탈북가정 유아의 남한사회 적응과정에 대한 현장연구: 탈북적응교육 훈련원(하나원)을 중심으로 = Field Studies on the Adaptation Processes for North Korean Refugee Children at an Educational Institute (Hanawon) in South Korea

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study describes North Korean refugee children`s initial processes of adaptation to South Korean society during their stay at an Educational Institute with their family. The participants were 27 children enrolled in Hana Dul School, a school especially founded in Hanawon for refugee children from North Korea, and their parents and teachers. Participatory observation of the children`s daily life in the classroom and in-depth interviews with their parents and teachers were conducted. The data from this study indicates that these refugee children from North Korea went through three different escape stages from North Korea which can be categorized as 1) the pre-departure period in North Korea, 2) the flight period in China, and 3) the claimant for South Korean refuge period. The study focuses on both the reality and the significance of their daily experiences in each stage. The refugee children in this study suffered psychological anxiety through malnutrition, separation from their family, and physical abuse in North Korea before their escape. They developed psychological mechanisms and skills for survival such as hiding their feelings and the ability to switch from one national and cultural identity to another when they were obliged to act as Koreans or Chinese depending upon the situation during their flight through China. Refugee children encounter a very different life when they reach Hana Dul School, their South Korean refuge, and there, their minds can begin to heal through the adaptation process at Hana Dul School. In a safe environment, they learn new skills that are in conflict with their old habits and thinking patterns. Their adaptation to the new patterns of thought is stimulated by the interaction of the teachers` careful intervention and support, their parents` efforts to change their child-rearing ways, and the children`s own instinctive resilience. The refugee children`s experiences in Hana Dul School is their initial adaptation process and provides the foundational link in their social adaptation to the larger South Korean society.