April 26, 2007

This half-day conference brought 31 educators from the Social Studies Supervisors Association of New York to learn how they can incorporate Korea into their social studies curriculum. After enjoying a traditional Korean lunch, the conference got underway with a presentation on "Ancient Korea and the Silk Road", delivered by Marjorie Bingham, adjunct faculty member (retired) at Hamline University. Bingham linked ancient Korean history to what's being taught about the Silk Road according to New York City Social Studies Standards. Patricia Rosof, consultant at The Korea Society, tied together Bingham's lecture points with her presentation, "Bringing Korea into the History Curriculum." Rosof emphasized lesson plans on international relations between Japan and Korea as essential to the social studies curriculum, especially in relation to WWII, the Korean War, U.S.-Korea relations, and North-South relations. Daniel Levine, consultant on the development of The Korea Society's online educational materials, outlined the resources, including lesson plans, textbooks and podcasts, available free to educators on the educational Web site www.koreak12.org.