Inside View: A Comparison of United States and South Korean Students’ Perspectives on Their High School Experiences

The perspectives of Korean and American high school students were compared to consider the effects of different education systems and policies on their high school experiences. Twenty-one students from South Korea and twenty U. S. students participated in in-person interviews or focus groups completed in English or Korean. The investigator translated and transcribed the audio recordings to then code the responses for themes. Analyses indicated that the two groups of students to have significantly different viewpoints on aspirations, the central role of academics, and level of satisfaction during high school. The impact of societal view of education is discussed with regard to the students’ experiences of high school and the implications for education policy changes.