Education fever: Korean parents’ aspirations for their children’s schooling and future career

Abstract

Korean parents set high academic expectations for their children. Utilising Takeuchi’s and Clark’s theoretical framework and Q methodology, this study explores Korean parents’ education fever as aspiration for their children’s schooling, and how socio-economic status influences this phenomenon. Thirty-six parents in Busan, South Korea, participated in sorting 47 Q statements. The four resultant factors are interpreted as Autonomy Supporters (middle income), Study Supremacists (high income), and Apologetic Supporters and Value Enthusiasts (both low income). Autonomy Supporters support whatever their children want and focus on extra-curricular activities, while Study Supremacists believe that hard work guarantees quality education and employment. Apologetic Supporters feel guilt for being unable to support their children, and Value Enthusiasts believe that character and value education is most important. Each type represents a form of overheated, cooling down, and cooling out educational aspiration and educational stratification phenomenon.

Keywords:

• Korean parents
• parental educational aspiration
• Q methodology
• overheated
• cooling down
• cooling out

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.