한국 다문화사회의 이해와 다문화 교육 연구

Abstract

The 21st century is an era in which large-scale migration around the globe has become common. In the international community, the phenomenon of post-statehood is accelerating as economics, information and technology, and human resource exchanges are actively progressing at a global level, breaking away from the ideological antagonism and hostile relationships of the past. In the aftermath of globalization that has enveloped the world, various foreigners are flocking to the Korean society, which has achieved rapid economic growth, for reasons such as jobs, marriage, or studies. Multiculturalism refers to linking, reflecting, and applying the cultures of several countries, emphasizing the differentiation of each culture, and pursuing cultural diversity. When defining a multicultural society as a society comprised of various races and ethnicities in relation to the diversity of citizens of a country, multiculturalism refers to a situation in which different racial and ethnic groups have equal human rights and are not ignored or despised. Korea’s multicultural society is a result of the increase in migrant workers and marriage immigrants due to the influx of foreign labor along with globalization. As the immigration of foreigners has rapidly increased in Korea, a series of social services have been provided to them, including Korean language education, economic support, and stabilization of life. However, social prejudice, discrimination, and human rights violations against immigrants are still becoming social problems, and there is also a phenomenon of avoidance of Korea in Southeast Asia. At the same time, anxiety and breakup of multicultural families are increasing, and their labor rights issues resulting from foreign workers’ working conditions and poor working environments are becoming more serious. In order to overcome the absurd vicious cycle that occurs during the settlement process of foreign immigrants and to realize a multicultural society in which people live together by utilizing the positive aspects of cultural diversity, our society must embrace cultural diversity and sublimate it into energy for the maturation and development of Korean society. In this paper, we seek to identify the aspects and challenges of Korean multicultural society and analyze the background and problems of multicultural families to find a desirable direction for multicultural education to lead a healthy multicultural multicultural society.