South Korean Elementary School Teachers' Perceptions of Professional Curricular Autonomy (original) (raw)

This dissertation has benefitted from many people. First and foremost, my dissertation chair, Patricia Kubow, offered me careful and constructive feedback on countless drafts, thoughtful guidance through difficult times, and incredible support throughout my program. In particular, her comparative viewpoints and kind offer to collaborate with her for the study titled "The Cultural Contours of Democracy: Indigenous Epistemologies Informing Xhosa Teachers' Understandings of Citizenship and Identity in a South African Township" sparked me to inquiry surrounding curriculum and teacher agency from a sociocultural perspective. Additionally, her pointed questions at important moments pushed me to complete this dissertation, and her diligence and thoroughness have been admirable and truly inspirational. It has been such an honor to work with her. I would also like to thank my committee, Mary McMullen, David Flinders, and Duvravka Svetina, for their positive and rigorous feedback and deep insights. Mary McMullen is the one who strongly supported me to make a smooth transition from my master's program in Instructional Systems Technology to my doctoral program in Curriculum Studies. She was very warm and encouraging in helping me to start my doctoral study successfully and to grow as a junior scholar along the way. No words would ever convey my gratitude for her support over the years. David Flinders, furthermore, helped me to learn about the philosophy of Dewey (which strongly influenced my own philosophy for teacher educators), to transform my scratches into publishable articles, and to successfully complete the doctoral program requirements. I am so grateful for your immeasurable kindness, graciousness, and warm and strong guidance during my years as a student. Dubravka Svetina, finally, was a great teacher who inspired me to be interested in learning quantitative research methods and to consider psychometric soundness when I work with vi measurement. I learned basic statistics for the first time in my life through her course in 2012, which allowed me to gain confidence in using statistics in my own research. This first experience with statistics also motivated me to pursue my minor in Inquiry Methodology with a special emphasis on quantitative research methods. I also appreciate the valuable time that she spent reviewing each step that I took in this dissertation and giving suggestions to yield better outcomes. My sincere thanks also go to my lifelong mentor, Professor Kangsoon Lee at Gyeongin National University of Education and to my father-in-law, Professor Si-Kyung Lee at Keimyung University. As my academic advisor and role model, Kang-Soon Lee inspired me to pursue my dream in academia and strongly supported me in making that dream come true. She helped me to grow as a competent teacher in South Korea and to find ways to get into the graduate schools in the U.S., and she continues to set an example of mentoring and nurturing students, inspiring me to persevere with warm encouragement. On top of that, I appreciate her willingness to help me collect data for this dissertation at Gyeongin National University of Education. I am also grateful to Si-Kyung Lee, my father-in law, for supporting my dreams and encouraging me to finish this long journey successfully. As a scholar outside of the field of education, he gave me a fresh set of eyes and helped me to see the study in new ways. He also made an incredible effort to support my data