English-medium instruction in higher education in South Korea

This chapter provides a wide-ranging overview and discussion of English-medium education in the South Korean context. Adopting a historically-informed sociolinguistic perspective, the article discusses the broader historical background to English language education and English-medium policies in higher education. While the origins of English teaching date back from the arrival of US educators in the late nineteenth century, the nation’s ‘English fever’ has more recent origins and owes a good deal to the dynamics of global capitalism, and South Korea’s emergence on the world stage as an Asian manufacturing and technological powerhouse. This article also includes a summary of the research findings of the investigation of English-medium instruction (EMI) at four elite South Korean universities, where, despite various difficulties, many students expressed positive attitudes towards EMI. At the same time, debates concerning English in higher education continue, with several critics explaining its spread with reference to neoliberal economic and social policies in South Korea.