Curriculum Theorizing as Post-Colonial Text: Post-Orientalism and Young Chun Kim’s Life’s Work in South Korea

Abstract

Research on post-colonial curricula in non-Western countries continues to expand, with contributions from many scholars around the world. Many of these authors argue that post-colonial theories and the implications of those theories can help elucidate how colonial hegemony and ideology have affected the dominant discourse regarding curriculum studies discourse in non-Western nations. Despite the efforts that have been made, the field of curriculum studies in South Korea lacks context-relevant post-colonial perspectives and practical approaches to developing new post-colonial knowledge based on its own language, culture, history, and epistemologies. This article explores the life’s work of one Korean post-colonial curriculum scholar. Based on a document analysis and an in-depth interview process, the following discussion conceptualizes three themes related to post-colonial curriculum studies: (1) production of indigenous qualitative research texts, (2) identification of new curriculum phenomenon from the local, and (3) creation of new concepts and languages for international curriculum research. This analysis can inform how curriculum scholars in South Korea and other non-Western regions approach post-colonial curriculum research in a specific nation.