I learned so much from this class, but more importantly I experienced the class as well, by watching Korean films, television shows, listening to Kpop, and eating Korean food.

First of all, I am embarrassed to say that I did not know much about Korean pop culture until I took this class. But I feel that Professor Jung-Kim was a huge help immersing me in the pop culture of Korea. The articles, her videos, and our Tuesday night discussion group (I will miss that) really gave me great resources and information. 

I made assumptions before regarding Kpop stars that they were trying to anglicize themselves through plastic surgery, but I learned there is a history regarding the “pretty boy” look of Kpop male stars. The idea of the flower boy where a man is pretty in the face and strong in the body is most likely the look the Kpop stars are trying to achieve. I also assumed that Korean food was not a fusion of influences. I am not sure why I thought this. But I learned that Japanese influences due to the occupation also helped Korean chefs and cooks create their own style from their occupier’s influences. Also, during the Korean War, American soldiers introduced Spam and they absorbed Spam into their cooking. 

The most important thing I learned is to make learning fun for students, and we can with Korean pop culture. I can teach them while showing them fun Kpop videos and Korean films, and possibly even bring in Korean food. My asignment and Unit will be posted soon. I now know places in the area I can suggest to pick up Korean food! I feel by learning about a culture’s pop culture it empowers the learner to become more worldly and it creates an atmosphere to learn about another culture that is inviting. I truly believe that through shared fun aspects of culture, like pop culture we can unite cultures and create a better understanding and appreciation for the world and its cultures. 

Overall, I have learned a great deal about Korean Pop Culture during this seminar. I appreciated the ability to choose different articles to read next week based on interest and at times, I had time to read both. I always enjoyed the pre-recorded lectures. Having them pre-recorded increased accessibility, especially as the school year started. The lectures were engaging and informative, especially as a person who is relatively new to the study of Korean Pop Culture. Personally, I can’t wait to use the information and knowledge I gained during the seminar in my classes. Already, I have references multiple themes discussed in our seminar during a “Agency & Social Justice” class I teach. Namely, topics on Korean beauty standards and norms. As I described the article I had read about Gangnam style and the prevalence of cosmetic surgery within Korean Society, many of my students immediately chimed into the conversation to share their own observations and experiences within their cultures. It was empowering to experience my Asian students think critically about these standards. Additionally, something Professor Jung-Kim said stood out and it was, (rough paraphrase) “It is important to note that Western beauty standards aren’t what everyone else in the world compares themselves to” and it made me realize how American-centric that mentality is. As a class, we worked through that mentality and it was an incredibly interesting conversation with my students.  

For Ethnic Studies, I can’t wait to collaborate with my teaching-partner, Courtney Caldwell, who also attended this seminar. It was great being able to debrief with her and brainstorm ideas to include in our classes. Our course is a semester long, so adding new content can be challenging because it also requires removing something else. However, we have both committed to including more diverse perspectives into our course and Korean pop culture is the next perspective we will be working into our curriculum. I am looking forward to sharing the knowledge we acquired with our students. Especially with the increased popularity of K-Pop and Korean culture in general, I believe it will be incredibly engaging for students to learn more about!!

I really enjoyed this class because not only did I learn from Professor Jung-Kim, but I learned from my classmates as well.  Transnationalism was something new to me, and Daniel’s inside information about the music industry was also very enlightening.  I attended the class because I am interested in developing a writing class that incorporates Korean pop music and drama as content material.  I’m still in the talking stage but after this class, I feel like I have more scholarly materials to use. Also, by finishing this class, I can  show that Kpop, drama, and films are being studied in a scholarly way in universities and that teachers all over the US are interested in teaching the material. I would like to use the Kdramas and films to show not just the Korean culture but also how directors and writers are writing not just for the Korean audience but for the world.  Themes and issues that are being presented in the Kdramas and films are universal. In a way, some of the Kdramas are like visual novels. Because dramas can be 12 - 16 episodes, they are able to delve into a character’s motivations and background. When dramas employ the use of flashbacks, not only does the audience better understand the characters, but the way the director uses the flashbacks reveals narrating techniques. The structure of the dramas have changed where it is no longer a  linear narrative but directors and writers are using flashbacks as plot twists.  For example, the drama Kairos is a great example of how the writer and director uses flashbacks to reveal the truth after the character has been killed and then brought back to life.  I would love to use these dramas and films to teach about structure of the story, unreliable narrators, and various other literary techniques that are being used in an amazing way to tell a story.