For whom the bell tolls: globalisation, social class and South Korea's international schools

Abstract

This article discusses how in South Korea, English-medium international schools, initially established to educate foreign residents, have recently transformed themselves into private providers of global education for South Koreans. The article explains the social, economic and political circumstances under which the South Korean government has allowed this transformation to take place in response to the forces of globalisation as well as to South Korean elites' educational demand. The article argues that English-medium international schools are elite-class reproducing institutions. The role of English, one of the major imperatives of global capitalism, will also be discussed, as this language has been impinging on South Korea's education and labour market.