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Toward Culturally Sustaining Korean as a Foreign Language (KFL) Textbooks: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Linguistic, Cultural, and Racial Ideologies across Earlier and Revised Editions

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Title: Toward Culturally Sustaining Korean as a Foreign Language (KFL) Textbooks: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Linguistic, Cultural, and Racial Ideologies across Earlier and Revised Editions
Language: English
Authors: Eunae Kim (ORCID 0009-0005-5321-7777)
Source: Modern Language Journal. 2026 110(3):881-901.
Availability: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 21
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Elementary Education
Descriptors: Korean, Second Language Instruction, Textbook Evaluation, Ideology, Disproportionate Representation, Culturally Relevant Education, Textbooks, Cultural Education, Race, Stereotypes, Foreign Countries, Elementary School Curriculum
Geographic Terms: United States, South Korea, Europe, Asia
DOI: 10.1111/modl.70080
ISSN: 0026-7902
1540-4781
Abstract: This article critically examines Korean as a Foreign Language (KFL) textbooks published by major Korean universities and widely used around the world. Using critical discourse analysis and a culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) perspective, this article analyzes how earlier and revised textbooks represent language, culture, and race, and whether these representations align with CSP principles. Findings reveal that although revised editions introduce more nationalities and visibly diverse characters, the underlying racial logics of the earlier editions remain unchanged, where whiteness remains the default Western norm, Korean ethnonationalism persists, and racialized hierarchies are reproduced in subtler forms. Similarly, cultural representation remains static. Despite the inclusion of contemporary examples, culture continues to be framed as fixed, homogeneous, and nationally bounded, with little attention to hybrid, diasporic, or learners' lived cultural practices. In terms of language, despite minor gestures toward multilingual awareness in the revised editions, the textbooks continue to privilege standard Seoul Korean while erasing regional, diasporic, and hybrid varieties, thus reinforcing a monolingual ideology that marginalizes learners' diverse linguistic repertoires. Together, these patterns illustrate the persistent dominance of monolingual and monocultural ideologies in materials intended for linguistically and culturally diverse learners. Through a CSP lens, this article underscores the need for more inclusive KFL curricula that fully reflect and sustain the diverse linguistic, cultural, and migratory experiences of contemporary KFL learners.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 20260101
Accession Number: EJ1514779
Database: ERIC
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  Data: Toward Culturally Sustaining Korean as a Foreign Language (KFL) Textbooks: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Linguistic, Cultural, and Racial Ideologies across Earlier and Revised Editions
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Eunae+Kim%22">Eunae Kim</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0009-0005-5321-7777">0009-0005-5321-7777</externalLink>)
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  Data: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22United+States%22">United States</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22South+Korea%22">South Korea</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Europe%22">Europe</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Asia%22">Asia</searchLink>
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  Data: 10.1111/modl.70080
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  Data: 0026-7902<br />1540-4781
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: This article critically examines Korean as a Foreign Language (KFL) textbooks published by major Korean universities and widely used around the world. Using critical discourse analysis and a culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) perspective, this article analyzes how earlier and revised textbooks represent language, culture, and race, and whether these representations align with CSP principles. Findings reveal that although revised editions introduce more nationalities and visibly diverse characters, the underlying racial logics of the earlier editions remain unchanged, where whiteness remains the default Western norm, Korean ethnonationalism persists, and racialized hierarchies are reproduced in subtler forms. Similarly, cultural representation remains static. Despite the inclusion of contemporary examples, culture continues to be framed as fixed, homogeneous, and nationally bounded, with little attention to hybrid, diasporic, or learners' lived cultural practices. In terms of language, despite minor gestures toward multilingual awareness in the revised editions, the textbooks continue to privilege standard Seoul Korean while erasing regional, diasporic, and hybrid varieties, thus reinforcing a monolingual ideology that marginalizes learners' diverse linguistic repertoires. Together, these patterns illustrate the persistent dominance of monolingual and monocultural ideologies in materials intended for linguistically and culturally diverse learners. Through a CSP lens, this article underscores the need for more inclusive KFL curricula that fully reflect and sustain the diverse linguistic, cultural, and migratory experiences of contemporary KFL learners.
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      – SubjectFull: Korean
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Second Language Instruction
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      – SubjectFull: Textbook Evaluation
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      – SubjectFull: Race
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      – SubjectFull: Foreign Countries
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      – SubjectFull: South Korea
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      – SubjectFull: Asia
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