![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_239_297002_1394677481_i.gif\")
<\/p>\nThe city of Pyongsong was new for many of us; even our tour
\nguide had never visited before. Located an hour north of Pyongyang, Pyongsong is
\ncurrently being developed as the country\u2019s new center for science and
\ntechnology.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
The city at first glance was surprisingly green. Our first stop was a place called Paeksong-ri, famous for its pine forests. \n Paeksong-ri is where close to a thousand \n As a teacher myself, I found it inspiring to hear how \n Afterward we had a tour of a food factory that \n Factory workers labor under slogans exhorting their \u201chearts \n The highlight of our trip to Pyongsong was undoubtedly the time spent \n During the tour of the school we were shown science projects and the awards some students had won at international competitions. \n The English class we visited was studying time and \n The students were exemplary in every way. They The best part was the few minutes we had to chat \n Upon our return to Pyongyang we took a tour of the \n
\nI could not put my finger on what was strange about the statue of Kim Il Sung
\nwhen we first walked up to it to pay our respects. Later I noticed that he was dwarfed by the
\ntrees behind him. Everywhere else I had seen him he stood tall on the largest,
\nbarren hill. Here, he seemed to have found his place in nature.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_240_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nstudents and professors from Kim Il Sung University established an ad hoc
\nschool after fleeing Pyongyang toward the end of the Korean War. We toured the
\nrefurbished kitchens, classrooms, and dormitories as a local guide explained
\nhow the benevolent Kim Il Sung visited the students during the harsh winter and
\nencouraged them to persist with their studies.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_241_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nmuch the students valued their education. Nevertheless,
\nit was sobering to the point of horrifying that so much of their education
\nsounded like mere propaganda, and that their motivation was to exact revenge on
\nthe \u201cAmerican beasts.\u201d I believe that education is a right, but indoctrination
\nis a perversion of that ideal.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_242_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nproduced liquor, crackers, rice cakes
\nand other wheat-based products. First we visited the control center that
\nmonitors the production process and the workers. ![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_243_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\nto beat for the Motherland!\u201d![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_244_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nat Kim Jong Suk First Middle School . We drew stares from the students as our
\nbus pulled up in the middle of the school day.
\nWe were also able to visit an English class.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_245_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nThe poster at the center of this photo displays the design for a pen that helps in the study of an international language. Our guide was very proud to tell us
\nabout a student who had recently won a silver medal at an international math
\ncompetition.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_246_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\ndifferent calendar systems. I glanced at the textbook they were using and
\nnoticed it was the same textbook as the one used in the foreign language school. It seemed to have a great deal of long
\npassages of reading comprehension, rather than focusing on conversational
\nskills. The classroom was bare except for portraits of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong
\nIl. There were also placards championing education. I was a bit surprised to see a working
\ntelevision screen. In more ways than one, this North Korean school resembled a
\ntypical school in South Korea.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_247_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nlistened attentively to their teacher and seemed to have the correct answers
\nmemorized. Though I suspected they have rehearsed prior to our arrival, it turned out that
\ntheir overall English level was really quite good. Many of us on the tour were English teachers in South Korea. We all thought the North
\nKorean students were respectful (they all raised their hands and stood up
\nbefore speaking), curious (they never hesitated to ask questions), and, of
\ncourse, eager to play games. <\/p>\n
\nin small groups with the students. The opportunity for them to practice English with
\nnative speakers is extremely rare, and my impression was that they appreciated
\nand enjoyed it. It was also rewarding for us to be granted the opportunity to
\nvisit a North Korean school to get a glimpse inside their education system. I was
\npleased that we could sit in on a class instead of sitting through a cultural
\nperformance put on by one of the capital\u2019s \u201cshowcase\u201d schools.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_248_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
\nGrand People\u2019s Study House, the capital\u2019s palatial library. It is one of the
\nfew buildings in the capital built in the traditional Korean style. The interior, on the other hand, is as
\nNorth Korean as you can get – marble
\nfloors, flickering chandeliers and a large statue of Kim Il Sung sitting before a painting of Mt. Baekdu.![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_249_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_250_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/efile\/201403\/DNKE_251_297002_1394677628_i.gif\")
<\/p>\n