2.4 Cultural influences on learning in Korea

2.4.1 Introduction

Bickley (1989) and others (e.g. Clarke & Clarke 1990:31; Cortazzi 1990:54; Scovel 1994) point out that learning styles are not only affected by individual differences in ability, personality and motivation, "but also, perhaps predominantly, by cultural factors" (Bickley (1989:15). Scovel (1994:214) sees personality characteristics as part of cultural norms, and for Valdes (1990:29) "culture ... penetrates all the corners of language education". It is important therefore that this all-pervasive factor be taken into account at every level of programme design and implementation.

2.4.2 Korean cultural profile

Hong (1983:206) offers a profile of Koreans as:

racially homogeneous, derived from Mongoloid stock. They speak a common tongue that is more like Turkic, Finnish or Hungarian than like other Asian languages. Traditional religions are Buddhism and Shamanism. Confucianism was more of a philosophy of statesmanship, maintaining the solidarity of the state by dictating the norms for human relationships. Confucianism became engrained in Korean society and still underpins the value system of Koreans. Catholicism arrived in Korea in the 18^th and 19^th centuries, and Protestantism in the 20^th. Today [1983] nearly 20% of Koreans are Protestants or Catholics, with the number increasing among the young. (Hong 1983:206)

Confucianism, with its emphasis on family values and respect for age and learning, has been particularly influential on the Korean way of life, and is responsible for many of the "often hidden assumptions" (Cortazzi 1990:54) behind learners' expectations about lesson content and teaching methods. Scovel (1994:214) compares learning style preferences in terms of Confucian, semi-Confucian and non-Confucian cultures (cf. table A-6 below) ("Korean" has been added to Scovel's original diagram). 

[1] cf. Hansen-Strain 1989:224

Hofstede (1986:307) used a four-dimensional ("4-D") model (individualism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance and masculinity) to describe cultural differences in teacher/learner interaction in 50 countries and 3 regions. This interaction was seen by him as deeply rooted in the culture of a society, producing problematic learning situations for both teachers and learners, due to: i) differences in the social positions of teachers and students in their societies; ii) the relevance of the curriculum (training content) for the two societies; iii) profiles of cognitive abilities between the populations from which the teacher and students are drawn; and iv) expected patterns of teacher/student and student/student interaction. On a scale of 1 to 100, Koreans in Hofstede's study scored: 18 (low individualism = "collectivist" society); 61 (large power-distance); 85 (strong uncertainty avoidance); and 40 (feminine society), giving the interaction profile in table A-7 (below). 

This profile effectively summarises the learning history that most Korean students take with them to tertiary education (though it would be interesting to carry out this research again, given the speed of change in modern Korea), and also gives some insight into resulting classroom expectations that are an integral part of teacher/student interactions, as outlined by Cortazzi (1990:62) (table A-8, below) [8].

These profiles add up to a "dichotomy of transmission versus interpretation" (Young & Lee 1987), the former being consonant with the teacher's role as a provider of information, an attitude which Young & Lee see as fostering a kind of learning "which is not directly related to the learners' purposes and needs" (1987:85). They therefore advocate an "interpretation" approach, claiming that it fosters a type of learning "which goes beyond the bounds of normal academic knowledge and can be related to the students [sic] needs and interests outside school" (1987:86).

When defining such student needs, it must be acknowledged that different members of the education "audience" have differing opinions and beliefs. Thus Mr. Mervyn Cheung Man-Ping (Secretary of the Hong Kong Association for Continuing Education) criticised the "foreign approach" ("creative learning") for "not meeting the needs of Hong Kong students" (Chu 1994:15) (i.e. for not helping students to score highly in grammar-based discrete-item proficiency tests). Rather than dismiss such an attitude as uninformed, it must be noted that for at least 3,000 years, the learning needs of students in East Asia (including Korea) have been to learn a minimum of 5,000 Chinese ideographs, and to memorise the teachings of Confucius. For these purposes, rote-memorisation and a revered teacher-figure in possession of the required information (and able to transmit it orally), were appropriate learning tools. Only with the comparatively recent advent of mass education and the need for an educated workforce to cope with and maximise continuous technological advances, has the need arisen for a view of education focusing on process as well as product. Until it can be shown that alternative learning theories produce acceptable and verifiable "results" in universal learning situations, it seems unwise to reject "traditional" beliefs as intrinsically unsound.

An example of the need to keep an open mind in terms of learning theory and culture is found in the game of Paduk (바둑, 碁, "Go" [Japanese name], "Wei Ch'I" [Chinese name]). This ancient board game, originating in China c. 4,000 years ago, and still defying attempts to produce a computer programme which can match human professionals, is known for the lateral thinking and use of pattern recognition employed by players.  However, this creative ability is based upon years of rote learning of set situations (openings " 포석", corner situations " 정석", endings " 끝내기"). Having internalised the available technical information, players can select strategies based upon a knowledge of the most appropriate technical options, or even on the basis of the move which "feels or looks right" (technique-based intuition). Given that this game only came to Korea at professional level after World War II, the fact that Korean players have been World champions for the last decade, is notable. In a similar manner, Korean tertiary students, having learned on average 3,000 items of English vocabulary in secondary education (Korean Ministry of Education 1995), are very quick to apply that knowledge when given the opportunity to participate in interactive learning environments, and "do not, in fact, wish to be spoon-fed with facts from an all-knowing fount of knowledge" (Littlewood 2000:34).

2.4.3 Cultural imperialism

Language teaching involves "the distinctions that are recognised by and are important to those who normally speak the language" (Barrow 1990:3), but can involve using ideas (e.g. double negatives - "I'm not unhappy") which are not common to the student's L1. Explaining idioms and politically charged additions to the language (e.g. "affirmative action") can also involve investigating the issues they represent, themselves often specific to western cultures. Hence Harrison warns that "teaching a language is not a value-free, or transparent, activity. What we do in the language classroom is affected by who we are, the views we hold, and the societies we are part of" (1990:1), and Holly states that English "can also act as a means of politico-cultural colonisation of the spirit, serving the interests of the most powerful concentrations of economic power the world has ever known" (1990:18). Phillipson (1992:2) therefore calls for a "macro-societal theoretical perspective" of language pedagogy, and cites Stern's (1983:282) comment that "Social scientists ... have hardly recognized the importance of theories and descriptions of society and culture for language teaching". In fact ELT has been a means of spreading cultural, economic and religious values  (e.g. early evangelical English teaching in Korea), often with the implicit assumption of universal "correctness" described by Phillipson (1992:73) as "English linguistic hegemony". The imposition of such external values in a language programme can appear to be arbitrary (Bocock 1986:123), and can easily be rejected by someone who disagrees with that particular set of values. Hence Bocock also advocates the "re-introduction of philosophical, rational discussion of values and politics into social theory and the social sciences".

2.4.3.2. Textbooks

Such linguistic hegemony is apparent in most commercially available EFL textbooks, in which the treatment of "race, gender and other cultural issues is marked by considerable discrepancies with social reality" (Clarke & Clarke 1990:41). Such books are typically set in English-speaking countries, and embody values and behaviour patterns of the target speech community. This need not be a problem if dealt with in a sensitive way, but unthinking presentation of the target culture as desirable (or undesirable) can lead to stereotypical representations which ignore or misrepresent "linguistic and ethnic diversity and class and gender oppositions, devalue women, black Britons, and those 'north of Shakespeare's birthplace,' giving rise to charges of linguistic imperialism and cultural colonisation" (Clarke & Clarke 1990:35; cf. Pugsley 1988). Learners can often withdraw from such implicit judgmental ethnocentricity, "because the culture of the English-speaking world is implicitly contrasted with the learner's own to the detriment of the latter" (Byram 1986). Given the dependence on textbooks of most language institutions and teachers, one way of approaching this situation is to ensure that a diversity of world views, values and roles are represented (Clarke & Clarke 1990:41) and that the issue of culture is addressed consciously by writers, editors and publishers. Another option is to set the textbook in the learner's own country (as was done in this study - sections 2.6.3, 7.3.1-3, pages 52, 223), and to reflect the learning needs of the students. Whatever the solution adopted, it is necessary to identify to what extent learners wish to take on a foreign culture (ESL), and to what extent their interest is more curiosity (EFL). The existence of alternatives to the prevailing hegemony provides openings both for influencing the dominant order and for challenging it. (Phillipson 1992:76)

2.5 Historical and cultural background: conclusion

Traditional Korean educational ideas, based upon Confucian ethics, see education as a valued course of action, justified in its own right, and occurring (for the greatest part of Korean history) in the master-apprentice format, with the master universally revered, and with the apprentice(s) giving unquestioning belief and obedience. This idea of the all-knowing sage who dispenses knowledge, appears in Hofstede's (1986) "4D" profile (table A-7, above) as characteristic of "Large power distance" societies. Other "Korean" characteristics such as teacher-centred education, passivity of students, preference for structured learning situations, use of academic language, promotion of accuracy, and discouragement of intellectual disagreement, have been cited as illustrations of an education system that is out of touch with modern educational theory. However, if we look for other characteristics in the Korean "4-D" model, we also find that a teacher merits the respect of his/her students (in and out of class), that teachers (and students) are allowed to behave emotionally, a student's failure in school is a relatively minor accident, students admire friendliness in teachers, students practice mutual solidarity, students try to behave modestly, and corporal punishment is severely rejected. This is in fact an environment of mutual respect and trust, in which the master-figure provides learning experiences that he/she feels is appropriate for each of his/her charges ("The master will say that black is white to help his pupils" - Buddhist proverb). As Scollon & Scollon observe:

The Asian focuses on the care, nurture and benevolence (or their absence) of the person in authority while the westerner tends to focus on the restriction, limitation and dependence of the person over whom the authority is exercised. (1994:21, cited in Ho & Crookall 1995:237)

A recent example of this respectful environment was in the field of Paduk (cf. section 2.4.2, page 44), when the World champion, Cho Hun-hyun (조훈현) invited a promising middle school student to live with him and his family (c. 1991 – 92), and gave him personal tuition. His apprentice, Lee Chang-ho (이장호), has since been World champion a number of times. 

A number of writings by ancient scholars suggest that oriental education has roots in a holistic view of educating the "whole person", similar to that advocated in western cultures under the name of humanism. Thus Wong Yang-min (1472-1529) saw pure memory training in education as a lower type of schooling (Chiang 1963:87), and the Sung Dynasty scholar Chu His (1130-1200) advised students to:

... think it out for yourself. Do not depend on others for explanations. Suppose there was no one you could ask, should you stop learning? If you could get rid of the habit of being dependent on others you will make your advancement in your study. (Chiang 1963:90, cited in Pierson 1996:56)

Recent changes in society have brought mass education, in which such personal teacher/student contact has not been feasible. The continuation of rote-learning methods and the absorption (and testing) of massive amounts of data which have become freely accessible on the Internet[9] is, however, no longer an efficient way of educating future citizens, who are faced with technological advances which will require them to re-skill a number of times during their lives.  In such a situation, processing skills, problem-solving skills, and learning skills are appropriate, and the education system will need to be redesigned to include these. EFL educators, however, need to be careful of condemning a system that has been part of a culture for 4,000 years, that has survived because it was of value to the people for whom it was intended, and that is aware of the need for change. Thus, teachers need to be aware of the cultural implications of their lessons, and of the fact that there is no middle ground: "either they co-operate wittingly or unwittingly, in colonisation of the mind or they take measures to combat it" (Holly, 1990:18). Given the lack of specific research in Korea on contemporary issues such as autonomy in (second language) education, curriculum designers must also investigate the appropriateness of such concepts in a group-culture:

... if the autonomous individual, making rational decisions on his or her own is a construction of western cultures, this notion may have limited applicability to other cultural contexts. (Pennycook 1997:38)

Korean society is changing rapidly, as national campaigns urge Koreans to prepare for "Global Village" of the 21^st century by becoming more international in outlook, and "western" values are increasingly evident. Ideas on education are also changing, as seen in Japanese Prime Minister Obuchi's comment:

We need to figure out what needs to be done to raise good citizens and nurture personal integrity. I think the educational system before the Second World War might have done a better job on this. (Time Magazine, April 26, 1999)

Non-judgemental awareness of all these factors can optimise cultural aspects of language learning, leading to expansion of the learner's cultural knowledge (Valdes 1990:29) and to an approach that will provide "the opportunity for people to see things in new ways" (Barrow 1990:9), and will "unlock the mysteries of oppression and awaken a consciousness of self-worth in those whose daily experience may do very little to encourage it" (Holly 1990:18). As Clarke & Clarke point out: "Total impartiality may be unattainable, but it need not be unapproachable" (1990:43). Finally, Harvey's (1985) observations about the Chinese EFL situation are very relevant to Korea, and provide a useful conclusion for this section:

1. Chinese [Korean] learning methods cannot simply be dismissed as "primitive", "old-fashioned" or "misguided". There are a number of obvious historical, pedagogical, and psychological reasons for them.

2. Traditional" methods and skills are not fundamentally or necessarily unworkable alongside modern EFL teaching methods.

3. EFL in China [Korea] needs western experience and expertise, not western dogma.

4. More investigation needs to be made into learner-centred behaviour in language teaching.

5. The "We've got it right" attitude is a waste of time in China [Korea]. Even if it is true, nobody wants to hear it. (Harvey 1985:6)

As Barrow points out:

... the teaching of English as a Second Language may properly be regarded as a service and a potential advantage to non-English speakers, rather than as a further exercise in cultural domination. (1990:9)

Continue reading Chapter 2: Background to this study.　

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[8] Conditions which Cortazzi ascribes to Japan, are considered by the writer to be applicable to Korea, since education in Korea is still based on the Japanese model imposed during the 35 years of colonisation (1910 – 1945).
[9] libraries in Korea are places where students go to study their set texts in preparation for university examinations, and not for citizens to access information
[10] Confucian "family" ties between students of the same age have been disrupted by this modern practice.
[11] With 15% of male students leaving to do military service at the end of their Junior year, this totalled 65% of the male population. The other 25% were either excluded, or did their service before coming to university.
[12] Confidence, Motivation, Independence.
[13] TMM: http://www.finchpark.com/books/, NYT: http://www.finchpark.com/books/, TWA: http://www.finchpark.com/books/.