한국영어교육학회

Dear KATE members,
 
Thank you to all who made the 2015 KATE International Conference a great success. The conference was held on August 29^th at The K Hotel Seoul under the theme entitled “Shaping the Past, Leading the Future of English Education in Korea.” I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to all of you who were patient with the delayed schedule of the conference due to the MERS outbreak and joined us in celebration of KATE’s 50^th anniversary. In addition to invited talks, colloquia, teaching demonstrations, and book exhibitions, there were over 100 paper and poster presentations that were all well attended. We thank the invited speakers, the presenters, the session chairs, and the general attendees for their enthusiasm and hope you had a pleasant experience at the conference. We also thank those who could not attend but warmly supported the conference from afar.  

I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to all the conference committee members: Hikyoung Lee, the Conference Chair; Dongho Kang, the Fund Raising Chair and the Publicity Chair; Sang-Keun Shin, the Program Chair/Coordinator; Hyunsook Yoon and Eun Sook Shim, the Site Chair; Soondo Baek, the Accommodation Chair; Sung-Yeon Kim and Eun Sil Chun, the Program Book Chair/Editor; WonHo Isaiah Yoo and Jeong A Shin, the International Affairs Chair; Min-Young Song, the General Affairs Chair; Eunjoo Lee, the Treasurer; Young Woo Cho and Daehyeon Nam, the Online Support Chair; Hyung-mi Joo and Yoonkyu Kim, the Reception Chair; and Yunjoo Park, who prepared the KATE 50^th anniversary video with support of the English MouMou video team. They have dedicated extensive time and effort in organizing and detailing the conference for a year.  

Last but not least, I also want to say a special word of thanks to all the sponsors including the National Research Foundation of Korea, Seoul Metropolitan Government and Convention Bureau, the Embassy of the United States, Seoul, the British Council, YBM Sisa, the International Communication Foundation, Chungdahm Learning, English MouMou, Daekyo, E*Public Korea, Mirae N, Neungyule Education, Hankook Munhwasa, Yoon’s English School and Educational Testing Service (ETS). The Embassy of the United States financially supported 600 conference bags and 50^th anniversary USBs. A book on the KATE 50-year history has been published thanks to the financial support of YBM Sisa and the International Communication Foundation. The KATE 50^th anniversary video would not have been produced without the technical and financial support of English MouMou.  

Now, KATE is looking ahead to another bright and strong 50 years. As I mentioned at the opening ceremony, Korea is transitioning from being an importer of English education to an exporter of English language teaching and learning expertise to the world. We hope you join us in this continuing journey to contribute to the betterment of English education in Korea and beyond.

I hope you will have a wonderful fall semester. I also hope the 2016 KATE SIG and International Conference will be even more meaningful conferences for academic development and the exchange of ideas regarding diverse EFL teaching methods and research with your support and participation.


Yeon Hee Choi
President
The Korea Association of Teachers of English