Most Korean children express keen interest in China: poll

For Korea to build "Korina (Korea plus China)" for the future, experts urge young students from both countries to get to know each other and have a friendly sentiment.

To gauge the possibility of Korean children developing into “China kids,” The Dong-A Ilbo polled 106 sixth graders at three elementary schools in Seoul on Monday: Daejin Elementary School in the Gaepo-dong neighborhood; Shinhwa Elementary School in Chang-dong; and Seongnae Elementary School in Seongnae-dong.

Comprising seven multiple choice questions and one short-answer question, the survey showed that Korean children have keen interest in China and recognize the Middle Kingdom as an extremely important country for Korea.

On if they “are interested in China,” 70 percent replied “Yes (very much interested 17.9 percent and somewhat interested 51.9 percent).

Asked how important they think China is to Korea, the majority 95.3 percent replied “very important.” Students who replied “China is important because it is a neighbor” accounted for 72.4 percent, while those who answered “It is important because it is a large country” took up 22.9 percent.

When given the choices “like,” “dislike,” “friendly” and “strange” to describe their sentiment toward China, most students picked “strange” (32.1 percent). Since the number of those who answered “friendly (28.3 percent)” was close to that of those who picked “like (26.4 percent),” respondents gave more friendly responses overall. Just 6.6 percent replied "hating" China, indicating that children have little anti-China sentiment.

While Korean children expressed strong curiosity about China, they said they had few chances to experience the country. Just a fourth of the children had visited China, and those having close friends or acquaintances in China accounted for 23.6 percent.

Finally, in the short-answer question asking them to make comments about China without reservation, the majority of the children said both countries should cooperate and live harmoniously. As if reflecting the educational content for elementary schools, many children also picked, “Korea should maintain a good relationship because China is Korea’s major trading partner.”

Choi Ji-seong, a student at Seongnae Elementary School, said, “China is a country located close to Korea, and if we become friendly with China, Korea will enjoy significant growth and emerge as a strong nation in Asia while engaging in mutual exchanges.”

More than a few children, however, criticized China for causing tension by distorting Korean history and engaging in illegal fishing.

Lee Dong-hoon, a student at Daejin Elementary School, said, “China is distorting the history of (Korea’s ancient) Balhae and Goguryeo kingdoms.”