ABSTRACT

This paper explores the relationship between education policy and the trajectory of English fever in Korea. English fever refers to a fervent desire to become proficient in English at almost any cost. English fever started with governments’ globalisation efforts in the 1980s and further intensified in the aftermath of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Drawing on policy enactment theory and analysing policy documents, this paper shows how English fever, once having taken root in Korean society, defied all policy measures to tackle it. The English language having a close relationship with social equity, these policies pursued an additional aim of increasing educational equity for students from low-income families. Their impact, however, proved minimal, partly due to educational stakeholders’ resistance. In order to relieve pressure on students, presidents Pak Geun-hye and Mun Jae-in tried to decrease the strong emphasis on English in curricula during the last decade.

摘要

本文探讨了韩国教育政策与英语热轨迹之间的关系。英语热是指不惜一切代价想要精通英语的强烈愿望。英语热始于 20 世纪 80 年代各国政府的全球化努力，并在 1997 年亚洲金融危机后进一步加剧。本文借鉴政策制定理论并分析政策文件，展示了英语热一旦在韩国社会扎根，便如何无视所有应对政策措施。英语与社会公平有着密切的关系，这些政策的另一个目标是提高低收入家庭学生的教育公平。然而，事实证明它们的影响微乎其微，部分原因是教育利益相关者的抵制。为了缓解学生的压力，