Skip to main content
Book cover

Palgrave Handbook of Research in Historical Culture and Education pp 637–655Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Trends and Issues Surrounding the Reading of Historical Texts in the Republic of Korea

  • 1393 Accesses

Abstract

Yang offers the historical background of the Korean government’s recent decision for a state designated high school history textbook. Drawing attention to the very similar decision in 1973, which was held for 30 years, the chapter summarizes history teachers’ efforts for teaching lively history that defy the fixed interpretation of the nation’s past. In reviewing the related research issues regarding historical thinking, leading up to the recent discussion about how to read like a historian, it focuses on the meaning and purpose of reading historical texts critically. Yang argues for a more careful consideration of contextualization in research on critical reading and in the classroom practice of reading the one and only history textbook against the grain.

Keywords

  • Historical Document
  • Historical Knowledge
  • Historical Text
  • History Education
  • Historical Consciousness

These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

“Korea” in this paper indicates the Republic of Korea (South Korea).

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • DOI: 10.1057/978-1-137-52908-4_33
  • Chapter length: 19 pages
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
eBook
USD   229.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • ISBN: 978-1-137-52908-4
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Hardcover Book
USD   299.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
Learn about institutional subscriptions

References

  • Ashby, R., & Edwards, C. (2010). Challenges Facing the Disciplinary Tradition: Reflection on the History Curriculum in England. In E. Nakou & I. Barca (Eds.), Contemporary Public Debates Over History Education (pp. 27–46). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barthes, R. (1970). Historical Discourse. In M. Lane (Ed.), Introduction to Structuralism (pp. 145–155). New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Choi, S. H. (2000). Subcategories of Historical Thinking and Establishment Methods of Instructional Objectives. The Korean History Education Review, 73, 1–35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Choi, S. H. (2006). High School Students’ Understanding on Source Materials. Studies on History Education, 3, 146–208.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crismore, A. (1984). The Rhetoric of Textbooks: Metadiscourse. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 16, 279–296.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, W. (1950). Author, Speakers, Readers, and Mock Readers. College English, 11, 265–269.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Kang, S. J. (2013). High School Students’ Reading of Historical Texts and Strategies for Using Historical Texts in the History Class. The Korean History Education Review, 125, 129–182.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Kang, W. C. (1978). Historical Education and Sense of History. The Korean History Education Review, 24, 144–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kim, H. J. (2013). High School Student’s Understanding History by the Strategy of Writing Historical Document. The Korean History Education Review, 125, 183–210.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Kim, H. J., & Lee, Y. H. (2002). Critical Reading of History and Writing of History. The Korean History Education Review, 81, 1–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, P. (2010). Series Introduction. In I. Nakou & I. Barca (Eds.), Contemporary Public Debates Over History Education (pp. xi–xvi). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, Y. H. (2000). Postmodernism in History and History Learning. The Korean History Education Review, 74, 1–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nam, J. W. (2010). Development of Teaching Model for Reading History Textbook Critically. Studies on History Education, 11, 7–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Center for History in Schools. (1994). National Standards for United States History. UCLA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park, J. H. (2014). Learning History and Developing Historical Perspectives. History and Education, 9, 139–195.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott, J. W. (1989). History in Crisis: The Others’ Side of the Story. The American Historical Review, 94, 681.

    Google Scholar 

  • Segall, A. (1999). Critical History: Implication for History/Social Studies Education. Theory and Research in Social Education, 27, 358–374.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Segall, A. (2006). What’s the Purpose of Teaching a Discipline, Anyway? The Case of History. In A. Segall, E. E. Heilman, & C. H. Cherryholmes (Eds.), Social Studies: The Next Generation (pp. 125–139). New York: Peter Lang.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skinner, Q. (2002). Visions of Politics (Vol. 1). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Spiegel, G. M. (1997). The Past as Text. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • The Association of Korean History Teachers. (1998). History Education in Practice: An Opening to the 21st Century (10th Anniversary Symposium of the Association of Korean History Teachers). History Education, 41, 9–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • The Institute of History Education—Special Project Team. (2014). Teaching the March First Movement by Reading Like a Historian. History and Education, 9, 32–77.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tholfsen, T. R. (1967). Historical Thinking: An Introduction. New York: Harper and Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thornton, S. (1991). Teacher as Curricular-Instructional Gatekeeper in Social Studies. In J. Shaver (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Social Studies Teaching and Learning (pp. 237–248). New York: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trouillot, M. R. (1995). Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History. Boston: Beacon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wineburg, S. (1991). On the Reading of Historical Texts: Notes on the Breach between School and Academy. American Educational Research Journal, 28, 495–519.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Wineburg, S. (1996). The Psychology of Learning and Teaching History. In D. C. Berliner & R. C. Calfe (Eds.), Handbook of Educational Psychology (pp. 427–429). New York: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wineburg, S., Martin, D., & Monte-Sano, C. (2012). Reading Like a Historian. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang, C. K. (2014). Learning Model of Critical Reading and Writing for History Education—A Case Study of Dokdo Education. History Education Review, 52, 79–128.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang, H. H. (1996). Mode of History Textbook Writing and Student’s Historical Understanding. The Korean History Education Review, 59, 1–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang, H. H. (2003). Problematizing Historical Thinking for Possibilities of Historicization. The Korean History Education Review, 87, 195–196.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ziemann, B., & Dobson, M. (2009). Introduction. In M. Dobson & B. Ziemann (Eds.), Reading Primary Sources (pp. 1–17). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of History Education, College of Education, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea

    Ho Hwan Yang

Authors
  1. Ho Hwan Yang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Campus de Cantoblanco, Autónoma University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Mario Carretero

  2. Ruhr Universitat Bochum, Bochum, Germany

    Stefan Berger

  3. Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

    Maria Grever

Copyright information

© 2017 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Yang, H.H. (2017). Trends and Issues Surrounding the Reading of Historical Texts in the Republic of Korea. In: Carretero, M., Berger, S., Grever, M. (eds) Palgrave Handbook of Research in Historical Culture and Education. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-52908-4_33

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-52908-4_33

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-137-52907-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-137-52908-4

  • eBook Packages: HistoryHistory (R0)