Thoughts about session 4 (Korea w/ Prof. Jung-Kim)

[Anonymous]

I truly enjoyed today's engaging and informative lecture on Korea. While all discussion topics were fascinating to me, two stuck out in my mind:

1.) The value of education in Korea, both then and now. Professor Jung-Kim spoke to us about the how teaching is a very respected and well-paid profession and how parents/students show their appreciation to their teachers through various gifts. I think we were all shocked (and a bit envious) to hear about the sometimes lavish gifts given to educators. We also learned about how the school systems stressed exams and rankings and how parents want their children to be well-rounded. In addition to tutoring and cram school, they would also have other activities that may keep a high school student out until midnight! I can attest to this as I've witnessed it first-hand. When I first graduated the teaching program, I took about 9 months off and worked at a Korean-run after-school center in La Crescenta. Students, after a long day at school, were expected to go through at least 3-4 more hours of schooling/tutoring at this center. While it wasn't so surprising to me that high school students were availing of this resource (b/c/ of the need/want for extra help with SAT/ACT/other tests), I was genuinely shocked when I made my way to the other side of the building and I saw classrooms of students as young as 3-5. Even though I myself come from a family that truly values education and instilled in me the idea that it should be my number one priority, I still had conflicting feelings about whether children of that age should be confined to that building doing "school stuff" for an additional 3 hours after school, or whether they should be outside playing and enjoying their childhood. It then made me revert back to my own childhood and reflect about the way my Filipino parents chose to raise me and be so strict about education. It also made me remember how different my schooling experience was when I first moved here from the Philippines. You always hear about the differences in education between East and West and which one is the better model. While I can derive effective practices from both, I can honestly say that I am grateful to have received the education and discipline from my time in the Philippines. That being said, I can empathize with and understand the reasoning for Korean-American parents to continue/copy the same educational path for their children here in America from what they are accustomed to in the Motherland.

2.) Comfort Women: I really want to read more about these women who were survivors of Military Sexual Slavery. It was appalling to learn that the Japanese referred to it as a "regrettable incident" and have yet to offer a formal apology and/or reparations for the horrific experiences these women must've gone through. What's more is that members of the Japanese military were later convicted of enslaving white women, yet there was no retribution for the crimes committed against these Korean women. Instead, these "Comfort Women" have to resort to protesting every Wednesday in front of the Japanese embassy. Sad.
edited by cbacon on 4/2/2011
edited by cbacon on 4/2/2011

[Anonymous]

As a teacher and student I really enjoy learning and teaching about a regions culture. Tonight we learned about the democratization of Korea and discussed Ed Schultz's " Top 10 Things to Know about Korea in the 21st century." The parts that I found most interesting in today's seminar focused around Korea's rich history, values and contributions. Professor Jennifer Jung-Kim offered a wealth of information on the Korean peninsula. When hearing about the education of Korea, I was unaware as to how competitive the students and colleges are in Korea today. I did not know that students not only attended school about 6 days a week, but that they also attend cram sessions daily--that often times caused them to end their day at around 12:00 a.m. In addition to education, I was fascinated by the inventions and advancement that the Korean people contributed to the world. In the past they made advancements in writing and documentation with the Tripitaka Koreana that predated the Guttenberg bible, geometry with the construction of the Sokkuram Grotto, and in modern times with the media pole and Dimchae, a cooling device. I would love to visit Korea and witness a combination of its past, present and future.

I teach my students about Japanese imperialism in Korea and how people as a result opted to move to China in order to maintain their culture. After reading weeks articles and hearing today's lecture, I plan on adding a new lesson to my East Asia unit involving Japanese influences/effects on the Korean people. This will be where I focus on the limitation on rights, mistreatment of women and the people being forced to change their last name and identity. I think that this will really allow students to see the challenges that people faced during this period.

I really enjoyed today's session and look forward to hearing the rest of the story in a few weeks when Professor Jung-Kim returns.

[Anonymous]

In teaching both world and U.S. history, the region of east Asia always comes in to play, however Korea specifically doesn't really have a major role in the California State Standards that we must follow. Really, the only topic is the Korean War, which really emphasizes the Cold War conflicts between the Soviet Union and China and covers very little about the country itself. Therefore it was very interesting to focus on that one country that is so often left in the shadows of world history.

It was fascinating to learn about the culture of Koreans and how it's been influenced over the hundreds of years by various other cultures, religions, and rulers. I have to agree with what was written by Annet and Carla, that it was shocking to learn how much time Korean children spend in learning and studying. It's well-known, I think that Asian cultures put a very large emphasis on education, but I really wasn't aware of how extreme it can be. I also wonder whether it's beneficial for children to have that much pressure or is it better to allow them to just be kids.

As a woman, it was difficult to hear about the comfort women and the lasting pain that they endured as a result. However, it was interesting that many of the survivors continue to protest outside the Japanese embassy every Wednesday to this day. It must give them some empowerment that they assuredly lost during the trauma. Also, I have always heard of the submissive Asian women, but I liked the fact that Korean women are the exception. The fact that wives tend to handle the finances puts them in a place of power within the family unit. It's probably tough to keep your thumb on a woman who holds the purse strings

[Anonymous]

Last night’s session was very informative. Since my knowledge of Korean history is primarily focused on 1950’s to present, it was fascinating to learn about some of the much older happenings. The richness of the culture begins to come through by looking at the experiences that occurred. I particularly found it interesting looking at the timeline of the development of the metal printing techniques. We seem to focus on an ethnocentric view of inventions (or at least a western view).
The idea of the differences of history (Chinese view vs. Korean) was another interesting topic. It seems true to the adage that the victors write history. I was encouraged to see that the Korean government was taking steps to counter some of the Chinese views. Another adage comes to mind, if you tell a lie often enough, it becomes the truth.
It was discouraging to see that the Japanese have not apologized for the issue of comfort women. I would be interested to learn a bit more about the cultural ideas of expressing guilt and perhaps loss of face. Learning about the subtleties of the language and expressing guilt/regret through carefully worded expressions might help provide some insight into the way things are done.
Overall, a great session, I look forward to her continuing.

[Anonymous]

I agree with Carla on the topic of education and importance of it. The similarities between the cram schools in India and Korea were brought to mind during this part of the discussion, as was the importance of education. I may not agree totally with the concept of the cram school, but as a tool for future success, it seems successful. I can’t help but wonder if some parents in this country are missing something about the importance of education.

[Anonymous]

The topic of education in Korean culture understandably touched a nerve among us educators during Professor Jung-Kim's seminar presentation. I find it interesting that despite the value of education in South Korea, not much emphasis is put on creativity. Consequenty, Jung-Kim mentioned how some Koreans don't get into an analysis/critique of a movie they've seen. Arts in South Korean schools are not given a high emphasis, and memorization & examination seem to be emphasized instead. I initially concluded that this lack of creativity in South Korean schools shows from South Korea's lack of Nobel Prize Winners in its past(only one Nobel Prize winner from South Korea in case you were wondering...it was a Peace Prize in case you were going to Google/Bing it).
Nevertheless, Edward Shultz's article and Professor Jung-Kim mentioned the inventions that have come from Korea, and Jung-Kim's powerping showed how South Korea is a technological innovator. Korean soaps/dramas and pop culture also show how changes are occurring in South Korea's creative landscape. Most importantly, I am now looking forward to taking a trip to Koreatown to go shopping for a Dimchae 🙂

[Anonymous]

I truly enjoyed session 4 about Korea. What I found interesting was that Seoul is the 8th most populous city in the world and Los Angeles is the 13th! That fact helped me put into perspective the size and population of Korea. As a Los Angeleno, it is easy to get caught up in my own little world and only focus on what is happening in my immediate surroundings, however, Ed Schultz's top 10 things about Korea brought a whole "new world" to light! (Thank you Jennifer for sharing!) I was very impressed to learn that so many students are sent to study abroad throughout their educational career! This information would definitely be encouraging to my students, as I am always "pushing" them to explore outside their little "bubble." I was surprised to learn that Korean women are not as submissive as I previously thought! I respect their role in the family and I understand the familial respect that many of my Asian students have. Lastly, I shared #11, about the mobile phones (from Jennifer's personal list) with my students and they were so surprised. They continued to ask me more questions but I told them that they had to wait until we reach that part of our history curriculum. What a great hook!

[Anonymous]

Professor Jung-Kim provides us with a wealth of information on the history of Korea and we were introduced to this session with Edward J. Shultz's TOP TEN THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT KOREA IN THE 21st CENTURY. I found it interesting to learn that "Korea is not small - Seoul is the 8th most populous cith in the world..compared to Los Angeles being the 46th largest city in the world. I was also interested in hearing about Shaminism and that confucianism is still in evidence today in Korea. Confucianism being an ideology rather than a religion. I, too, was also very impressed that the Koreans value their teachers and treat them very nicely! HOW WONDERFUL!!

[Anonymous]

I, too, teach my students about Japanese imperialism in Asia (most are sorely unaware of what was happening in the Pacific pre-WW II) and we go over the pre and post experiences of Asian peoples at the hand of the Japanese military. The girls are most shocked at the "comfort women" and I have also exposed my students to the atrocities committed on the civilian populations by the military. They were also surprised to learn that the Japanese had set up internment camps for the US/British populations in the Philippines.

[Anonymous]

I had just had a conversion with my AP students on "comfort women" and other atrocities committed by the Japanese military. Thank You Dr. Jung-Kim for teaching me more about the comfort women. I added the information that the women still protest in front of the Japanese embassy every Wednesday.

If you are a reader of the AP exams and an essay mentions this, it may one of my students!!!

[Anonymous]

I agree with Ron, in teaching a history/ geography class we focus on the past to provide the students with a foundation of the region and to show them through example the casues that led to the regions current government, culture, etc. It was refreshing to learn about modern Korea and to be able to compare their education system, technology and infrastructure to ours. My students always want to know how we differ/ are similar to other countries around the world and this lecture will allow me to provide them with specific examples.

[Anonymous]

I also really enjoyed Dr. Jung-Kim's combination of focusing on modern Korea then putting this culture in the context of its history. This is an approach I often take with my own students in US history, trying to help them understand the cultural and historical roots of the contemporary US. They are most intrigued by the present, but are more likely to be interested in the past if they can perceive a link to what they see around them.

During last week's class I remembered a New York Times article I read a few years ago about Korean cram schools. It sheds some light on the educational culture and values of contemporary Korea. Here's the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/25/world/asia/25iht-cram.1.13975596.html

[Anonymous]

Of the three countries we're studying in this workshop, Korea is the one I know least about. This session was quite informative. I got to review some information and learn lots of new things about Korea. Plus, the comparison between Seoul and other major cities was very helpful. It helped put some things in perspective.

Having attended school in Thailand and growing up with parents who put school and all its related expenses first, even when they couldn't afford them, I can relate to the attitude the Koreans have about education. This is one of the things that frustrates me the most with my students. Many of my students don't have the same value for education; some think it's totally acceptable to get Ds and Fs. I was not allowed anything less than an A. Granted that not everyone can get straight As, myself incuded, but I want my students to try to get an A at the least.

One of the things that I found interesting is the emphasis on memorization versus analysis. In college, I volunteered as a conversation partner for international students. My partner was a student from Korea. His written English was great, but his spoken English was limited. During our first conversation I found out that his mother taught English in Seoul. He said that the way he learned English and the way his mother taught it was through written exercises, that there was no verbal conversations.

[Anonymous]

I enjoyed Professor Jung-Kim's lecture because I remember vividly the importance Koreans place on education, from my students in Los Angeles to my visit to Korea. When I was teaching at Los Angeles High School, my Korean students studied a lot and became very disappointed when they received a B+. They had to have the A, not just the highest grade in the class or test. Sometimes, we heard students talking about suicide if they did not have all As in the report card. They used to say they dishonored their families if they did not receive As. Five years ago, when I went to Korea, I was impressed by the respect for education and educators as they hold educators in high esteem. They wanted to give educators discounts when possible and were happy at the opportunity to meet an American teacher or administrator. They made me feel important and proud to be an educator.

[Anonymous]

Without a doubt Professor Jung-Kim's lecture is thus far one of my favorites. The top 10 things to know about Korea made it easy to demystify this country many people know so little about. Perhaps the highlight of the night was the revelation of women’s role in the war as “Comfort Women.” However, I was most impressed by the fact that Korean parents will spend a small fortune to educate their children and especially the fact that education is so highly valued in that culture. It is very refreshing to hear that still in some part of the world teachers are not considered villains or are blamed for all the evils of the world. I forgot to ask if corporal punishment is practiced, or if that is even necessary.

[Author]

Posts