Investments in Education
With considerable US financial and technical assistance, Korean education system underwent significant transformation in form and substance.23 An estimated US $100 million alone went into education and training during post-Korean War reconstruction period. The foreign assistance in education was administered by the Armed Forces Aid to Korea (AFAK) and UNKRA during the early years of post-war reconstruction. It was then transferred to the ICA.24 The goals of the assistance efforts in Korean education after 1953 centered on: classroom construction, secondary and vocational education, teacher training, and higher education. There was also a good deal of technical assistance carried in the military.
[Table 1-1] ICA Aid By Commodity: 1955-59
| 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | Total | |
| 2) Non-project Assistance | ||||||
| Agricultural products | 28,443 | 37,740 | 73,758 | 41,736 | 32,426 | 214,110 |
| Wheat (raw) | 22,039 | 16,396 | 26,425 | 3,0815 | 23,369 | 119,044 |
| Wheat flour | 3,982 | 9,012 | 22,809 | 3,945 | 7,205 | 46,953 |
| Energies | 10,471 | 23,473 | 24,000 | 35,395 | 20,625 | 113,964 |
| Petroleum, gasoline | 7,215 | 20,162 | 20,357 | 24,667 | 19,379 | 91,780 |
| Bituminous coal | 3,211 | 3,025 | 2,900 | 10,569 | 1,070 | 20,775 |
| Raw material/semi- finished |
54,937 | 107,171 | 105,638 | 97,960 | 88,895 | 485,119 |
| Fertilizer | 40,792 | 55,686 | 56,556 | 47,652 | 45,617 | 246,303 |
| Rubber | 1,000 | 5,884 | 3,658 | 3,774 | 5,509 | 19,825 |
| Rayon yarn | 1,449 | 14,228 | 12,715 | 10,144 | 9,723 | 48,259 |
| Medical supplies | 1,185 | 4,019 | 4,541 | 3,761 | 3,503 | 17,009 |
| Paper | 329 | 6,836 | 5,012 | 7,096 | 1,553 | 20,826 |
| Raw material for sales | 14,504 | 17,208 | 27,142 | 26,648 | 22,740 | 108,302 |
| Wood/timber | 3,208 | 2,505 | 4,359 | 4,044 | 5,093 | 19,209 |
| Cement | 1,755 | 2,112 | 2,396 | 1,039 | - | 7,302 |
| Sub-total | 108,355 (53%) | 185,659 (65%) | 230,538 (71%) | 201,739 (76%) | 164,686 (79%) | 890,977 (70%) |
| Total | 205,815 (100%) | 271,049 (100%) | 323,267 (100%) | 265,629 (100%) | 208,297 (100%) | 1,274,057 (100%) |
Source: Lee (2002)
The physical presence of the US and its geopolitical motives in the region had a unique and profound impact on Korean education. As Mason et al. (1980) write: “Schools under the US Military Government (1945-48) also had clearly defined political and economic purposes: to convert Korean youth and adults to the American conception of democracy and to provide basic skill training.” To spread American ideals and values, US assistance in cooperation and support of Korean educators sought to significantly increase access to education to all Koreans. Korea would eventually achieve universal primary education in late 1950s while making all primary schools coeducational. By 1948, 15 million textbooks were printed and distributed. The Korean language of Hangeul was formally reintroduced in the curriculum, and any elements of Japanese tradition in education were discarded. The Korean curriculum underwent significant change with the incorporation of scientific methods in education that put emphasis on “problem solving” and “learning-by-doing” (Mason et al. 1980, p344).
[Table 1-2] Number of Classrooms and School Age Population in 1950
| Province | Classroom | Eligible Population | ||||
| Primary | Secondary | Total | Primary | Secondary | Total | |
| Seoul | 1,911 | 1,515 | 3,426 | 95,030 | 88,164 | 183,194 |
| Kyonggi | 4,549 | 478 | 5,027 | 467,097 | 392,783 | 859,880 |
| Chungchong Puk Do | 2,322 | 433 | 2,755 | 188,577 | 161,561 | 350,138 |
| Chungchong Nam Do | 3,493 | 221 | 3,714 | 368,046 | 274,990 | 643,036 |
| Cholla Puk Do | 3,438 | 399 | 3,937 | 625,711 | 436,373 | 1,062,084 |
| Cholla Nam Do | 5,182 | 191 | 5,373 | 548,938 | 474,597 | 1,023,535 |
| Kyongsang Puk Do | 5,228 | 787 | 6,015 | 354,634 | 290,309 | 644,943 |
| Kyong Sang Nam Do | 5,477 | 807 | 63,384 | 488,959 | 358,098 | 847,057 |
| Kangwon Do | 2,249 | 371 | 2,520 | 156,505 | 122,530 | 279,035 |
| Jeju Do | 445 | 39 | 484 | 43,518 | 45,672 | 89,190 |
| Universities & Colleges | NA | NA | 2,943 | NA | NA | 24,921 |
| Total | 34,294 | 5,241 | 42,478 | 3,337,015 | 2,645,077 | 6,007,013 |
Source: UNESCO in Dodge (1971) “US Assistance to Korean Education, a History of a Decade of US Foreign Aid.”
Source: Kim, Jun-Kyung and Kim, KS. 2012. Impact of foreign aid on Korea's development. Seoul: KDI School of Public Policy and Management.
