A Critical Review of Art Education in South Korea

88 Education through Art after the Second World War: A Critical Review of Art Education in South Korea Hyungsook Kim Abstract This article examines how progressive educa- Keywords tion was introduced to South Korea after the progressive education, George Peabody Second World War and takes a closer look at College for Teachers Mission, creative critical studies of this history. It argues that the self-expressionism, post-colonisation, America-led progressive education policies, art education which focused on art education, were an uncrit- ical adaptation of the superpower’s educational ideology and did not contribute to the advancement of education in Korea. In order to clear the vestiges of Japanese colonial rule, many progressive reform projects, including the refor- mation of the curriculum, were set into motion. However, these initiatives did not address South Korea’s social and economic issues but helped to maintain traces of colonial rule. They influ- enced the Korean people to develop a negative view of their own roots, culture and traditions. It encouraged people to consider themselves as the subjects of Westernisation and was a strat- egy implemented by America to have influence on South Korea. iJADE 33.1 (2014) © 2014 The Author. iJADE © 2014 NSEAD/John Wiley & Sons Ltd This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution license, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. BW147 Jade 33.1_text_AW.indd 88 12/02/2014 12:15 Introduction The purpose of this article is to raise questions 89 At the end of the Second World War, ‘progres- about this dominant perspective in the field of Hyungsook Kim sive education’ [1] had a significant impact on art art education; it raises questions about the influ- education in the USA and also in South Korea. ence of progressive education as it was intro- Independence from Japan in 1945 demanded duced during the US military occupation of that Korea fundamentally reorganise itself, and Korea. This study also examines political impli- during this period the Korean education commu- cations, and the evaluation that progressive nity began restructuring its educational system. education has positively contributed to the Progressive educational philosophy was advo- modernisation of Korean education. The article cated as a model of an advanced educational argues that the educational reform measures system that would overcome ‘colonial intellect’, taken in South Korea, in the name of modernisa- the remnants of Japanese imperialism in Korea, tion and national advancement, were in fact part and advance democracy and human rights. This of the post-colonisation process. Specifically, it philosophy was complex and the version that discusses, with examples, how the reform was adopted was child-centred and empha- measures were applied and interpreted in the sised art education in daily life as well. It field of art education. It also examines the provided a philosophical paradigm for the mimetic characteristics, typical of a colonised Korean education community as it sought to country, of the practice of a progressive educa- pursue a direction toward democratic educational philosophy in South Korea in the name of tion. A key question in studying post-Second Westernisation and modernisation. World War education and culture in South Korea is the impact of progressive education. Specifi- Progressive education for building democracy cally, how did progressive education shape art At the beginning of the twentieth century in education in Korea, and what were its ideologi- the USA, a movement for progressive educa- cal implications? tion developed, the leaders of which empha- In general, studies of this question highlight sised different aims and agendas of education the modern and democratic attributes of Ameri- perspectives. For instance, Lawrence Cremin can educational theory and overlook its negative (1962, 1988) advocated a precise definition of impact on Korean education. One can find stud- progressive education in the United States ies in Korea that attempt to overcome this limita- that took hold in the twentieth century. He tion; such studies, which are critical of the argued that the movement was essentially changes in Korea’s post-independence educa- pluralistic and sometimes contradictory tional system take a revisionist point of view (Cremin 1988, 228). Arthur Zilversmit (1933, 1) (Kang 2002; Kim 1992; Lee 2007). In the field of agreed that it is difficult to define progressive art education, critical studies were practically education. However, it can be argued that the non-existent, revisionist or otherwise. The art vision of progressive education was to education community categorically accepted promote the basic principles of democracy, the introduction of progressive education posi- such as freedom, peace and human rights. To tively and the American influence was consid- achieve this goal, it emphasised child-centred ered to be ‘new’ and ‘modern’ (Park 1998; Kim and reconstructionist ideology. However, it is 1999; Kim 2001b). During the period of its mili- difficult to pin down progressive education tary occupation of Korea, the USA had a deep since there are various perspectives and and extensive influence across all sectors of discussions of the subject, though John Korean society, a situation that continued with Dewey’s educational philosophy provided its little structural changes until recently; and it central thought. would not be an overstatement to say that this In South Korea, progressive education was American influence determined the ideological introduced at the end of the Second World War. direction of art education in Korea. During this time, there were strong sentiments iJADE 33.1 (2014) © 2014 The Author. iJADE © 2014 NSEAD/John Wiley & Sons Ltd BW147 Jade 33.1_text_AW.indd 89 12/02/2014 12:15 90 within the Korean education community to goals as follows. First, he rejected class discrim- Hyungsook Kim purge the country of the educational system left ination in traditional education. Second, he behind by the Japanese colonial authorities. It opposed education philosophy which aimed to was also a time when Korea found itself under instrumentalise human beings. Further, he rose US military occupation. Koreans who had stud- up against the characteristic oppressiveness of ied Dewey and his educational philosophy at past education and aspired toward education Columbia University’s Teachers College were at based on freedom. the forefront of this movement. Dewey’s A major change that came with the adoption Democracy and Education, which was trans- of progressive education was the introduction lated into Korean by Lim Han-yeong and Oh of the 6–3–3 school system, which empha- Cheon-seok, was used as the main textbook for sised respect for individual aptitude and ability. training teachers, indicating the high level of Under this system, entrance to a school of interest Korean educators had in Dewey. The higher quality was open to everyone and it US-educated Korean scholars who were lead- seemed to guarantee equal educational oppor- ing education reform in Korea based their tunities for all. It was introduced as a system Korean-style progressive education on their that would overcome the problems of the interpretation of Dewey. They emphasised undemocratic double-track system from the child-oriented education, which they saw as Japanese Colonial Period; the old system being central to Dewey’s philosophy (Dewey discriminated against Koreans by restricting 1916, 10, 16, 140; Dewey 1928, 197–204; Dewey their educational opportunities, implemented 1965, 2; Zilversmit 1993, 7–8). Oh Cheon-seok, differentiated education and was based on the one of the leading figures of progressive educa- principle of educating a small core of elites. In tion in Korea criticised traditional education and the new system, students were to attend called for reform; however, in bringing progres- school for a total of 16 years, with co-ed educa- sive education from the USA, these scholars tion as a rule. This single-track system had the succeeded in transplanting in Korea what was aim of providing equal opportunity to all only the façade of a Western foundation of students regardless of their socio-economic education. Confucianism and the colonial background or gender. It was similar to the US legacy of Japanese modern education still main- school system and led some critics to claim that tained a strong presence and there was much Koreans had imitated the US system due to difficulty in applying the precepts of progressive pressure from the USA (Kim 1992; Lee 2007). In education in schools and classrooms. response, Oh (1964) and Son In-su (1973) The ‘new education’ movement was a major acknowledged the similarity but argued that it component of progressive education in South was not the result of blind imitation but a choice Korea. It began after the election of the separate to maximise the educational objectives of the southern and northern governments in South time (Oh & Choi 1993; Oh 1975a; Son 1973). Korea and amidst a national campaign to reor- In 1950, the Korean government organised ganise the school curriculum. Its aim was to the Council on Core Curriculum Selection (gyosu liquidate all remnants of Japanese imperialism yomok jejeong simuihoe); in 1951, and as a and to build a new Korean national educational result, the Curriculum Study Committee system. Oh Cheon-seok, an ardent supporter of (gyogwa gwajeong yeongu wiwonhoe) was progressive educational philosophy, was a lead- created. The two bodies were charged with ing figure of the new education movement; he determining what courses should be taught and believed progressive education should consti- for how many hours, and what courses should tute the core of educational reform in Korea. be requirements or electives for each school When he presented the goals for new educa- grade. As a result, in June 1953, the Govern- tion, his aim was to implement democratic ment announced the ‘Basic Guidelines For education based on freedom.

Load more