黃嵐
“學中文難,還是學韓語難?當然是學中文難嘍!中文可是號稱天下最難學的語言!”當“忠涵交流”的崔鐘錫老師用一口流利的普通話如是回答時,我與他都哈哈大笑。
顯然,世上最難學的中文沒有阻擋一顆堅定學中文的心。崔鐘錫是韓國人,20世紀90年代初他在一家企業(yè)工作,因工作關系需要學習中文,他就開始在公司的內部培訓班上學起了中文。
說到那時的學習,真是很辛苦,白天工作,晚上學中文。說到學中文的難,崔鐘錫說字的發(fā)音不算難,難的是四種聲調。越學下去,一字多音、一字多義越讓人犯難,當然最難的是文字背后蘊含的中國文化。一個字,不僅僅是一個字,其字義凝聚了文化傳承。這在四字成語中反映最明顯。學中文,更要學中國歷史。
當崔鐘錫意識到,就他自己來說邊工作邊學習已經不能學好中文時,便毅然辭工,進大學選了中文專業(yè)進行系統(tǒng)學習??上攵?,崔鐘錫是付出了多少汗水,才換來今天這“中國通”的贊譽。
我很奇怪,中國東西南北城市這么多,為什么偏偏選擇了浙江寧波呢?寧波,簡稱甬,又稱明州,是國家歷史文化名城。原來1997年時,他老家順天市與寧波市結成友好城市,當時寧波市有訪問團去,他就做了翻譯。順天市屬全羅南道。全羅南道,在韓國的最南端,隔海與濟州島相望,1998年與浙江省正式建立友好省道關系。兩地高層互訪頻繁,文化、教育、青少年等各領域的交流較為活躍。漸漸地,他對浙江省和寧波市就熟悉起來。讀研究生時,崔鐘錫特意選了中國寧波歷史這個課程,畢業(yè)論文《高麗文宗時期對宋使行路變更與其交流》,研究的正是北宋時明州發(fā)達的海運與高麗的密切關系。
機緣巧合的是,2006年寧波市有一個教育訪問團到訪順天市,時有寧波外事學校的領導邀請他來寧波任教。深深的寧波情結,讓他放下年幼的女兒和深愛妻子,來到寧波外事學校開了首個韓文課程班。任教一年后,崔鐘錫回韓國教中文去了,畢竟女兒需要爸爸的愛。
2008年春節(jié),他收到了這第一屆學生的大禮包——學生們拍了個視頻說:“老師,我們想你了?!边@又觸動了崔鐘錫的心。這一年,崔鐘錫作為韓國順天市政府的中文翻譯隨團訪問寧波,并特意到寧波外事學??赐n語班的學生和學校的老師們。看到熟悉的校園和可愛的學生,他當即作出決定:放棄在韓國的工作,再次回來擔任該班的韓語教師。這一次他說服了同為中文專業(yè)的妻子,帶上女兒,一起來到寧波,目前妻子也在寧波外事學校教授韓文。這回真正扎根了,崔鐘錫自豪地說:“我是新寧波人?!?/p>
我好奇地問:那你到寧波后住得慣、吃得慣嗎?“吃海鮮呀!順天市靠海,寧波也靠海,都是太平洋的海鮮呢,當然吃得慣!”說到對寧波的喜愛,崔鐘錫不吝贊語。寧波有白居易筆下“江南好,風景舊曾諳”的江南風光,有與時俱進的國際海港的泱泱大氣,更有古老的圖書館——他喜歡的寧波天一閣,這個全亞洲最古老的藏書樓。天一閣附近月湖邊的高麗使館遺址,也是崔鐘錫掛念的地方。北宋政和七年(1117年)在明州(寧波古稱)建造了高麗使館,供高麗使節(jié)居住,這是當時江南唯一的高麗使館,是明州對外交往和中國與高麗友好往來的歷史見證。
寧波外事學校的韓文班,從無到有到現(xiàn)在已形成規(guī)模,崔鐘錫稱得上是個拓荒者。崔鐘錫夫妻倆為此付出了巨大的精力,并相繼獲得了寧波市政府頒發(fā)的寧波茶花友誼獎。茶花是寧波市的市花,茶花獎是寧波市政府為表彰對寧波市經濟建設和社會發(fā)展作出突出貢獻的外籍友人而設立的獎項。
崔鐘錫的事業(yè),也在逐步成長,他的夢想是出書和促進中韓文化交流。從備課制訂教學計劃,到探索教學方法,十多年的耕耘,換來了夢想成真的一天,這幾年他相繼出版了兩本助學韓語書籍,分別是:《崔老師韓語口語課堂·生活篇》《韓語魔鬼訓練》。
不但出書了,2013年,崔鐘錫還與他的第一屆學生一起創(chuàng)辦了忠涵交流公司,旨在培訓韓語。更為難得的是,他發(fā)明了“韓字棋”這一助學韓文的工具,現(xiàn)已獲得中國國家知識產權局頒發(fā)的專利證書。
韓字棋是一種幫助韓語學習者們積累韓語詞匯、提高韓語運用能力的益智類游戲。韓字棋由棋盤、棋子以及排列板三部分組成,棋子有紅藍兩色各40枚和白色20枚組成,40枚棋子上各印有韓語中的19個輔音字母和21個元音字母。20枚白棋中有基本輔音14枚,基本元音6枚,都是組韓字時最常用的字母,因為有了白棋,更容易組成字和詞,所以賽前要根據(jù)對手的水平先約定放多少枚。游戲時,兩人各執(zhí)一色,在棋盤中比拼字,誰拼成一個詞,誰就把這面上的棋子吃掉,把對方顏色的棋子放入本人一側的排列板上,在規(guī)定時間內誰吃掉對方棋子多誰就獲勝。這個游戲的關鍵是拼單詞,誰熟記的單詞越多,獲勝的機會的就越大。
崔鐘錫說起這個游戲的創(chuàng)意時不無感慨地說,我在教學過程中發(fā)現(xiàn),學生要記住記熟單詞有難度,單單背誦又很枯燥,所以受到成語接龍游戲的啟發(fā),用字母拼詞以“玩游戲”的方式來記單詞,不僅效果好,而且學生們也感到非常好玩,樂趣無窮。
韓字棋一經發(fā)明,很快受到韓語學習者的喜歡,《寧波晚報》等媒體也進行了相關報道。
當然有了寧波新家,不能忘了順天老家。崔鐘錫說,我要讓更多的寧波人知道順天市,要讓更多的順天人知道寧波市。崔鐘錫除了為政府交流團、企業(yè)承擔翻譯工作外,還利用寒暑假時間,組織學生文化交流團到對方城市進行參觀訪問、文化交流,住到結對學校的學生家里,體驗感受對方國家的文化氣氛、風俗習慣。因為學習韓語最好的方式是找一個韓國朋友,通過結對方式,寧波的學生有了練口語的小伙伴,學起來會更加得心應手。
眼看著夢想在寧波一個接一個地實現(xiàn),崔鐘錫說的終極夢想越來越近了。我好奇崔老師在寧波的終極夢想是什么,他說:“我打算以后在我的第二故鄉(xiāng)浙江寧波建立中韓文化交流中心,一個能提供韓國人和中國人互相學習、體驗對方國家文化的平臺?!?/p>
那就讓我們共同期待崔鐘錫老師的夢想早日實現(xiàn)吧。
Choi Jongsuk from the Republic of Korea has been teaching the Korean language in Ningbo, a harbor city in eastern Zhejiang, for more than 10 years. He speaks Chinese fluently.
In the 1990s, he worked in a business in South Korea and he began to learn Chinese at a training course in the company where he worked as his job was associated with China. He worked very hard to master the language. Very soon, he realized that he wouldnt be able to make fast enough progress if he continued to work and study at the same time. He resigned and took a university course to study Chinese.
His choice of Ningbo as a second home was not an accident at all. In 1997, his home city Suncheon, South Korea and Ningbo of Zhejiang, China partnered up as sister cities. A delegation from Ningbo visited Suncheon and Choi served as an interpreter in the reception of the Chinese delegation. In 1998, Jeollanam-do and Zhejiang Province became sister provinces. Mutual exchange programs in culture, education and youth increased rapidly. Frequently engaged in interpreting, Choi soon acquired a working knowledge of Zhejiang in general and Ningbo in particular. In his postgraduate studies, he took a special course about the history of Ningbo. His postgraduate paper was about the thriving shipping industry of Mingzhou (present-day Ningbo) during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) and about the strong ties between Ningbo and Korea.
In 2006, Choi interpreted for an education delegation from Ningbo. One of the delegation members was the president of Ningbo Foreign Affairs School. The president offered Choi a teaching job at the school. Choi accepted the job offer and worked at the school for a year. After the contract expired, he went back home. During the Spring Festival of 2008, he received a video clip from the students he had taught a year. In the video the students said, “We miss you” to Choi. The Korean was touched. In 2008, he visited Ningbo as an interpreter for a government delegation of Suncheon. He found time to visit the school again. Seeing students and teachers there, Choi made up his mind to teach Korean there. This time, he came back with his wife and daughter. The family settled down in Ningbo.
Life in Ningbo isnt difficult for the family. After all, Suncheon is a coastal city where seafood is abundant, just like Ningbo. The city also offers Choi something very close and historical. There is the site of the Guesthouse for Koreans first built in 1117 during the Northern Song Dynasty for envoys from the Korean Peninsula.
The Korean language course at the Ningbo Foreign Affairs School is now a popular brand in Ningbo. Choi and his wife, also a teacher of Korean, have contributed to the success of the course. The husband and wife respectively have won Camellia Prize, a special honor issued by the Ningbo Municipal Peoples Government to international friends for their outstanding contribution to the citys economic and social development.