This study intends to enhance the efficiency of the composition and conveyance of study-content by investigating how the attitudes change depending on the methodology of conveying study-content related to South-North unification or the North in elemen...
This study intends to enhance the efficiency of the composition and conveyance of study-content by investigating how the attitudes change depending on the methodology of conveying study-content related to South-North unification or the North in elementary school unification education.
To summarize the research results, the subjects were divided into positive message conveyed groups and negative message conveyed groups in the study; and as expected by this study's researcher, the results are statistically meaningful for negative study content and message towards North Korea as all groups changed their attitudes to the negative when negative attitudes towards North Korea were conveyed.
However, contrary to expectations, even if positive messages or study content of North Korea are communicated, their attitudes towards North Korea are changed more negatively than before the study content was presented.
The specific results of the research are shown as below:
First, after presenting negative messages towards unification or North Korea, it is statistically shown that the subjects' attitudes towards North Korea are changed in the negative direction in comparison to their before attitudes towards North Korea. However, if positive messages towards North Korea were presented, then this study's researcher expected their attitudes towards the North to be changed meaningfully to the positive direction but contrary to expectations, their attitudes towards North Korea changed to the negative direction.
Second, according to human statistical variables (gender, grades, parents' age groups, with or without any family member who is a refugee from North Korea since Korean War), it investigates the influence of study content conveyance method of North Korea to changes in their attitudes towards North Korea. Similar to the above study findings, negative attitudes towards negative attitude message conveyance are shown to be meaningful and even in cases of positive message conveyance, their attitudes change to the negative side. However, only those who have family members that are North Korean refugees change to negative in the case of negative message conveyance; in the case of positive message conveyance, their attitude changes are not statistically meaningful though, and this sets their attitudes apart from those that show meaningful changes to negative for those without any North Korean refugee as a family member.
The results of this study can be understood as follows:
First, according to the developmental stages of Piaget (1968), the elementary school students are specifically at an operative stage. In this development stage, the subjects are not able to have logical thoughts towards a special problem or subject, and have difficulties in understanding and/or operating abstract problems. Consequently, they cannot make proper judgment on an abstract concept like unification or ideology towards North Korea. Therefore, when their understanding of the concept of unification or North Korea is at an abstract level, the precision of their value judgment cannot but be at a low level.
Second, Statts & Statts study shows that the classic condition formation theory is to be operated in their preconception towards nations, races or groups. To interpret this research findings, elementary school students often hear negative evaluation on North Korea from their parents, and according to classic condition formation theory, this implies that they have already internalized negative attitudes towards North Korea through their parents. Consequently, the conveyance itself has the possibility of priming negative attitudes towards North Korea rather than through the study-content conveyance method.
Therefore, through this study, I believe that the desired educational effect of allowing positive messages to bring positive attitude changes can only be achieved by having an intended operator for such an educational effect. The unification education in elementary school carries an important meaning and thus it is necessary to take operative steps to make this students' key belief by having the positive messages be internalized to bring about positive attitude changes. For special methods and schemes to implement this change, further studies are required in the future, and they can be viewed as an important basis for strengthening unification education in elementary schools.
However, this study has the following restraints:
First, this study uses a unilateral effect verification, not a vertical one.
Second, even in verifying parent's different age groups, the cases for those over 50 are insufficient, and so were excluded from verification.
Third, the messages in the positive conveyance stated and presented to elementary school students can be questioned for their appropriateness.
Despite these limitations, this study can be viewed as a meaningful attempt in researching small methods and specific attempts to provide appropriate Unification education that is concrete.
In addition, it confirms the importance of composing the elementary education curriculum and educational materials by considering developmental stages and psychological researches in respect to unification education. In the future, the role of psychological approaches will be heightened as psychological unification is almost as important as that of physical unification. As this study gives an opportunity to open our eyes to the current unification education that is normally conducted, we need to prepare ourselves to contribute to unification education by activating various researches in respect to its psychological aspects.