KDrama in the Filipino Classroom

Omo, omo! Sesange,  CLOY in UP?

In 2014, I attended a Regional Seminar and was privileged to speak in behalf of the group I was in.  I started my speech with "annyeonghaseyo", and I saw smiles and giggles among the younger participants, while I heard "what did she say?" among the not-so-young attendees.  From then, I got the feel, that I am among the many bewitched with Kdrama.

The year 2003, Kdrama or Knovela started airing in Philippine tubes.  The two Philippine television giants, ABS-CBN tagged as the First and True Home of Asian novelas and GMA, The Heart of Asia, had been competing on getting the shipment of hit Korean dramas. Bright Girl, Descendants of the Sun and My Sassy Girl are among the Kdramas that captivated the Filipino nation’s heart. Almost twenty Filipino adaptations of Kdramas were shown in Philippine televisions. Among them are “My Girl” starred by Gerald Anderson and Kim Chiu shown in ABS-CBN in 2008 and the most recent and currently airing is GMA’s adaptation of the hit Kdrama, “Descendants of the Sun” starring  Dingdong Dantes and Jennylyn Mercado.  Both are not new in Knovela adaptations.  Jennylyn Mercado previously starred with Gil Cuerva in My Love From the Star in 2017. This is actually a third for Dingdong Dantes because he also starred with Rhian Ramos in Stairway to Heaven in 2009, and with Marian Rivera in Endless Love in 2010.

Filipino youngsters swoon at Kpop idols, Kpop culture is evident among teen-agers, and Kdramas have been a household craze not only for the young but the young once, men and women included.  Many followed the love story of Descendants of the Sun superstars,  Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo and lamented at their controversial divorce after only eight months of marriage.  Many Filipino fans also cried a river at the untimely death of SHINee's lead singer Kim Jong-hyun and many more pursued gossip columns for the Le Min Ho - Suzy Bae love story. Quite safe to say that “Hallyu” or the Korean wave has creeped in the Filipino society.  The Kdrama has somewhat set a different bond between South Korea and the Philippines. Actually, if you are just a keen viewer, there are many Kdramas that make mention of the Philippines in their conversations and plot.

Part of strengthening the Filipino-Korean relationship, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed  in June 2017 by  DepEd and the Korean Embassy in the Philippines.  The MOU stated the teaching of Korean language together with other selected languages - French, German, Mandarin, Spanish and Japanese - in ten high schools in the National Capital Region. Kim Jae Shin, Korean Ambassador to the Philippines said that while the language program could give Filipinos job opportunities abroad, it could also provide Filipino students study grants in Korea.

The offering of Korean as an elective in the Special Program for  Foreign Language of DepEd started last School Year 2019-2020.  Such program is only offered in selected high schools in the National Capital Region.  Before students can enroll in the elective, they need to secure a mastery of Filipino and English languages.

This School Year 2020 – 2021, the University of the Philippines, the premier institution of learning in the country,  will offer “Analysis of K-drama Series” as an elective class in the College of Mass Communication. For the course, students will be analyzing three K-dramas: the hit “Crash Landing on You” or CLOY, about the star-crossed romance between a South Korean heiress and a North Korean Army captain; “Chicago Typewriter” which tells the story of three reincarnated resistance fighters who lived during the 1930’s Japanese occupation in Korea; and “Misaeng: Incomplete Life” which depicts the struggles of office workers.

 

Only twenty slots will be offered for the course, but a couple of hundreds have already enlisted.  I have actually watched these three Kdramas and I can say that each has a distinct feature worth analyzing.  Elements of romance, real-life situations and struggles, history, Korean tradition and values are often times artistically crafted, thus, creating a “must-see teleserye”.

 

What makes the Kdramas palatable to the Filipino audience? Aside from the beautiful faces of the actors and actresses, censorship of language and scenes are strictly observed. The episodes are not dragging and sometimes drama endings are hanging that would leave the viewers in “ohhs” and “ahhs” which further adds to the excitement.  Negative comments, however, cloud Kdrama celebrities regarding their sculpt figures and faces and the overly strict restrictions imposed on them to maintain a non-scandalous image, at times, sacrificing their personal love relationships.

 

As an ardent fan of Kdrama myself, what has it offered me as a teacher?  Aside from it being my stress reliever, it has taught me a lot about Korean culture and how Koreans value their history and tradition.  Despite western enculturation, they have retained that distinct Korean culture in them.  The Kdramas speak highly of their culture and tradition as a people, their strong family tie and their value for honor and dignity as a person, attributes that are worth teaching and emulating.

 

As a teacher, Kdramas and Kpop idols have become part of my springboard.  Students would giggle at the mention of Korean personalities,  or Kdrama scenes and from there I would redirect and relate to our lesson, thus, making them focus or join in discussions.  

Teachers would always find ways to catch the attention of students. If Kdrama is a way of getting the pulse of my students, then I might as well use it as a triggering factor in pulsating their attention.

Ilgeo jusyeoseo gamsahabnida!   (Thank you for reading!)

/hba08.17.2020 edited 08.23.2020