Cultural Values in Korean Heritage-Language Textbooks: Hidden Curriculum of Heritage-Language Education

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 8
  In Roundtable Session: Interrogating and Transgressing Texts and Curricular Materials

Abstract

Using critical content analysis, this study aimed to examine cultural values represented and emphasized in the Korean heritage language (HL) textbooks used by HL schools. This study is situated in the literature on cultural values and hidden curriculum. Data sources included twelve Korean textbooks for Korean descendants abroad published in 2017 by the Korean Department of Education. Findings suggested that the value orientations such as embeddedness, egalitarianism, and intellectual autonomy were highlighted differently in the focal textbooks. Embeddedness was often represented and emphasized in the context of communicative events such as conversations, e-mails, and posts. Egalitarianism and intellectual autonomy were depicted in the stories of historically and socially influential figures.

Author

• Kwangok Song, The University of Kansas