An Analysis of Vocabularies in the Korean Textbooks: Based on Textbooks Used by Intensive Courses in the Korean Language Education Centers

The purpose of this study is to conduct vocabulary analysis of 66 Korean textbooks used in major Korean language institutes. Since the number of Korean learners with instrumental motivation has been increased significantly, it becomes a very important issue to evaluate their Korean proficiency levels measured through the official assessment of Korean Proficiency Test (TOPIK). Language teaching is subject to certain target learners, and it is necessary to proceed with study on them considering utilization of research results. Especially vocabulary teaching should have focused more on certain target learners not only connecting with learners' needs but also with course topics and communicative functions. In terms of curriculum management and evaluation, it is critical to select vocabulary based on proficiency levels using systematic methods and procedures. In particular, the study of vocabulary selection considering proficiency levels is an essential part of language teaching and learning for the development of Korean Language materials and official proficiency tests. Therefore, this study attempts to analyze vocabulary in Korean textbooks to provide basic data for selection of adequate vocabulary for each of beginner, intermediate and advanced level of learners. A curriculum should be targeted to specific learners. Thus the target of this study is limited to learners with 200 hour-long classes per each level. The length of each level complies with time usually demanded in the standard of each level in TOPIK and general language institutes of Korea. The current study analyzed Korean textbooks from level I to VI as a full set of data published by five different Korean language institutes in 2014.