“KSI is where my dream came true and
where someone else’s dream begins to grow.” Meeting with Teacher Park In-sun,
Winner of the Minister of Culture,
Sports and Tourism Award at the 2025 World
Korean Educator Conference Outstanding
Teacher Contest

Since the second half of 2023, Teacher Park In-sun has been serving as a dispatched instructor at KSI Budapest, where she has personally designed social media–based practical Korean classes and language–culture exchange programs to connect learners with the local community. In this interview, we discuss the achievements of her award-winning programs, “Media Writing” and “Fighting! Pajting!,” which earned her the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award (Grand Prize) in the Outstanding Teacher Contest, as well as the rewards of being a dispatched instructor and her future goals.

Hello, Teacher Park In-sun! Please start by introducing yourself to the readers of Monthly Knock Knock.
 

Hello. I’m Park In-sun, a Korean language teacher, and it feels like a dream to be interviewed for Monthly Knock Knock. I was dispatched to KSI Budapest in the second half of 2023, where I worked until this past June. I am now preparing for pre-departure training ahead of my second-half 2025 dispatch.

I majored in Hungarian and minored in Spanish in university, which gave me opportunities to live in various countries. I still vividly remember the excitement I felt when teaching Korean and introducing Korean culture to foreign friends during that time. Those experiences naturally inspired me to dream of becoming “someone who promotes Korea,” and being selected as a Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) overseas volunteer in Sri Lanka allowed me to further nurture that dream by teaching Korean there.

After earning an additional degree in Korean language education in graduate school, I was finally able to begin my official career in Korean language teaching at KSI Budapest. KSI Budapest holds special meaning for me—not only is it affiliated with Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), where I studied as an exchange student, but it also allowed me to fulfill a promise I made to a Hungarian friend from those days: “One day, I’ll return to Hungary as a Korean teacher.” It took ten years, but I kept that promise.

When I arrived, KSI Budapest was still in its early stages and needed to establish its foundation. Drawing on my previous experience working as an administrative staff member at a university in Korea, I sought to support academic operations and help organize internal systems. I also launched a social media writing class and organized a variety of programs—such as the Sejong Golden Bell quiz, food culture classes, K-pop nights, and school picnics—to engage and motivate learners. Because it was a time when my long-held dream became reality, every day felt precious, and I approached my work with even greater responsibility.
 
 

Congratulations on receiving the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award in the Outstanding Teacher Contest at the 2025 World Korean Educator Conference. Please tell us more about your award-winning program, Korean Language: Stepping Out of the Classroom and Connecting with the World, which you also shared in your best practices presentation on the first day of the conference.
 

I have long enjoyed using social media platforms such as blogs, Instagram, and Threads, and I have experience participating in the development of Korean language learning materials that use social media posts by BTS, the world-famous K-pop group. I applied this experience to the messenger and blog writing lessons in the Sejong Korean language textbook, and I also assigned Instagram Story writing tasks. Through this, I realized that students wanted to use Korean on social media, which inspired me to design the Media Writing course.

In the Media Writing class, learners study Korean expressions and writing styles actually used on social media—such as newly coined words and trendy phrases—and create social media content introducing Hungary. These pieces are shared through the Instagram account Bualdan (Learners of KSI Budapest Introducing Budapest) (@brd_sejong), providing useful resources for Koreans living in or planning to visit Hungary, while also enabling learners to experience connecting with the world through Korean.

I also organized a program called Fighting! Pajting! that pairs Korean international students in Budapest with KSI learners for language exchange missions and Korean culture–related projects. The word “Pajting” combines the Hungarian word pajti (a casual friend you meet up with) with the English suffix “-ing,” meaning “cheering on the making of friends.” As a result, learners were able to grow beyond being mere recipients of language and instead take on the role of “cultural bridges” who introduce their own culture in Korean.

Korean language education has now moved beyond simply teaching knowledge or skills; it is about designing experiences that allow the language to function as a tool for connecting with the world. Therefore, I concluded my presentation by emphasizing that Korean language educators must now fulfill their responsibilities as both connectors and program planners.
 
 

How did you feel when you heard the news of your award?
 

I was nearing the end of my dispatch term, and since our KSI’s dispatched teachers had already won awards for two consecutive years, I never expected to receive one myself. So, winning such a prestigious award was truly an incredible honor. Moreover, I was thrilled at the thought of being invited to the World Korean Educator Conference, where I could gain valuable insights from teachers active in various countries around the world.

As I mentioned earlier, becoming a dispatched teacher at KSI had been my long-held dream, so my two years of service felt like a dream come true. That made this award all the more unbelievable. At the same time, receiving such a major award for my very first Korean language teaching post felt a little overwhelming. Still, I choose to take that as a sign to embrace even greater responsibility and continue to grow.

Above all, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my husband, who worked alongside me as a fellow Korean language teacher at KSI Budapest throughout my dispatch term, to my fellow teachers who were a constant source of support, and to the KSI Budapest staff, who generously backed my ideas and allowed me to plan and carry out the classes and programs I envisioned.
 
 

The Social Media Korean Writing Class and the language–culture exchange program Fighting! Pajting! sound like they must have received an enthusiastic response. How did the learners at KSI Budapest react?
 

Both the Media Writing class and the Fighting! Pajting! program received highly positive feedback from learners. In the Media Writing class, students focused on language frequently used on social media—such as newly coined words, trendy expressions, and everyday phrases—and many remarked that Korean felt much more familiar and enjoyable as a result. In particular, learners found it memorable to directly apply MZ generation language in Instagram Stories and posts, and many said it was a valuable opportunity to naturally incorporate Korean into real-life situations.

The Fighting! Pajting! program was a required activity for students enrolled in the Media Writing class, while also being open to other KSI learners as a voluntary language–culture exchange program. Foreign learners said that the program allowed them to go beyond textbook study, gain confidence in communicating in Korean, and develop a deeper understanding of Korean culture. Korean participants likewise commented that organizing events themselves and actively sharing language and culture provided them with practical help for life in Hungary.

In my next dispatch, I will work to ensure that the Fighting! Pajting! program is not just a one-time initiative but becomes an established, signature program of KSI Budapest. I will continue to develop it into a more systematic and sustainable format so that learners can keep enjoying engaging experiences with Korean language and culture.
 
 

What is the greatest reward you have gained from working as a Korean language teacher at KSI?
 

Becoming a Korean language teacher at KSI was my long-held dream. When I finally achieved that dream and began meeting students at KSI, I felt grateful for every single moment, and over time that gratitude grew into an even deeper sense of fulfillment. Now, the greatest reward for me is watching learners—just as I once dreamed—develop new aspirations through learning Korean and turn those dreams into reality.

In the Media Writing class, I was deeply moved as an educator to see learners acquire the “real Korean” used by their Korean peers, shape their experiences, thoughts, and emotions in Korean, express them in writing, turn them into content, and share them with Koreans—gaining more and more confidence in the process. Likewise, through the Fighting! Pajting! language–culture exchange program, I witnessed learners using Korean in real-life contexts, internalizing not just the language but also the culture through communication with Koreans. It made me realize the true essence of a “language learned to connect with the world.”

For me, KSI is both “the place where my dream came true” and “the place where someone else’s dream begins to grow.” I want to remain an educator who continues to support the possibilities and hopes of many learners here, walking alongside them in their journeys.
 
 

Lastly, could you share any goals or plans you hope to achieve in relation to Korean language education?
 

My husband is currently working as a local instructor in the Department of Korean Studies at Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) and at the KSI Korean Cultural Center, Hungary. In my next dispatch, I hope to work with him to actively create opportunities for exchange with other Korean language teachers in Hungary. I would like to organize workshops or roundtable meetings to promote networking among teachers and contribute, even in a small way, to the development of Korean language education in the region.

Looking at the bigger picture, I want to continue developing teaching methods that serve as bridges connecting diverse cultures and people—like Media Writing and Fighting! Pajting!. My ultimate goal is to ensure that Korean becomes not just a language that briefly trends due to the Korean Wave, but one that plays a lasting role in connecting the world. To achieve this, I will work along two paths: hands-on teaching in the field and research into teaching methodologies, promoting Korean language and culture widely and ensuring that their value endures for years to come.