Qualitative Research on Early Childhood Education in North Korea: Literature and Interviews with Defector Educators

This research delves into North Korean early childhood education through South Korean documents, North Korean publications, and interviews with three defected educators. Post-Kim Jong-un’s rise, the curriculum has evolved to focus on life themes and play, transitioning from nine subjects to five unified textbooks. Although overt political subjects about Kim Il-sung and Kim Jeong-il were discontinued, idolization of the Kim family remains, subtly integrated into the curriculum. Emphasizing science and mathematics, North Korea aims to develop its citizens into science and technology talents. Kindergarten teaching, requiring a three-year college education, is popular among women due to its lower stress and absence of after-school labor obligations. Idolization education is rigorously structured, requiring teachers to meticulously prepare standardized lessons on the Kim dynasty from early on. This method, however, presents a contradiction to the core principles of early childhood education by promoting fictional narratives, potentially infringing on children’s rights within a suppressive societal framework. This study aims to call for a shift in perceptions regarding unification and North Korean education in South Korea, the establishment of a unification curriculum, the improvement of support systems for North Korean defectors, and global academic attention to North Korea’s closed early childhood education and human rights issues.