In response to the population decline in rural, mountainous and fishing villages, the government has been promoting the policy of integrating and abolishing small schools and fostering appropriately sized schools since 1982. Accordingly, several citie...
In response to the population decline in rural, mountainous and fishing villages, the government has been promoting the policy of integrating and abolishing small schools and fostering appropriately sized schools since 1982. Accordingly, several cities and provinces across the country have enacted ordinances related to small schools and have been promoting small school-related policies considering regional characteristics.
The purpose of this study is to find out the keywords of small school research trends based on academic papers related to small schools, analyze the curriculum of various small schools in Gangwon-Province that are operating the ‘Make Small School Hope’ project, and conduct common and distinctive educational activities. to provide basic data for establishing support and revitalization plans for small schools. The research method was analyzed based on academic papers related to small schools after 2000, reports on the operation results of small school hope making by unit school from 2017 to 2021, and the operation plan for 2022, and elementary teachers working at small schools in P region, Gangwon-Province A survey was conducted on the subjects. For data analysis, text network analysis was performed using Netminer 4, and topic modeling and connection centrality analysis were performed for data processing. The results of the study can be summarized as follows. First, the keywords for research trends in theses related to small schools are ‘small schools and village educational communities’, ‘development and improvement direction of small school integration’, ‘joint education curriculum operation’, and ‘small school related policies’. was analyzed. Second, as a result of keyword analysis of the curriculum of small schools, the keyword with the highest connection centrality in 2017-2019 before COVID-19 and 2021-2022 after COVID-19 is ‘field experience learning’, and During the period, all keywords within the top 5 were ‘culture and art’. Other keywords that appear in common, such as ‘skiing’ and ‘surfing’, show that the local natural environment and the presence or absence of facilities have a great influence on the operation programs of small schools. On the other hand, in the survey, 88% of 25 teachers working in small schools in area P responded that they were highly satisfied with their work at small schools, felt a sense of worth and accomplishment, and hoped to continue working at small schools in the future. This is based on the reasons for satisfaction with the autonomy of class management, grade-centered educational activities, good relationship with students, and school atmosphere.
Based on these research results, it is required to link with the local curriculum that can continue the common and distinctive educational activities of small schools, and furthermore, it is proposed to build an integrated management network that connects small schools and regions.
Key words: small school, keyword analysis, text network analysis, topic modeling