Instructor: Ji Eun-Lee
Course Time: MWF 1:20-2:27 PM
General Education: Global Perspective & Writing Intensive
Term: Winter 2014

DESCRIPTION:

Among East Asian countries, Korea is one of the lesser known to Western society. Over the past few decades, South Korea has been dramatically transformed through major political, social, and intellectual events. Drastic modernization has often resulted in conflicts with its long, unique cultural heritage in many aspects of society. This course will explore various historical and cultural issues in Korean society, using the examination of the history and culture of Korean public schooling as a medium. Considering the historically steady and substantial inflow of immigration from Korea in the U.S., this course will provide an opportunity to better understand the members of American society. This course will offer various contexts to interact with Korean educators, parents, and students in both Korea and the US so that students can utilize first-person accounts for their understanding.

Readings

There will be outside readings assigned throughout the semester as well as optional readings for some assignments. All reading materials will be available online via Moodle.

Major Course Activities/Assessment

• Online forum participation on the major historical, cultural phenomena in Korean schools as reflected in literature, movies, newspapers, and/or other online media.
• An individual mini-research paper on the exploration of issues in Korean schools through an incremental process
• An interview with a resource person (e.g., Korean teacher, student, parent. Arrangement will be made for students)
• Guest speaker presentations
• Field trip to Korean Schools in Southeastern Michigan