English Language Development in a Changing South Korea

Abstract

South Korea is a highly organized society with centuries of intense emphasis on education. The modern description of this is typically called Korea‟s education fever , which has generally been thought of as a preoccupation with education in the most exam-obsessed culture in the world (Seth, 2002:5). Yet there is a special fascination with English that some call a neurosis (Kim, 2004), as an outgrowth of Korea s Confucian educational planning, culture, and politics (Ryu, 2011). Meanwhile, there has been a barely recognizable trend in foreign language learning (FLL) in the shift from language learning and teaching to that of interpretation and translation. This may indicate, as Kachru s (1982) concentric circles of language suggests, that English in Korea could slowly be moving toward the outer circle to enjoy a greater degree of integration into Korea s society and institutions as with countries like South Africa, India, Nigeria, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malaysia, Tanzania and Kenya. This may come from either internal or external forces, however in either case the unfortunate result is that while Koreans have continued to invest billions of dollars into decades of English programs, the quality of teaching and research has not improved very much (Kim, Lee, 2006). This modern-day situation is made worse by three specific and interwoven elements: 1) Existing institutions and policies foster a belief among Korean students that study and education (particularly in English) are simply a means to an end, rather than ends in themselves (Jon, 2009). 2) Recent demographic changes in South Korean are altering previously homogeneous classrooms at all levels, making them more multicultural and multilingual, leading to internal conflict and tension stemming from a myriad of sources: social, cultural, racial, economic, religious, etc... 3) Not only is multicultural education a new phenomenon in South Korea, but foreign language educators in particular will also come from all over the world, meaning there is no established standards or assurances that teachers, Korean or otherwise, are capable of providing equal access to education in a democratic classroom using reform-minded educational strategies toward the creation of a pluralistic society. The result is that even with good intentions, institutions and educators are Abstract: This paper considers English language education in South Korea as a country recently grabbing the attention of the international community with the Korean Wave and increased immigration patterns. This follows the continuation of rapid socioeconomic development, along an aging society, a lowering marriage rate, and the lowest fertility rate in the world. These changes will collectively garner quantifiable impacts important at multiple levels of society. In particular, the migratory impact is changing the South Korean English language classroom as classes are becoming increasingly diverse. The long-term effect of such influences has yet to be carefully studied in the Korean context, but can be inferred from the research of Inglehart, the World Values Survey data, and a variety of statistical country data. Since demographic changes carry unintended cultural and linguistic consequences, it is important for education policy-makers, teachers, and those that deal with the rapidly changing population, to realize the impact of new student types in the traditionally homogenous classroom. As the country evolves economically and socially, so too must it transform pedagogically to provide democratic and equal access to education to all classroom members regardless of race, ethnicity, language background, or nationality. The is a new challenge for South Korea, one that has been faced in other locations around the globe and will be a future standard by which South Korean education will be judged: as either inclusive, or not. This study will provide some resources to improve teacher background knowledge for improving language instruction in the multicultural classroom and lessons that students and teachers can use to develop and heighten cross-cultural awareness.