Open Sykang Dissertation Final.Pdf
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School College of Education DEMYSTIFYING THE POPULAR NARRATIVES OF ENGLISH FEVER IN SOUTH KOREA: FROM MOTHERS’ PERSPECTIVES A Dissertation in Curriculum and Instruction by Suyoung Kang 2015 Suyoung Kang Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2015 The dissertation of Suyoung Kang was reviewed and approved by the following: Jamie Myers Professor of Education Dissertation Advisor Chair of Committee Patrick Shannon Professor of Education Mariko Haneda Associate Professor of Education Meredith Doran Assistant Professor of Applied Linguistics Rose Mary Zbiek Director of Graduate Program Department of Curriculum and Instruction *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School iii ABSTRACT While some scholars look at the spread of English as a global language a neutral or positive process in the history of English language (Crystal, 1997; Graddol, 1997), other scholars see it differently (Canagarah, 1999; Kumaravadivelu, 2003; Pennycook, 1998, 2007; Phillpson, 2002; Rassol, 2007; Watts, 2011). Some see it as linguistic imperialism (Philpson, 1992), as an extension of colonial discourse (Pennycook, 1998, 2007), as colonial and imperial projects (Kumaravadivelu, 2003), or as the spread of English through commodification (Watts, 2011). In South Korea, gaining the name of English fever, English language education has been integral part of education fever for the last two decades. When the Kim Young Sam administration (1993-1998) ignited the globalization project, emphasizing the English communication skills as the silver bullet in global competition, it happened to engineer English fever in South Korea, which is often criticized as "collective neurosis" (Y. M. Kim, 2002), "fever ruining the nation" (D.R.Lee, 2010), and "social fraud" (Nam, 2012). English fever positions mothers, who are popularly considered in charge of children's education, to be responsible for children's English language education, while access to quality English language education is not equal to all, let alone the uncertainty of what it is. Hoping children would succeed and thrive, mothers experience pressure, struggles, and frustration in teaching children English. Drawing on mothers' stories, this multiple case study investigates mothers' challenges and struggles, which constitute their motherhood in the prevalent rhetoric of 'Wise Mother, Good Wife' in South Korea. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ............................................................................................................. vii List of Tables ............................................................................................................. viii Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................... ix Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 Contextual Narratives of English Fever ............................................................... 1 Issues Relevant to English Fever .......................................................................... 2 English as a Commodity ................................................................................ 2 English as a Gatekeeper ................................................................................. 3 English Divide ............................................................................................... 4 The Cost of English Fever ............................................................................. 5 Rationale for This Study ....................................................................................... 7 Why Mothers? ............................................................................................... 7 Overview of the Three Generations: Grandmothers, Mothers, and Children .................................................................................................. 7 Research Significance ................................................................................... 10 Contribution to the Field of Foreign Language Studies ................................ 11 Research Questions ....................................................................................... 11 Chapter Overview ................................................................................................. 12 Chapter 2 Literature Review ........................................................................................ 13 The Spread of English as a Global Language ....................................................... 13 Colonial Discourses of English as a Global Language ................................. 14 Globalization and the Global Spread of English ........................................... 19 Commodification and Spread of English as a Global Language ................... 22 English Fever in South Korea ............................................................................... 24 Globalization, Internationalization and Neoliberal Economy in South Korea ...................................................................................................... 24 Education Fever in South Korea .................................................................... 25 Defining English Fever .................................................................................. 28 Ideologies of English in South Korea ............................................................ 30 English as a Commodity ................................................................................ 32 English Language Policy in South Korea ...................................................... 33 Representation of Motherhood ............................................................................. 37 Wise Mother, Good Wife: Representation of Korean Motherhood .............. 39 Chapter 3 Methodology ............................................................................................... 41 Multiple Case Study ............................................................................................. 41 Theoretical Framework ......................................................................................... 42 Data Collection ..................................................................................................... 42 Research Site ................................................................................................. 42 v Participants .................................................................................................... 42 Interviews ...................................................................................................... 44 Issues During the Interviews ......................................................................... 46 Dealing with Data ................................................................................................. 47 Recording, Transcription, and Translation .................................................... 47 Analysis ......................................................................................................... 47 Reporting the Data ......................................................................................... 48 Researcher Identity ............................................................................................... 48 Chapter 4 Stories of Seven Mothers ............................................................................ 52 Hyejin ................................................................................................................... 52 Hyunmi ................................................................................................................. 54 Eunyoung .............................................................................................................. 57 Younghee .............................................................................................................. 60 Sunmi .................................................................................................................... 62 Youngsuk .............................................................................................................. 64 Myungsun ............................................................................................................. 68 Chapter 5 Mothers’ Perception: English as a Commodity and Requirement .............. 70 Generation Gap between Mother and Children .................................................... 70 English as a Commodity ....................................................................................... 76 English as a Requirement ..................................................................................... 79 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................. 83 Chapter 6 Mothers' Perception: Native Speaker Belief and Issues .............................. 86 Native Speaker Belief ........................................................................................... 86 Early English Language Education ............................................................... 88 Native Speaker Belief .................................................................................... 94 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................. 99 Chapter 7 Mothers' Perception: English Proficiency and English Exams ................... 101