (Myanmar/Myanmar) has an estimated population of around51million and a territory of some 675000 km, making it the largest country in continental South East Asia. Following more than 50 years of military dictatorship, Myanmar/Myanmar has embarked on a remarkable process of reform under the new government, which took office in March 2011.
In Myanmar’s reform process, the government’s focus has mostly been on national reconciliation, ethnic peace and economic reform. More recently, however, education has also been high on the agenda. Myanmar is in the midst of an educational tragedy. The educational sector has suffered tremendously under years of military rule. The major obstacles to the civilian children inside Myanmar, is the lack of opportunities and the quality of education.
2. Education System in Myanmar
The Ministry of Education is functionally the main sponsor of education and training, especially in the areas of basic education, higher education and the teacher education. The Ministry of Education is functioning with the vision to create an education system that can generate a learning society capable of facing the challenges of the knowledge Age. The education motto is “Building a modern and developed nation through education”. The Ministry is implementing various short-term and long-term plans to develop a lifelong society.
2.1 Basic Education in Myanmar
In Myanmar, the school structure is 5+4+2 and is consider as part of the Basic education sector. The entry age for formal school system is 5 years. Myanmar basic education school system includes 3 years schooling at the lower primary level, 2 years schooling at the upper primary level, 4 years at the lower secondary level and 2 years at the upper secondary level. The students have to sit for the matriculation at the end of upper secondary level in order to pursue tertiary education.
2.2 Higher Education in Myanmar
Higher Education institutions are focusing on regional development by offering courses that fulfill community needs. Higher Education institutions offered different levels of programs: such as undergraduate, postgraduate diploma, master’s degree programmes and doctorate programmes. The current education system is that all the programmes and institutions are in operation with the subsidization of the government. The government subsidizes the tuition fees that the students can pursue their studies with the lowest cost. There is no private university yet. The students need to go and join the mother universities for the graduation degree. In the Higher Education sector, there are 169 universities under 12 different ministries. All the universities in Myanmar are government-funded public universities. There are 47 universities under the Ministry of Education. Most of which are Arts and Science Universities and some are professional universities such as University of Economics. Out of 18 Regions and States, there are one or more Universities of Art and Science in major cities of most Regions and States.
The government set education development policies focused on Accessibility, Diversity, and quality. To increase the accessibility to the higher education sector, the government builds the universities and schools in border areas and regional areas. Therefore, the students in border and remote areas have the same accessibility as those in urban areas.
In addition to regular academic programmes, Universities and Colleges in Myanmar are offering the diversified, multidisciplinary, quality programmes in various fields to meet national and regional demands and requirements and for the development of students’ careers in new field. Since more programmes is offered, there is a chance for everyone to pursue their interested field to the end and thus, enhances the qualification of the pursuers. To ensure the quality of higher education, the syllabuses and curricula should be reviewed periodically and upgraded accordingly.
The government also gives priority to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to enhance the skills at all level of undergraduate and postgraduate studies. The quality of teaching staff and teaching aid facilities are being promoted and upgraded to maintain and enhance the quality education.
3. Human Resource Development Programmes to Promote Qualified Human Resource
The National Centre for Human Resource Development was established by the Ministry of Education in June 1998. in accordance with the decision arrived at the seminar held earlier in March to diversify education opportunities in order to produce highly qualified human resource needed by a modernizing economy. Under the National Centre for Human Resource Development (NCHRD) are the Centres for Human Resource Development established at every higher education institution under the Ministry of Education. The centres identify community needs and initiate vocational, professional and technology based courses that are in demand. The centres for human resource development began their activities in 1998 with certificate and undergraduate diploma courses, but they have now begun to offer degree, postgraduate diploma, and even postgraduate courses.
4. Enhancing International Co-operation
The special four-year plan gave impetus to higher education institutions to form linkages and collaborations with international higher education institutions and research organizations in order to harness both local and foreign sources for the development of the higher education sub-sector. The first year of the plan saw an upsurge in the number of initiatives that promoted collaborations with regional and international higher education institutions and organizations. These collaborations were in the form of MOUs, training programmes, workshops and seminars conducted by foreign institutions, joint research programmes and invitations to participate in scholarship programmes abroad. Conferences, symposiums, seminars, workshops, meetings, and research have also been held in collaboration with foreign institutions and organizations. International exchange that involves students, faculty and administrators has also grown.
5. Educational Partnership between Korea and Myanmar
Myanmar and the Republic of Korea have long and historical friendship and close economic cooperation since 1975, diplomatic relations between the Republic of Korea and the Union of Myanmar (formerly Myanmar) was established. This relationship paved the way for bilateral trade and cultural ties. Economic Cooperation between Myanmar and the Republic of Korea had started since 1982.But after South Korea created a democratically elected government in the late 1980s, leaders in Seoul joined international efforts to encourage reform in Myanmar.
People-to-people contacts continue to be an important area of ASEAN-ROK cooperation. Exchange programmes have been conducted in the areas of culture, government officials, media, youth, and academics with the funding support of the Future Oriented Cooperation Projects (FOCP) Fund.
In culture and arts, the ASEAN-Korea Centre has played a vital role in raising the awareness of the culture and arts of ASEAN Member States and the ROK. In media cooperation, the ASEAN-ROK Media People Exchanges Programme has been conducted since 2008. This project aimed at discovering and nurturing young and talented film professionals in the ASEAN region and laid the foundation for the establishment of film education institutions in the ASEAN region.
In the area of youth, many activities have been conducted since 1998. These programmes aim at strengthening closer relations and promoting better understanding for the future generations.
The progress on the establishment of the ASEAN-ROK Cyber University, an initiative proposed at the ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit in June 2009, is also going well. The initial focus is on strengthening the capacity of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Viet Nam in order to facilitate the eventual establishment of the ASEAN-ROK Cyber University.
Cooperation in education is also progressing very well. Three programmes have thus far been implemented, namely the international college student exchange programmes between ASEAN and the ROK, which were conducted annually from 2006 to 2011, the ASEAN-Korea Academic Exchange Programme conducted annually since 2006, and the ASEAN Millennium Leaders College Student Exchange Programme conducted since 2010. The ROK also provided funding for ASEAN-ROK Scholarship for Korean Studies Programme coordinated by the ASEAN University Network (AUN). These scholarship programmes have been on-going since 2010.
Relations between South Korea and Myanmar have greatly improved in recent years. In 2012, South Korea’s former president Lee Myung-bak made a state visit to Naypyidaw, during which he promised his Burmese counterpart Thein Sein that South Korea would assist in developing Myanmar’s economy and education sector.
5.1 Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)
KOICA founded in 1991, opened its Myanmar office in 2001. KOICA provides its grant assistance and technical support in the areas where the needs of the Government of Myanmar can meet. KOICA conducts various projects and programs in collaboration with the Government of Myanmar, as well as other donor countries, international agencies, NGOs and private sector in order to help Myanmar achieve the smooth reform process and development results that can positively benefit the people of Myanmar.
Public Private Partnership KOICA provides financial support to NGOs and Korea universities to help them implement projects aiming at poverty eradication and promotion of wellbeing for the local people. In 2013, KOICA supports 10 projects, mostly focusing on community and capacity development. KOICA had sent the project proposals to FERD for the opinions of the concerned ministries on the proposals for( 6) Seminar Programs and (5) Project Aid Program for 2014. For 2015-16, Myanmar proposed 7 projects to get help for implement them.
5.2 Korea Knowledge Sharing Program
KSP programs could support to our country's development by sharing experience of Korea's development and so it is welcomed. The Korea Embassy has informed to send the project proposals from Myanmar side for the following areas to produce policy recommendation papers for development countries by Sharing Korea’s experience of economic development. These areas are: Economic Development Strategy, Industrialization and Export Promotion, Knowledge-based Economy, Economic Crisis Management, Human Resources Development (Education, Job Training, Social Safety Net and Retraining)
5.3 Myanmar Development Institute (MDI)
During the visit of President of the Republic of Korea to Myanmar in May 2012 agreed by both sides the Establishment of Myanmar Development Institute for Memorandum of the Understanding (MOU) have been signed on (9-10-2012) by the Union Minister for Ministry of Industry, Republic of the Union of Myanmar and Minister for Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Republic of Korea during the goodwill visit of our President.
Korea plays a role of a navigator for Myanmar’s economic development through the establishment of the Myanmar Development Institute (MDI), a think tank, and new Saemaul Undong, which will be a main pillar of regional economic development. That is why, during the visit of President of the Republic of Korea to Myanmar in May 2012 agreed by both sides the Establishment of Myanmar Development Institute for Memorandum of the Understanding (MOU) have been signed on (9-10-2012) by the Union Minister for Ministry of Industry, Republic of the Union of Myanmar and Minister for Minister Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Republic of Korea during the goodwill visit of our President.
Moreover, The Korean government will provide a cooperation package which covers the provision of information and knowhow as well as physical support, in order to enhance cooperation efficiency. That is why Korea’s KSP (Knowledge Sharing Program) will be a hub for information-based support, through which the MDI establishment plan and national development blueprint will be drawn up, and education opportunities will be given to Myanmar public officials. The Korean government will also provide physical support for MDI construction, such as construction materials and facilities. Myanmar side also proposed for seminar/training to be held in Korea under KOICA Program.
5.4 Fellowship Program
In the late 1980s, a small number of Myanmar students registered in a handful of universities and theological institutions in Korea. In the future, more students will be registering in Korean universities as the Korean Embassy in Yangon begins offering scholarships to qualified students.
Fellowship Program Since 1991, KOICA has provided educational opportunities to the Myanmar government officials in the field of health, environment, public administration, agriculture, etc. This fellowship program consists of short-term training courses and Master’s degree programs, and aims at strengthening the government officials’ capacity. More than 1,500 officials have participated in the program.
There are 9 scholarship programmes which consist training, research, conference, seminar, study tour, master degree programmes and doctoral programmes. From 1994-95 to 2009-10, training course was the highest scholarship programmes and half of total scholars to South Korea. (As shown in Table -1 and Figure-1). Second one was research programme that it was 12% in total scholars to South Korea and third was conference that consisted 11%. There was no MoU and sport programme in these period.
| Year | Training | Research | Conference | Seminar | Study Tour | Ph.D | Master | MOU | Sport | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (no.) | 69 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 138 |
| % | 50 | 12.32 | 10.87 | 9.42 | 5.80 | 3.62 | 7.97 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
From 2010-11to 2014-15, seminar course was the highest scholarship programmes and 27.5% of total scholars to South Korea. (As shown in Table-2 and Figure-2). Confrence was the second highest programme that it was 17% in total scholars to South Korea and third was training that consisted 13.75%. After 2011 MoU became important relationship between Myanmar and South Korea.
| Year | Training | Research | Conference | Seminar | Study Tour | Ph.D | Master | MOU | Sport | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (no.) | 11 | 1 | 14 | 22 | 10 | 12 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 80 |
| % | 13.75 | 1.25 | 17.5 | 27.5 | 12.5 | 15 | 1.25 | 10 | 1.25 | 100 |
There are 218 scholarships provided from Korea from 1994-95 to 2014-15. Among them, scholarships from KOICA represent 27% of total scholarships in this period. Other organizations that provided scholarship are KDI, KEDI, KFAS, Korea Foundation, KOSEC Myanmar and Korea government.
6. Korean Studies in Myanmar
As there are close ties, relationships and cooperation between Myanmar and Korea, the Korean language academic programs should be implemented and offered in various universities in Myanmar.
In Myanmar, there are two foreign language universities- Yangon University of Foreign Languages (YUFL) located in lower Myanmar and Mandalay University of Foreign Languages (MUFL) located in upper Myanmar. Both universities provide Korean language study programs.
The YUFL commenced the Programs of Korean language study as a Diploma course. Korean Language department of YUFL consists of 17 teaching staff. Full time course was started in 1993-94 academic year and part-time course was started in 1997-98 academic year. Bachelor and Master’s programs were embarked in 2000-01 and 2010-11 respectively. The number of students studying Korean language as a fresher joined the YUFL in this academic year is (94) and it is the third largest among 7 language studies offered by the YUFL. The number of students in Korea Language study (Bachelor Course) increases during the last three years. This can be seen in the following table. The number of Bachelor students is higher than the number of Diploma students.
| Year | Bachelor | diploma | total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st yr. | 2nd yr. | 3rd yr. | 4th yr. | 1st yr. | 2nd yr. | 3rd yr. | 4th yr. | ||
| 2012-13* | 116 | 78 | 56 | - | 44 | 22 | 12 | 24 | 352 |
| 2013-14* | 132 | 97 | 76 | - | 55 | 33 | 16 | 8 | 417 |
| 2014-15 | 101 | 100 | 94 | 68 | 54 | 28 | 29 | 14 | 488 |
Note: Before 2014, Bachelor degree courses require only 3 Academic years for learning
The Mandalay University of Foreign Languages (MUFL) introduced its program of Korean Language study in 1997. Korean Language department of MUFL consists of 14 teaching staff. Among language study programs offered by MUFL, the number of fresher in Korean language study in the academic year 2014-15 is (61) and it is the 5th largest number after the number of fresher in other language study programs: Japanese (95), English (85), Chinese (71) & Germany (71), and French (68). Korean language study programs serve the total of (223) students in the current academic year of 2014-15. This is shown in the following table.
| Year | Bachelor 1st Year | Bachelor 2nd Year | Bachelor 3rd Year | Bachelor 4th Year | Bachelor Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 61 | 33 | 67 | 52 | 223 |
As can be seen from the above tables, the Korean language programs have been established firmly and made significant progress so far. However, being language universities, the focus of YUFL and MUFL is only on language. Education in economics, business and other social sciences are not incorporated in their program. Therefore, there is an urgent need to establish Korean studies programs in social sciences, business and economics at other universities. So, research in economics and social sciences to support Myanmar-Korea relations and also to support the establishment and operation of Myanmar Development Institute from the university sectors.
7. Research Centres in Myanmar
Research Centres previously established at higher education institutions are being upgraded and new centres instituted under the long-term education development plan in order to promote research and scholarship and to provide research services to industry and enterprises in the region in which the universities are established and contribute to their development. Activities of some of the main research centres located at major universities in Myanmar are highlighted below.
7.1 Asia Research Centre, Yangon University
Collaborating with international research centers is also emphasized. The Asia Research Centre (ARC) was opened at Universities’ Research Centre, Yangon University (YU) on 9 August 2002. The primary financier of ARC, YU is the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies (KFAS) that signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Yangon University on 9 April 2002. The mission of ARC,YU is to assist in the preparation of Myanmar intellectual advancement and to contribute to the development of the frontiers of national science development by fostering scientific activities and their applications to industry. For the long term development of research, the long term plan aims to establish higher education institutions specializing in research and enhance collaborative research with international research centers and organizations.
7.2 Yangon University of Economics
Yangon University of economics (YUE) was founded in 1964 and it offers diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate courses. YUE has admitted more than 55,000 graduates. Many outstanding high-ranked officials are currently serving to the nation in various areas got their respective degrees from YUE. YUE has strong connections with academic society to government officials as well as to every non- government executives and private entrepreneurs who have attended one or more courses offered by YUE. It can reach out to academic and research concerning with economic and administrative fields. This demonstrates that YUE is in a unique strategic position to make cooperation with other international universities and organization. There are 29 international universities and organization cooperating with YUE. Among them 2 are Korea organizations/universities, namely, Korea Myanmar Research Association and Woosong University.
Moreover, YUE is now expecting to establish an academic unit to pursue coordination with Korean Studies research, in particular the Myanmar-Korea relationship. That research unit will be a national research centre to assist relationship between Myanmar and Korea in various fields. From that institute the cooperation and collaboration for educational reforms will be carried out and dealt with other universities. Such a unit will become a focal point for the cooperation between government and university. The aim of that unit is to support research services to government departments and private enterprises or collaborate with them in conducting research.
The research unit will hold seminars and conferences regularly on related topic with Korea in various sectors of the economy. The research projects can be conducted, especially on Myanmar-Korea Economics, political and Socio-Cultural relations. That research unit can collaborate with other organizations and conduct research for mutually beneficial academic projects.
8. Conclusion
The education system in Myanmar needs to embrace new teaching methods to replace rote learning. Therefore, teachers need to be qualified as teachers as well as knowledgeable in subject areas. Myanmar education is now in the mainstream of e-Education and the Ministry of Education is well-prepared for the task to transform Myanmar society into a learning society and make education accessible to any region at any time.
Myanmar has liberalized domestic and external trade, redefined the role of the private sector and opened itself to foreign investment. With the changes in the economic system and the emergence of economic enterprises, the need for a better-trained workforce is evident and more job opportunities for better-educated and better-trained persons have emerged.
In conclusion, we expect such opportunities such as research centre, joint research program, student and staff exchange with a high involvement of the university’s central level and modest involvement of the faculties. The education promotion programmes being undertaken will enhance the building of a robust higher education system that can further serve Myanmar’s needs as it strives to become a modern and developed nation.
Furthermore, it will equip Myanmar citizens with quality education and the advanced skill or knowledge they will need in an increasingly competitive environment and create a firm foundation to pursue lifelong learning while at the same time nurturing the cultural roots and identity of Myanmar.
