2016 Volume 84 Pages 49-60
Mutual understanding is the exchange of views between oneself and others based on communication. In terms of that, communication that encourages mutual understanding of the neighboring countries is important in international education. However, thus far, there has been no real communication in international education between South Korea and Japan. Some former researches utilized another’s view to facilitate mutual understanding. But the understanding was based on inner dialogue and there was no process to deliver one’s opinions to others; so, real communication does not happened.
This research proposes a situation in which “authentic communication” can be realized and tries to prove its effect through action research. For that, the project “Making a Better Textbook” with South Korean and Japanese Students was practiced using a 6th grade Japanese social studies textbook that explains South Korea as the medium for communication. South Korean students were encouraged to talk to Japanese students based on the following 4 steps: Know the textbook’s contents, Recognize another’s view (Japanese textbook view), Analyze/Criticize this view, and Suggest a new textbook for Japanese students. Japanese students were also encouraged to express their opinions about the suggested textbook to make it better based on the same 4 steps to the South Korean students. Finally the South Korean students re-suggested their opinions to make the textbook better to the Japanese students.
After the lessons, students from both the countries thought of each other not as a subject of understanding but as the subject for communication and the misunderstanding that existed between them were reduced. Students were more open to each other and this strengthened the possibilities for a better relationship between the two countries. This research not only showed the possibilities for “communicationbased” international education, but also implied the following: (1) a new value for the use of textbooks and (2) an international education based on “communication between oneself and others (our communication)” instead of the communication between one country and other countries (nations’ communication).
