Outline

Overview

This unit aims to introduce some of the major issues in the history of Korea in the late 19th century and the last century. Topics include contradictions of the late Choson dynasty society; opening of Korea to the West and Japan and the attendant wave of reforms and rebellions; Japan's colonial rule; Korea's fight for freedom; liberation and division of Korea in 1945 and the subsequent process of nation-building in the two Koreas.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	12 credit points at 1000 level
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	ASNS2502
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Su-Kyoung Hwang, su-kyoung.hwang@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Presentation	Tutorial presentation Oral presentation during tutorial. 800 words.	10%	-	10 minutes (800 words)
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	final essay 2000-word research paper	40%	Formal exam period Due date: 22 Nov 2021 at 09:00	2000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Online task	Mid-term test Mid-term test in 800 words. In class; during lecture hours.	20%	Week 07 Due date: 21 Sep 2021 at 10:00 Closing date: 21 Sep 2021	1 hour (800 words)
Outcomes assessed:
Online task	End-term test End-term test in 800 words. In class; during lecture hours.	20%	Week 13 Due date: 09 Nov 2021 at 10:00 Closing date: 09 Nov 2021	1-hour (800 words)
Outcomes assessed:
Online task	Weekly quizzes and participation Online quizzes and in-class participation. 100 words.	10%	Weekly	100 words (cumulative)
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Empire and nation	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 02	Colonial state and society	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 03	The Pacific War	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 04	Politics of liberation and division	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 05	The Korean War	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 06	Industrialisation in South Korea	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 07	Democracy in South Korea Midterm test	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 08	Contemporary South Korea	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 09	Early history of North Korea	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 10	North Korea since 1953	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 11	Contemporary North Korea	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 12	Korean re-unification	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 13	(Special topic) Environmental issues in Korea End-term test	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: All lectures are recorded.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

SCHEDULE OF READINGS

Week 1: Empire and Nation

Kyung Moon Hwang, “Chapter 14: 1894, A Fateful Year,” “Chapter 15: The Great Korean Empire,” “Chapter 16: The Japanese Takeover, 1904-18,” A History of Korea (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017), 111-137.

Week 2: Colonial State and Society

Michael Robinson, “Chapter 2: Colonial State and Society” and “Chapter 3: Class and Nation in Colonial Korea: The 1920s,” Korea’s Twentieth-Century Odyssey (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2007), 36-75.

Week 3: Late Colonial Period and the Pacific War

Todd A. Henry, “Chapter 5, Imperial Subjectification: Collapsing Spaces of a Wartime City,” Assimilating Seoul (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2014), 168-203.

Week 4: Politics of Liberation and Division 

Bruce Cumings, “Chapter 4: The Passions, 1945-1948,” Korea’s Place in the Sun: A Modern History (New York: W. W. Norton, 2005), 185-237.

Week 5: The Korean War

Bruce Cumings, “Chapter 5: Collision, 1948-1953,” Korea’s Place in the Sun: A Modern History (New York: W. W. Norton, 2005), 237-298.

Week 6: Industrialization in South Korea 

Chung-in Moon and Byung-joon Jun, “Chapter 4, The Modernization Strategy: Ideas and Influences,” The Park Chung- Hee Era: The Transformation of South Korea, edited by Byung-Kook Kim and Ezra F. Vogel (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2011), 115-139.

(Film) A Single Spark, Dir. Park Kwang-su. DVD. Daewoo Cinema, 1996.

Week 7: Democracy in South Korea

Paul Y. Chang, “3. The Rise and Fall of the Student Movement,” Protest Dialectics: State Repression and South Korea’s Democracy Movement, 1970-1979 (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2015), 49-78.

Week 8: Contemporary South Korea

Jesook Song, “Introduction: The Emergence of the Neoliberal Welfare State in South Korea,” South Koreans in the Debt Crisis: The Creation of a Neoliberal Welfare Society (Durham: Duke University Press, 2009), 1-24.

Week 9: Early History of North Korea 

Suzy Kim, “3. Three Reforms: Initiating the Revolution,” Everyday Life in the North Korean Revolution, 1945-1950 (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2013), 71-104.

Week 10: North Korea since 1953

Andrei Lankov, “Chapter 1: The Society Kim Il Sung Built and How He Did It,” The Real North Korea (New York: Oxford University Press, 2013), 15-74.

Week 11: Contemporary North Korea

Hazel Smith, “9. Marketization from Below,” North Korea: Markets and Military Rule (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015), 211-234.

Week 12: Korean Unification

Hyun-ok Park, “6. Korean Unification as Capitalist Hegemony,” The Capitalist Unconscious: From Korean Unification to Transnational Korea (New York: Columbia University Press, 2015), 183-217.

Week 13: (Special topic) Environmental Issues in Korea

No reading assigned for week 13.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Acquire in-depth knowledge of modern Korean history and society.
LO2. Learn interdisciplinary approaches to Korean studies, combining history, politics, and sociology.
LO3. Conduct undergraduate level research and write academic essays.
LO4. Communicate effectively through discussions and by presenting on complex historical materials.
LO5. Think critically and analytically about different societies and historical pasts.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Changes have been made to assessments and requirements.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

ASNS2642: Modern Korea

Semester 2, 2021 [Normal day] - Remote

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect