자녀의 학업적 성공을 위한 어머니의 교육적 실천에 관한 질적사례연구

Abstract

This work investigates the role of South Korean mothers in their children’s academic success. The researchers conducted a qualitative case study on a total of 20 mothers and their children. The results are as follows. First, Korean mothers physically, mentally, and behaviorally build an environment where their children naturally internalize the value of studying. Second, mothers pass down effective studying methods to their children. Korean mothers help their children improve grades and understand study materials based on the mothers’ past learning experience. Third, they invest heavily in shadow education. To provide timely shadow education meeting the needs of their children, mothers financially sacrifice themselves regardless of their income. Lastly, mothers gather and sort out information about admission, schools, and shadow education. They collect useful information from parents’ groups, school teachers, private tutors, and online communities, and curate it for their children. This work sheds light on the systematic educational strategies of Korean mothers from a novel perspective. The researchers call them “bear mothers” based on their wisdom and sacrifice. The researchers hope that this study helps scholars conceptualize the importance of educational involvement and that it encourages future studies to discover the factors behind Korean students’ academic success.