Multicultural education in Korea: its development, remaining issues, and global implications

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the origin and evolution of multicultural education in Korea, remaining issues, and global implications that the Korean case may provide to educators in other contexts, especially to those in Asia–Pacific countries. To address these topics, this paper analyzes government documents, various survey data, and research literature related to historical, theoretical, and practical aspects of multicultural education in Korea. Major findings show that, despite substantial achievements in a short period of time, significant structural barriers against minority groups still remain, while an assimilationist approach tends to dominate multicultural education in Korea. It is also suggested that reforming teacher education programs to produce culturally competent teachers is crucial for the further development of multicultural education in Korea. Based on the Koran case, this paper calls for collective efforts among educators in the Asia–Pacific region to explore more diversified approaches to multicultural education, as theories and practices based on Western experiences may have limited application to this region.