Rethinking Diversity in South Korea: Examining the Ideological Underpinnings of Multicultural Education Policies and Pro
Given the glamour of South Korea’s high levels of educational achievement—over 70 % of high-school graduates advance into postsecondary education—initiating a discussion on how to provide equitable educational opportunities in Korea might seem gratuitous.
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Rethinking Diversity in South Korea: Examining the Ideological Underpinnings of Multicultural Education Policies and Programs Ji-Yeon O. Jo and Minseung Jung
13.1 Introduction G. Cameron Hurst II dubbed the cultural nationalism in contemporary Korea “uri- nara-ism” (Moon 2000, p. 156). “Uri” can be translated as “our” and “Nara” as “country” in English, so the term can be translated as “Our nation-ism.” “Uri-nara- ism” is a combination of Korean nationalism and collective identity that is so embedded in everyday lives of people in Korea. Uri-nara-ism contributed to Korea’s economic recovery (often referred to as the “Miracle of Han River”) from the devastation caused by over three decades of Japanese colonialism and the subsequent Korean War; it helped to inspire extraordinary self-sacrifices among Koreans who shared the common goal of nation-building. Korea emphasized the notions of “homogeneity,” “unity,” and “solidarity” in order to strengthen the state power, which was also sustained by “uri-nara-ism” or what the authors may refer to more generally as “uri-ism.” “Uri” promotes oneness and creates a boundary between “us” and “them.” In this context, notions such as “diversity,” “heterogeneity” and “difference” have been somewhat deemphasized in the sociocultural lexicon of Korea. However, due to recent demographic and social changes, Korea now faces challenges to maintaining a national identity based on homogeneity. As unprecedented numbers of people participate in transnational migration, Korea has become an emerging hub for receiving migrants from all around the world, especially from the inter-Asia region. The presence of immigrants has challenged the existing notion of Korean peoplehood that privileges ethnic and cultural congruity among its people.
J.-Y.O. Jo (*) University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA e-mail: [email protected] M. Jung Korea National Open University, Seoul, South Korea © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2017 W.T. Pink, G.W. Noblit (eds.), Second International Handbook of Urban Education, Springer International Handbooks of Education, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-40317-5_13
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J.-Y.O. Jo and M. Jung
In this chapter, the authors explore interplay between the ideological underpinnings that uphold the notion of “Korean-ness” and the discourse of “multiculturalism” in Korean education. We start by providing general information on urban education in South Korea, then, examine current educational policies and programs for migrant children, paying particular heed to how the Korean education system understands diversity and to how that understanding manifests in the development and implementation of policies and programs. Through policy analysis, we identify both progress and pitfalls in how the Korean education system serves migrants or children of migrants. In addition, we identify the ideological foundations underlying particular educational policies and programs, and delineate the philosophical tensions within them. We conclude with preliminary sketches of
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