A new Hindi and English language-based learning institute for the Indian and international community opened this month in Hannam-dong, Seoul.
Angels Indian Institute, operated by Dinesh Valsan and his wife Smitha, provides education in Hindi and English for children aged 3-6.
Indian Ambassador to Seoul Vishnu Prakash participated in the opening of the school on Aug. 11 by lighting a Nilavilakku ― a traditional lamp used in Indian ceremonies.
“We found as more Indian expats and their families have come to Korea to do business in Korea and work with Korean companies in engineering and numerous other fields, that there was a strong demand for an educational system based on our culture for their families living here as well,” Prakash was quoted as saying.
“It took a number of years to bring together the support to start an institute here, so we are extremely pleased that we have been able to bring this dream to fruition with the support of the Indian community, the Indian and local Korean business community, and the Korean Education Department here in Seoul as well.”
The institute has taken one and a half years to set up. Dinesh said he began to look into opening a pre-school here when he was inquiring about education for his 4-year-old.
“I went for admissions at international schools in the Seoul area, but the admissions price is too high for middle-class people,” he said.
The situation meant that he faced the choice of sending his child home or dealing with the situation in Korea directly. After talking with other people in the Indian expatriate community, he found that this was a common problem.
“Many people complained about the same thing: ‘I want to send my child to a hagwon but I can’t because of the money. Maybe I will have to send my child to India and the mother and father will have to live apart,’” he said.
“That really hurt me. So I felt we had to start a school.”
Dinesh said that the opening of the institute has gotten a very positive response. “It’s really helpful for the community also. They can learn the mother tongue and culture,” he said.
The institute has its curriculum based on the Indian CBSE syllabus and has a program taught by qualified Indian teachers to help children develop their social skills.
The program also covers Hindi and English language skills and basic science, math and culture lessons to prepare them for elementary school in India or an international school.
The institute is open five days a week from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and provides transportation to and from the school. There are also weekend language classes for English and Hindi language, with classes for French and Spanish planned this month.
Kindergarten fees are 300,000 won a month and language lessons are 10,000 won per class.
The institute can be contacted at 070-8723-9795 or angelsindianinstitute@gmail.com.
