This paper analyses the foreign language curriculum of general high schools in China. The Chinese educational authority announced an experimental version of its language curriculum in 2003, revised it in 2017, and revised it in 2020. In 2003, the foreign language curriculum included only three foreign languages: English, Japanese, and Russian. German, French, and Spanish were added from the 2017 curriculum. The 2017 curriculum consists of three categories: ‘required’, ‘required optional’, and ‘optional’. The required courses meet the requirements for graduation by all students. Students intending to go to college must complete all required optional courses. The six foreign language curriculums equally set four core competencies: language ability, cultural consciousness, thinking ability, and learning ability. In addition, this paper investigated curriculum structure of the six foreign languages, learning vocabulary, and items included in the appendix, and compared the foreign language curriculum in China and Korea. In conclusion, Korea’s next curriculum suggested that achievement standards and evaluation criteria should be more specific in preparation for the high school credit system, and that achievement standards and evaluation criteria should be described so that the curriculum and college entrance can be linked.

Facing the 7th National Curriculum revision, this study aims to suggest the ideas for the curriculum design for the second foreign languages education. For this purpose, the theoretical analysis of curriculum theory and examination into commentaries, guidebooks, training materials and curriculum documents related to the foreign languages education are carried out. The theoretical analyses carried in the study are as follows: The analysis of curriculum objectives and contents for foreign languages education in terms of the findings and implications the existing researches suggested is carried and so the current issues and major ideas are identified. The contents analysis for the foreign languages education implemented in foreign countries is carried and so the future directions for curriculum objectives and contents of the second foreign languages education in Korea are suggested. The major suggestions are made through above analysis as follows: The differentiation of the subjects for the second foreign languages education by the curriculum objectives and contents is required. Whether the oral language communicative competence focused or the written language communicative competence focused should be considered in establishing the curriculum objectives and contents. The curriculum objectives and contents are required to state clearly and effectively. The directions for culture education are required to change and the contents for culture education are required to be reorganized systematically.