Professor Seo hopes to help Spain which was hit hard by COVID-19.
Seo Eun-hee, professor of creative convergence education at Hanyang University, said she hopes to help Spain fight the Coronavirus19. She has earned her Ph.D. in literature from a Spanish university.
Professor Seo, who studied Spanish literature at Seoul National University and the University of Madrid, is well known as a Spanish expert. She appeared in a Spanish-language education sitcom (Spanish Apartment) on TV, interpreted the Jeonju International Film Festival, and presented extensive lectures and writing on Spain. She hopes to help broaden students' horizons through studies on Spanish and Latin American literature.
Seo is the eldest daughter of Dr. Seo Hyo-seok, clinical director of Pyunkang Korean Medicine Hospital which has remained dedicated to improving the tonsil and lung health.
Meanwhile, the Spanish government has declared a 15-day state of emergency to combat the Coronavirus19. As a result, all citizens across Spain are required to stay at home for two weeks, except for buying daily necessities, medicine and work. Spain has decided to deploy troops if necessary to limit the movement of people and materials.
The confirmed Coronavius19 cases in Spain has spiked to over 35,000 as of March 24, the second largest cases in Europe after Italy. The wife of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was infected with Corona Virus19, according to news reports.
Professor Seo, 40, was named the “Best Teacher” at Hanyang University’s ERICA campus in 2016. The "Best Teacher" is an award given by students who have graded professors' lectures over the past year, and Seo was selected along with 13 professors. Of particular note, Professor Seo was selected as the “Best Teacher” four times. The students were so satisfied with her lectures that she was also selected as a "professor of outstanding lectures’’ last year.
These days, many students are tired of competition and have a lot of anxiety about the future, says Professor Seo. She tries to understand the students' minds and prepares videos and music videos from Spanish or Latin American countries in advance. “If you give students confidence, they will become more immersed in classwork," she said. She observes that the students' eyes change when they tell stories about Cuban college students who are poor but live confidently, show famous achievements such as Spanish Catholic churches, and other places of historic interest and explain glorious culture.
"Look back on your life by comparing yourself to the Cuba students. This will lead them to prepare to study. You dream of traveling while looking at historical sites, and if music is good, you can study Spanish lyrics very hard. That's how much the class works," she explained.