韓國古裝宮廷大戲“大長今”2005年于香港上演時，吸引了三分之一的香港觀眾。香港教育界如今從大長今的故事歸納出了“長今精神”，打算納入全香港的小學教材中。據報道，香港油麻地天主教小學已經實驗性地將大長今引入學校教育課程，希望小朋友可以向劇中的主角“長今”看齊，學習她不屈不撓的堅強意志，以及勤奮不懈的精神。

South Korean actress Lee Young-ae in Hong Kong, May 21, 2005, to promote the Korean TV soap series - "Jewel in the Palace." A Hong Kong school is using the heroine of the Korean soap opera set in the 19th century to teach its pupils life skills. [File Photo: AFP/Samantha Sin]

A Hong Kong school is using the heroine of a Korean soap opera set in the 19th century to teach its pupils life skills, a teacher said Tuesday.

Yau Ma Tei Catholic School has adopted thehit show"Jewel in the Palace" as a model for a series of classes in which pupils recreate real-life situations and work out how the lead character would tackle them.

"Dae Jang Geum embodies the sort of qualities and values that we would like our children to have," said Patsy Leung, the school's head of civic education.

In the period drama, set in Korea's 19th-century Joseon Dynasty, Dae Jang Geum is a servant girl who rises up to become the only female doctor in the emperor's court.

The character's determination and indomitable spirit made her an instant heroine among Asian TV viewers, garnering the show record audiences last year.

It was a major part of the so-called "Korean Wave" of popular culture that swept briefly across Asia in recent years and made stars of Korean actors and pop singers such as Rain.

"Dae Jang Geum is a strong character who never gives up, no matter how tough the problem," said Leung. "She is also a good role model to girls, because she fought against themale-dominated hierarchyand sexism of her time."

In some of the classes, pupils role play situations as the TV heroine, even dressing in her trademark traditional white Korean gowns.

The Korean television channel that made the show granted the school permission to use five minutes of footage in classes.

"Our pupils play the parts of the characters in problem-solving situations interspersed with real footage," said Leung.

"It allows us to use it as teaching material and is part of our movie-making class too. We hope the pupils will also be able to take it home and pass on the teachings and values of Dae Jang Geum to their family."

（Agencies） 

Vocabulary:    

hit show:熱播劇

male-dominated hierarchy：男權社會

（英語點津陳蓓編輯）