Home Adolescent Korean returnees’ perceptions of the change of language learning contexts as bilingual learners
Article
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

Adolescent Korean returnees’ perceptions of the change of language learning contexts as bilingual learners

  • Ji Hye Shin EMAIL logo
Published/Copyright: May 5, 2022
Become an author with De Gruyter Brill

Abstract

There are growing populations of Korean children who studied abroad in the English as a second language (ESL) context and had to return to Korea for various reasons before reaching college age. These returnees are concerned about how to maintain (or improve) their English proficiency in the EFL (English as a foreign language) context. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate two Korean-English bilinguals who recently returned to Korea after learning English in the US for more than four years. The research questions were as follows: 1) How do Korean returnees perceive the change of learning status as Korean-English bilinguals in the US and Korea, and 2) What motivated Korean returnees to sustain their English proficiency while acquiring academic literacy in Korean? By using the case study method, an extensive and in-depth description of two Korean returnees’ English language learning experiences was provided. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and observation. The analysis showed that the switch from ESL to EFL learning environments, which includes the change of language, culture, and social contexts, influenced how Korean returnees maintain/improve their English proficiency, specifically with their language learning strategies (LLS).


Corresponding author: Ji Hye Shin, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, USA, E-mail:

References

Bardovi-Harlig, Kathleen & David Stringer. 2010. Variables in second language attrition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 32(01). 1–45. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263109990246.Search in Google Scholar

Bell, Kate. 2011. How ESL and EFL classrooms differ. Retrieved from: https://oupeltglobalblog.com/2011/07/12/how-esl-and-efl-classrooms-differ/.Search in Google Scholar

Brecht, Richard D. 1993. Predictors of foreign language gain during study abroad. Washington: National Foreign Language Center (NFLC) Occasional Papers.Search in Google Scholar

Brown, Henry D. 2001. Teaching by principles. New York: Longman.Search in Google Scholar

Canagarajah, Suresh A. 1999. Resisting linguistic imperialism in English teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Search in Google Scholar

Dörnyei, Zoltán. 1990. Conceptualizing motivation in foreign language learning. Language Learning 40(1). 45–78.10.1111/j.1467-1770.1990.tb00954.xSearch in Google Scholar

Dörnyei, Zoltán. 2009. The L2 motivational self system. In Zoltán Dörnyei & Ema Ushioda (eds.), Motivation, language identity and the L2 self, 9–42. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.10.21832/9781847691293-003Search in Google Scholar

Duff, Patricia A. & Tim Anderson. 2015. Academic language and literacy socialization for second language students. The Handbook of Classroom Discourse and Interaction 115. 337–352. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118531242.ch20.Search in Google Scholar

DuFon, Margaret A. & Eton E. Churchill. 2006. Language learners in study abroad contexts, vol. 15. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.10.21832/9781853598531Search in Google Scholar

Ellis, Rod. 1994. The study of second language acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Search in Google Scholar

Griffee, Dale T. 1997. Validating a questionnaire on confidence in speaking English as a foreign language. The Japan Association for Language Teaching Journal 19(2). 177–197.Search in Google Scholar

Gürsoy, Esim. 2010. Investigating language learning strategies of EFL children for the development of a taxonomy. English Language Teaching 3(3). 164–175.10.5539/elt.v3n3p164Search in Google Scholar

Halliday, Michael A. K. 2014. Language as social semiotic. The discourse studies reader, 263–272. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.10.1075/z.184.52halSearch in Google Scholar

Harmer, Jeremy. 1991. The practice of English language teaching. London: Longman.Search in Google Scholar

Hwang, Dae Joon, Hye-Kyung Yang & Hyeonjin Kim. 2010. E-learning in the Republic of Korea. Moscow, Russia: UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education.Search in Google Scholar

Hymes, Dell. 1972. On communicative competence. In John Bernard Pride & Janet Holmes (eds.), Sociolinguistics, 269–293. London: Penguin.Search in Google Scholar

Irie, Kay & Stephen Ryan. 2014. Study abroad and the dynamics of change in learner L2 self-concept. In Zoltán Dörnyei, Alastair Henry & Peter D. MacIntyre (eds.), Motivational dynamics in language learning, 520–552. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters.10.21832/9781783092574-022Search in Google Scholar

Isabelli-García, Christina. 2006. Study abroad social networks, motivation and attitudes: Implications for second language acquisition. Language Learners in Study Abroad Contexts 15. 231–258.10.21832/9781853598531-013Search in Google Scholar

Kanno, Yasuko. 2003. Negotiating bilingual and bicultural identities: Japanese returnees betwixt two worlds. New York, NY: Routledge.10.4324/9781410607560Search in Google Scholar

Kim, In Seon. 2006. Study on attrition of English suffered by the students who returned from abroad to the Korean-speaking environment: Focused on syntactic errors. Seoul, Korea: Yonsei University MA thesis.Search in Google Scholar

Koo, Hagen & Yean-Ju Lee. 2006. ‘Wild geese fathers’ and a globalised family strategy for education in Korea. International Development Planning Review 28(4). 533–553.10.3828/idpr.28.4.6Search in Google Scholar

Krieger, Daniel. 2012. Teaching ESL versus EFL: Principles and practices. English Teaching Forum 43(2). 8–10.Search in Google Scholar

Lee, Jane Y. 2015. Using a life history approach within transnational ethnography: A case study of Korean new Zealander returnees. Researching the Lifecourse: Critical Reflections from the Social Sciences 183. https://doi.org/10.46692/9781447317548.010.Search in Google Scholar

Leung, Constant, Christine Davison & Bernard Mohan. 2014. English as a second language in the mainstream: Teaching, learning and identity. New York, NY: Routledge.10.4324/9781315843575Search in Google Scholar

Li, Qi. 2014. Differences in the motivation of Chinese learners of English in a foreign and second language context. System 42. 451–461. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2014.01.011.Search in Google Scholar

Lincoln, Yvonna & Egon Guba. 1985. Naturalistic inquiry. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.10.1016/0147-1767(85)90062-8Search in Google Scholar

Little, David & Leni Dam. 1998. Learner autonomy: What and why? Language Teacher Kyoto JALT 22. 7–8.Search in Google Scholar

Magnan, Sally & Barbara Lafford. 2012. Learning through immersion during study abroad. In Susan M. Gass & Alison Mackey (eds.), The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition, 525–540. New york: Routledge.Search in Google Scholar

Mora, Raúl Alberto. 2013. The notion of second languages: Responding to today’s linguistic ecologies. The Journal for ESL Teachers and Learners 2. 53–61.Search in Google Scholar

Oxford, Rebecca L. 1996. New pathways of language learning motivation. In Rebecca L. Oxford (ed.), Language learning motivation: Pathways to the new century, 1–8. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai’i Press.10.1515/9780824897376Search in Google Scholar

Oxford, Rebecca L. 2016. Teaching and researching language learning strategies: Self-regulation in context. New York: Taylor & Francis.Search in Google Scholar

Oxford, Rebecca L., Mary Evelyn Holloway & Diana Horton-Murillo. 1992. Language learning styles: Research and practical considerations for teaching in the multicultural tertiary ESL/EFL classroom. System 20(4). 439–456. https://doi.org/10.1016/0346-251x(92)90057-a.Search in Google Scholar

Park, Jin-Kyu. 2009. ‘English fever’ in Korea: Its history and symptoms. English Today 25(01). 50–57. https://doi.org/10.1017/s026607840900008x.Search in Google Scholar

Park, Joseph & Sohee Bae. 2009. Language ideologies in educational migration: Korean “Jogi Yuhak” families in Singapore. Linguistics and Education: An International Research Journal 20(4). 366–377. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2009.09.001.Search in Google Scholar

Reid, Joy M. 1995. Learning styles in the ESL/EFL classroom. Florence, KY: Heinle & Heinle Publishers.Search in Google Scholar

Riley, Lesley, D. & KentonHarsch. 1999. Enhancing the learning experience with strategy journals: Supporting the diverse learning styles of ESL/EFL students. In Proceedings of the HERDSA annual international conference. Melbourne, Australia: Research and Development in Higher Education.Search in Google Scholar

Rose, Kenneth. 1999. Teachers and students learning about requests in Hong Kong. In Eli Hinkel (ed.), Culture in second language teaching and learning, 167–180. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Search in Google Scholar

Schmidt, Richard, Deena Borai & Omneya Kassabgy. 1996. Foreign language motivation: Internal structure and external connections. In Rebecca L. Oxford (ed.), Language learning motivation: Pathways to the new century, 9–70. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai’i Press.Search in Google Scholar

Seo, Han-Sol & Tae-Young Kim. 2015. Investigating the effectiveness of early study abroad English language training: Focusing on elementary, middle, and high school in Jeollabuk-do. The Research Institute of Korean Education 33(1). 101–125.Search in Google Scholar

Seth, Michael J. 2002. Education fever: Society, politics, and the pursuit of schooling in Korea. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai’i Press.Search in Google Scholar

Shin, Hyunjung. 2007. English language teaching in Korea. In Jim Cummins & Chris Davison (eds.), International handbook of English language teaching, vol. 15, 75–86. Boston, MA: Springer.10.1007/978-0-387-46301-8_7Search in Google Scholar

Song, Seung-Min. 2005. Korean Mothers’ beliefs and practices on early English education in ESL and EFL context. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Dissertation.Search in Google Scholar

Watanabe, Yoshinori. 1990. External variables affecting language learning strategies of Japanese EFL learners: Effects of entrance examination, years spent at college/university, and staying overseas. Lancaster, UK: Lancaster University MA thesis.Search in Google Scholar

Wharton, Glenn. 2000. Language learning strategy use of bilingual foreign language learners in Singapore. Language Learning 50(2). 203–243. https://doi.org/10.1111/0023-8333.00117.Search in Google Scholar

Yoshitomi, Asako. 1999. On the loss of English as a second language by Japanese returnee children. In Lynne Hansen (ed.), Second language attrition in Japanese context, 80–111. Oxford: Oxford University Press.10.1093/oso/9780195123043.003.0004Search in Google Scholar

Received: 2020-10-07
Revised: 2021-08-21
Accepted: 2021-09-23
Published Online: 2022-05-05
Published in Print: 2023-11-27

© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Special Issue 1: EMI in Chinese higher education; Guest Editor: McKinley, Rose and Curdt-Christiansen
  3. Editorial
  4. EMI in Chinese higher education: the Muddy water of ‘Englishisation’
  5. Review Article
  6. English medium of instruction in Chinese higher education: a systematic mapping review of empirical research
  7. Research Articles
  8. How to kill two birds with one stone: EMI teachers’ needs in higher education in China
  9. The incentivisation of English medium instruction in Chinese universities: policy misfires and misalignments
  10. Motivations to enrol in EMI programmes in China: an exploratory study
  11. A translanguaging and trans-semiotizing perspective on subject teachers’ linguistic and pedagogical practices in EMI programme
  12. Commentary
  13. English as a medium of instruction in Chinese higher education: looking back and looking forward
  14. Special Issue 2: The dynamics of Korean transnational families, language practices, and social belongings; Guest Editor: Hakyoon Lee
  15. Editorial
  16. Editorial: The dynamics of Korean transnational families, language practices, and social belongings
  17. Articles
  18. National belonging and citizenship in an era of globalization and transnational migration: Korean migrant youth in the United States
  19. Korean immigrant teenagers’ literacy practices and identity negotiation through smartphone use
  20. Language and identity of a Korean transnational youth in the U.S.
  21. Adolescent Korean returnees’ perceptions of the change of language learning contexts as bilingual learners
  22. From trilingualism to triliteracy: a trilingual child learning to write simultaneously in Korean, Farsi, and English
  23. Migrant mothers’ heritage language education in South Korea: complex and agentive navigation of capital and language ideologies
  24. Designing new Korean mothers, daughters-in-law, and wives: an analysis of Korean textbooks for newly arrived marriage migrants in South Korea
Downloaded on 17.10.2025 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/applirev-2022-2015/html
Scroll to top button