Immigration & Multiculturalism in Korea: Examining Government Aspirations

Immigration & Multiculturalism in KoreaExamining Government Aspirations

Peter G. GhazarianAsst Prof of Ed Administration

Department of EducationKeimyung University

I. The Korean ContextII. Research Question

III. Methods IV. ResultsV. Discussion & Conclusion

Overview

I. The Korean Context

I. The Korean Context

Importance of the perceived ‘purity of the ethnic bloodline’ ● role in the historical identity of the

Korean people. ● emphasis on danil-minjok (single-

blooded ethnicity) from history textbooks until 2007

● majority of teachers taught in a system designed to instill pride in cultural and ethnic homogeneity (Chang, 2015).

In the present, it presents some challenges to multiculturalism.

The problem of ‘real’ Koreanness● referring to some people in

a way that marks them as other (Burkhardt, 1983; Chang, 2015; Dickey, 2014).

In the past, a strong nationalistic view served the nation well in the face of adversity, it presents some challenges in the present.

I. The Korean Context

● Ethnic homogeneity has become less viable○ Population decline○ Imbalances in the labor & marriage markets

Immigration as a solution

More migrant workers, marriage immigrants, international students, and other foreign residents.

II. Research Question● What paradigms for multiculturalism

and immigration can be seen in the Korean Immigration Service’s (2012) 2nd Basic Plan for Immigration?

■ What do the presence and absence of particular paradigms reveal about potential weaknesses in the current policy?

III. Methods

Research Design

2nd Basic Plan for Immigration

How are immigration and multiculturalism portrayed in the policy document?

Ethnic Additive

Self-concept Development

Cultural Deprivation

Cultural Difference

LanguageCultural Ecology

Protective Disidentification

Structural Antiracist

Insight into government

conceptualization of multiculturalism

Banks’ (2009) Paradigms of Multicultural Education

IV. Results

Presence of the Paradigms

Prevalent

Common

Uncommon

Rare

Cultural Deprivation & Structural

Language &Cultural Ecology

Ethnic Additive & Antiracist

Self-concept Development, Cultural Difference, &

Protective Disidentification

Prominent Paradigms

Cultural Deprivation

Implications of cultural deprivation can be seen with regard to a wide range of knowledge and skills; from “ fail[ure] to fully grasp Korean social values” (20), to the need for parent education service (53), “training on sustainable farming” (54), and special preparatory schools for children and parents of foreign families before entering compulsory education (56).

Prominent Paradigms

Structural

The plan states the government needs to “pursue legislation that prohibits discrimination against foreigners based on country of origin or race, while clarifying the legal rights of foreigners according to the status of sojourn...” and that these measures can “...address the latent factors leading to conflict in Korean society and create the foundations for future-oriented social integration” (64).

V. Discussion & Conclusion

Structural

A Shared Responsibility

Cultural Deprivation Structural

Narrow Perspective

Self-concept Development, Cultural Difference, &

Protective Disidentification

The absence of these paradigms suggests a lack of consideration for the immigrant's perspective in the plan:

❖ “Identity Crisis” ➢ Need for greater depth

❖ Value of other Cultural Traditions➢ Need for broadened focus

Immigration & Multiculturalism in KoreaExamining Government Aspirations

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