The Academy of Korean Studies and the Indian National Council of Educational Research Training (NCERT) held the ‘Workshop for Textbook and Education Cooperation between Korea and India’ on November 30, 2021.

The workshop, which has been taking place regularly since the AKS and the NCERT signed an MOU in June 2017, deals with collaboration in curriculums and textbooks, ICT education, vocational training, and special education. The workshop also drew officials from Korean specialized educational institutions with which the AKS has established a cooperation agreement: Korea Education and Research Information Service, Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training, and the National Institute of Special Education.

The workshop consisted of two sessions, one on checking out the results of collaboration that had been promoted in the four areas and the other on the experiences of the two countries in "various attempts under the COVID-19 situation."

The AKS shared the progress of the collaboration project in the 'development of curriculums and textbooks’ and explored ways to lay the foundation for mutual understanding through textbooks of the two countries. Specifically, the workshop shared the ‘auxiliary material for teaching reading’ focused on the development of democracy in the two countries, and a ‘collection of Korean poetry and stories.’ The participants also discussed how to use ‘A Module on India,’ which introduces Indian tradition and development. The workshop also provided an opportunity for the participants to get information on the direction and future schedule of the ongoing program to revise the Indian national curriculum.

Korean Ambassador to India Chang Jae-bok and Surinder Bhagat, the deputy chief of mission at the Indian Embassy in Seoul, gave a congratulatory address in the workshop, which attests to the growing mutual interest in textbook and education cooperation between the two countries. Based on the results of the workshop, the AKS will continue to make efforts to increase Korea-related contents in Indian textbooks, improve Korean image in India, and promote mutual understanding between the two countries.