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Article published In:
Pop culture in applied linguistics: International perspectives: Special issue of ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics 173:2 (2022)
Edited by Valentin Werner
[ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics 173:2] 2022
► pp. 172–196

Korean pop culture reshaping Korean teaching

ORCID logo | University of Saskatchewan

Korean pop culture is becoming more and more popular outside of Korea and Asia. This trend draws enormous attention to Korean culture, history, and of course, the language. Surveys show that more and more people are learning the language precisely because of their love for Korean pop culture. Such a tendency could not but affect how Korean is taught. In this article, I will look into how the syllabus, teaching methods, and materials used in the KFL classrooms have changed under the influence of Korean pop culture. Moreover, in order to identify if the use of materials related to pop culture can benefit students’ motivation and performance, I conducted an experiment with two groups of students, all starting their beginner-level course (three months). The results of the study showed how the use of such materials in the classroom can affect students’ motivation and attitude toward learning.

Keywords: KFL, classroom study, learner attitudes, K-pop, Korean Wave, Hallyu
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
  • 3.Methodology
    • 3.1Experiment design
    • 3.2Course syllabus
    • 3.3Participants
    • 3.4Data collection and analysis
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Pre-course questionnaire
    • 4.2Post-course questionnaire
    • 4.3Experimental group observations
    • 4.4Control group observations
    • 4.5Statistical analysis
      • 4.5.1Correlations between the type of the syllabus and students’ motivation and attitude
      • 4.5.2Correlations between the love for Korean pop culture and students’ motivation and attitude
      • 4.5.3Correlation between the decision to begin learning Korean because of the interest in pop culture and students’ motivation and attitude
      • 4.5.4Correlation between students’ thoughts about the improvement of certain skills
      • 4.5.5Correlation between the raise of motivation and motivation to practice on their own
    • 4.6Instructors’ observations
    • 4.7Summary of the results
  • 5.Discussion and conclusion
    • 5.1Implications for practice
    • 5.2Recommendations for future research
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 3 May 2022
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/itl.21010.kri
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