Kirogi omma and Korean overseas students in Melbourne

Kirogi omma and Korean overseas students in Melbourne¹

Alison Tokita. Monash University

The phenomenon of 'goose daddies' (kirogi appa) has received a lot of attention in Korean and international media. These are the fathers in families, where the mother takes the school age children to study abroad leaving the father in Korea to work and provide financial support. This paper focusses on the experiences of mothers of such families {kirogi omma) who have brought their children to Melbourne for study. Using interview data from mothers and community leaders, supplemented by participant observation in Korean churches, this paper seeks to establish the motivations of Korean mothers who come to Australia for extended periods with primary and secondary level children; to canvass the difficulties they experience, and what kinds of support do they have access to. It asks how Korean mothers evaluate their experience as guardians accompanying their children studying abroad in Australia, and how this might influence the future flow of students to Australia from Korea, and future educational exchange between the two countries.

The paper will argue that this type of study abroad is more likely to be positively evaluated when adequate social networks and support services are available to mothers and children. The Korean churches in Melbourne are significant providers of such services, and support mothers and students by providing networks and information to help them deal with all aspects of study and life in Australia. They are filling a gap which the government should address by reducing restrictions on study and work in the guardian visa, and providing better support services for children in schools.

AIMS OF THE RESEARCH

This paper is part of a team research project titled Australia as a preferred destination of Korean overseas students: how can we pave the way (team members are Gil-Soo Han and Younga Cho; the project is funded by the Monash Institute for the Study of Global

¹ This paper was presented to the 16th Biennial Conference of the Asian Studies Association of Australia in Wollongong 26 June - 29 June 2006. It has been peer-reviewed and appears on the Conference Proceedings website by permission of the author(s) who retain(s) copyright. The paper may be downloaded for fair use under the Copyright Act (1954), its later amendments and other relevant legislation.

Movements). This part of the project aimed to investigate the experience of Korean international students in Australian schools (pre-tertiary), and to evaluate the level of satisfaction with this experience, and to enquire how this might affect the future flow of Korean international students to Australia. It is based on two assumptions^ that it is in Australia's imterest to increase the flow of such students; and that a positive experience of current students will encourage an increase in future numbers. A subsidiary aim was to compare the results with the case of Japanese international students in secondary schools in Melbourne.

BACKGROUND OF THE PHENOMENON

The existence of large and growing numbers of Korean international students in Australian schools is tied to the phenomenon of divided families (for whom the term kirogi families has been coined) for the sake of the international education of their children. This phenomenon is also called by the more neutral term chogi yuhak -study abroad at an early age. The kirogi family, or wild goose family, is one whose father lives and works in Korea, and sends money for the children's education and living expenses, while the mother takes the children to an English-speaking country for their education (Choi 2005).

The phenomenon of kirogi omma grows out of the widespread and feverish pursuit of English as an emblematic skill for a globalizing South Korea. The families belong to the new wealthy middle classes of the consumer society (Kang 2003), for whom education is seen as the principal tool for social mobility. These mothers are mostly tertiary educated, often with professional occupations, and they have high aspirations for their children's education, whether in Korea or through study abroad in a global context.

According to the comments obtained from Korean church leaders and Sunday School teachers, to say that they are wealthy is not necessarily accurate. Many are not so well-off that they can easily afford this kind of life overseas. They may struggle financially because of the high costs (similar to families who send their children to private schools in Australia), which are incurred not only through the exorbitant school fees for international students but also because of the frequent travel back and forth by family members, although the interval at which a father visits varies a lot from family to family. Mothers take children back to Korea over the long summer vacation, where they put them into a cram school to bone up on mathematics and Korean language.

Up till three years ago, families could send children alone to stay with relatives or with a foster family. Australian government law now forbids this and created the guardian visa for an accompanying adult. This law requires that the mother accompany the children, whereas before it could be a guardian, even though it is still called a guardian visa.

Another factor is Korean media reporting about the negative effects of this type of early study abroad, leading to general social disapproval. Korean families have responded by choosing the temporary separation of husband and wife for the sake of giving their children an advantage in the English language stakes.

Families stay between one and six years, most commonly for two years. Usually children come from Year 4 (although younger siblings may accompany them), and most children are in Years 5 and 6. There are some cases where the children alternate, and take turns being with mum in Melbourne or in Korea with dad.

The overwhelming reason given by our informants (church leaders and Sunday School teachers) was that this sacrifice was made for the sake of the children acquiring English language proficiency. The teachers and leaders interviewed also believe that families (especially mothers) are responding to peer group pressure, in the context of the highly competitive educational environment in Korea, even if they cannot really afford it.

The Korean government is trying to keep Koreans at home by increasing opportunities for acquiring English. For example, there is a policy to have one native English teacher in every middle school.

There are a number of "English Villages" which provide an immersion experience in the school holidays, as well as the large number of privately run cram schools and kindergartens.

COMPARISONS WITH JAPAN

One of my interests in this research is to compare it with the Japanese case of unaccompanied Years 10 to 12 students, and to consider in general the ethical dimension of the international student industry, especially the English language

industry, in Australia.

First of all, it is not common for Japanese mothers to accompany their children. Secondly, students do not come before Year 10. The motivation for coming would seem to be less idealistic and less educationally motivated. The student is likely to have had some trouble already, whether academic, or behavioural (yakkai barai).

However, some cases of educational motivation have been noted, when a family separation strategy is adopted in order to qualify for the returnee children (kikoku shijo) quota at a prestigious university.

Another significant category is the students who study abroad with their family because the father is posted overseas for business, or as diplomats. Some of these children stay behind after the family returns to Japan and finish at least secondary education in Australia.

METHODOLOGY

Surveys were administered in both Korean and English followed by semi-structured interviews (singly or in focus group format) lasting between one and two hours. One on one interviews were carried out of 29 tertiary students and recent graduates by a Korean research assistant, who was himself a former international student, now graduated. For this component of the study, focus groups of parents (mainly mothers) of school age children and church leaders were formed. They were contacted through two Korean churches in Melbourne. The discussion was carried out in a combination of Korean and English by myself and a Korean research assistant between October 2005 and February 2006. She was herself a former international student in New Zealand, an active member of the Korean church, and an expectant mother. It was decided to interview parents and church leaders rather than students themselves, partly because of the difficulty of obtaining ethics clearances for subjects under 18 years of age, and also because many of the students were too young to interview satisfactoriy.

In addition, I carried out participant observation at three Korean churches in Melbourne between October 2005 and February 2006.

This paper concerns only the second component of the project.

The focus group participants were: 5 mothers - primary 2 mothers - secondary 4 mothers - secondary

-- mothers, one father - mixed levels

-- tertiary students
1 mother - primary

-- primary level Sunday school teachers

10 secondary level Sunday school teachers

5 church youth leaders / pastors (in 3 separate interviews)

Reflecting on the focus group methodology, the advantages were that it takes attention away from the non-Korean interviewer, and effectively draws out shared personal experiences, in an atmosphere that becomes increasingly personal and sometimes emotional (some participants becoming excited or angry at times). Its disadvantages are that when studying the data afterwards, it was hard to distinguish individual voices, and to reconstruct a precise narrative for each individual. There is also a danger of generating a common, mutually reinforcing narrative stereotype among members of the group. The data is not yet fully analyzed. It is clear that because of wide variation of individual experiences, more in-depth one-on-one follow-up interviews would be desirable.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The research questions of this component of the research:

-- What motivates Korean mothers to come to Australia for extended periods with
primary and secondary level children?

-- What difficulties do they experience, and what kinds of support do they have access
to?

-- How do Korean mothers evaluate their experience as guardians accompanying
their children studying abroad in Australia, and how does this influence the future
flow of students to Australia from Korea, and future educational exchange between
the two countries?

-- Do Korean students and their families believe that they get their money's worth by
studying in Australia, or are the hidden costs actually too high?

-- What social networks do Korean mothers of students utilize and create in

Melbourne? How is the creation of social networks facilitated by the long-term immigrant Korean community, particularly the Korean churches?

In concrete terms, the questions in the survey and the focus group discussions focussed on five areas:

Motivation: what motivates mothers to come with their children, and to separate

from their husband albeit temporarily for the sake of the children's education

Difficulties and complaints

Support available

Evaluation of experience: how much disillusionment and unmet expectations, did

they get their money's worth

Influence on future flow of students from Korea to Australia: would you recommend

this to other friends

PRELIMINARY RESULTS MOTIVATION

When asked why they chose to leave Korea and split up the family for the sake of study abroad, the unanimous first answer was that it was in order to have their child learn and become competent in English at an early age, and so to give them an advantage in Korea's competitive education stakes, and in the global environment. Furthermore, it was expensive to educate a child in Korea. By paying just a bit more, it was possible to have a more effective immersion experience overseas.

The reasons why Australia was selected over such countries as the US, Canada, New Zealand and Denmark included that it was relatively cheap (international students' school fees, while expensive, were relatively cheap compared with the US), it was safe, had beautiful nature, and a comfortable climate. Canada was too cold, and had too many Koreans. Related comments were that there were fewer Koreans in Melbourne than Sydney, and fewer in Australia as a whole than in the US and Canada. People were kinder and gentler than in the US and Canada, and British English was spoken (disillusionment set in later however). Many people mentioned that Australia had been recommended by an agent (this suggests that the AEI was doing a good job educating agents), or by a friend or relative. All said it was easier to obtain a visa for Australia, and that it was subsequently easier to get Permanent Residence here.

There was some ambivalence about the quality of the Australian education system.

Australia was well behind Korea in maths and science. Positive points were that overall the system was better than Korea: for example, students were able to specialize in an area of interest (e.g. design). It was more relaxed and more creative. Children and parents did not have to be so anxious about falling behind as in Korea. Melbourne was called by two parents a "city of education", and one said that there were more prestigious universities in Australia than in Canada.

Some families had had previous experience living overseas. One family had lived in England and in Pallau before, and their children had spent most of their lives outside Korea. These children, it was reported, had found it hard to adapt to school life when the family returned to Korea. Another family had previously lived in New Zealand, but because the father (now a golf instructor) had studied in Australia, they came on a business visa. A pastor related that it was easier to get PR after acquiring education in Australia, especially if the area of study is hotel management or hairdressing, both of which give the applicant extra points.

Many of these claims seem to be justifying the choice which was made to bring children to Australia for education.

Study abroad as a path to immigration had been achieved by acquaintances. One father interviewed, already an immigrant, had been in the IT industry in Korea, but now worked as a gardener: this was a case where the whole family came together for the sake of the children's education, and with probably immigration in mind. Others indicated their children would choose study pathways towards vocational TAFE courses which would facilitate getting PR.

DIFFICULTIES AND COMPLAINTS

I will report on the complaints which were articulated by the participants, supported by

the observations made by church leaders and Sunday School teachers, and then make

some inferences about the difficulties encountered. The complaints made by parents

focussed strongly on the children's perspective rather than on their own personal

difficulties.

Overwhelmingly the main difficulty mentioned by parents was inadequate communication skills in English and in cross-cultural communication. This also affected their sense of social integration.

Many commented that their children had experienced some kind of discrimination. This was mainly from school mates, but sometimes it was mentioned as being from a teacher: for example, their child was not given as much attention as other children, or it took longer to receive feedback on school work. However, no bullying was reported.

Another complaint was the restrictions of the guardian visa. This type of visa is unique to Australia, and was one of the reasons given by some for choosing Australia. However, it does not allow mothers to either work or to engage in formal study. It does not allow them to leave the country without their children even for a short time. Furthermore, they are not allowed to remain in Australia after the child turns 18, even though because of being held back the child may not yet have finished secondary school at that age. They can (officially) study English at a Community Centre for up to three months, but cannot engage in any other activities. As a result, there is the strong probability that they will become bored, depressed or frustrated as they are unable to participate fully in Australian society. They are not allowed to change the children's school for the first year, even if the child faces lots of difficulties. One mother regretted not having chosen a private school over a public school, but was not able to change. It was reported that in Canada, on the other hand, one can hold a visa which allows both study and work. There too, if one of the parents is a full-time student, all other family members are exempted from tuition fees. Recently, some changes have been made to these stringent conditions in Australian visas. Some participants show a trend to get a business visa, which allows them to work, while their children study.

The next common complaint was the expensive school fees for international students. They felt that it was all right to pay high fees (which were much cheaper than in the US), but they feel the need for transparency: they would like to know where the money goes. They do not see the resulting value for money, in terms of support services: "it is too expensive compared with what we get". A constant query was why they had to pay more on top of the school fees for excursions and other activities. Perhaps the greatest injustice felt was the fact that as international students, their children were not entitled to have a student concession card for public transport and other purposes.

Many felt that there was not enough accurate advance information about the education system in Australia. This was attributed to the fault of agents in Korea (for example,

the mother who would have chosen a private school if she had had more information). In Australia too, there was not enough clear advice about enrolment procedures and options, such as what year level the child should enter at. Conflicting advice was received from different sections and offices, giving the impression of inefficiency.

Most mothers agreed that it was hard to live apart from their husband. Such problems however were not elaborated on, and the issue was generally deflected to being an issue for the child. Boys especially miss their father, it was stated.

The impact on Korean divided families has been analyzed by Choi Yang-Sook (2005) in a study of kirogi fathers. She identifies four types of reaction to the divided family experience due to study abroad: those who are satisfied; men who temporarily enjoy bachelor life; those who "put up with it"; and those who experience family breakdown. It should be noted that the Korean media has reported extreme cases where fathers suffer from depression, which occasionally results in suicide.

The mothers interviewed seemed on the whole to cope well with their situation, though complaining about the restrictions it entailed. There must be risks for mental health resulting from loneliness, depression, boredom and frustration. Their lack of sociocultural expertise results in lack of social integration. These women are surely at some degree of risk. Only one of my participants indicated that this might be a serious problem for her, but they were keen to raise this as a potential hazard for other women in their situation, if adequate countermeasures were not taken. They told of some extreme cases where mothers decided to go home and take the children. It seems that they try hard to keep busy, by doing sporting activity, or learning a hobby or skill, and interacting with Korean friends. One interesting suggestion from a mother was that even if they were not able to earn money, the Korean community could assist by providing opportunities for voluntary work, or to learn some useful skill, or take part in sporting activities with the resident Korean community. For most participants, the wish was to change the conditions of the guardian visa, to allow them to study formally or to take on paid work, since the income would be of significant help in many cases.

SCHOOL PROBLEMS

Many issues were raised regarding the study-related problems their children experienced at school. First of all, it was felt that the school work was not challenging enough. Some children were placed into a lower level than when in Korea because of

inadequate English competency, but this meant that maths was far too easy because of the disparity between Australian and Korean maths levels. While some were grateful for the ESL classes, others felt that the ESL class was only "playing games", and should be optional. If compulsory, it should be conducted outside school hours, not taking away from precious time in the normal classroom.

On the other hand, group work projects were hard to negotiate. The Korean child tended to be placed in a low-performing group, and "always got a low mark". The other students did not communicate or inform about the progress of the task, and there was not a good group integration.

The mothers felt that another student should be designated to help newcomers, but instead they are left to fend for themselves. Other children are not made to feel responsibility for the settling in of a new Korean student.

Not all schools even have an International Student Coordinator (again, "Where is the money being used?"). Such a position was mostly found in private schools. Teachers were not always supportive enough. A complaint was that teachers tended to only give positive comments on a child's work, even when the child was really struggling with the work.

There was no clear curriculum or text book, from which the mother could gauge what the child was studying, in order to help, encourage and supplement their progress at home.

The school administration was inefficient, frustrating and not supportive enough of the needs of newly-arrived Korean children.

SUPPORT AVAILABLE

Because of the recruiting method used for this component of the study, nearly all the mothers interviewed went to a Korean ethnic church, even if they had not been Christian beforehand. In fact, it is estimated that 70% of all Koreans in Australia go to church (Han 2004; 2005). This compares with about 40% church adherence in South Korea itself. Clearly the churches are important sources of information for newcomers in the area of finding accommodation and discussing about school and other problems. They are also a place for Korean language maintenance for children

(bilingual Korean and English classes were offered in one church), and for the mothers free English language classes were provided during the week.

Other sources of help and information mentioned included an agent, relatives and friends, community newspapers, food and video shops, Community Centre language classes (although the level was felt to be too basic for their needs; some therefore went to the more expensive TAFE classes), sporting and other clubs, and, at school, the class teacher, the ESL teacher and the International Student Coordinator. Interestingly, the Korean Society of Melbourne was not a network which seemed to be relevant to these women, presumably because it offers help only to longterm settlers.

EVALUATION OF EXPERIENCE

Despite all the complaints, the evaluation of the study abroad experience was positive overall. This positive evaluation may stem from the need to justify the choice one has made, while the long list of heartfelt complaints may have emerged because of being glad of the opportunity to have complaints heard, both by peers and by a re searcher-academic of the host society. All said "The kids always want to stay", although there were a couple of exceptions among siblings. The mothers claimed to be happy with the quality of the education system, and that they were happy to sacrifice their own convenience, comfort and financial security for the sake of their children's future.

Separately from what mothers and leaders actually said in the interviews and discussions, it was obvious that through this experience of managing without husbands in a foreign society, these mothers are acquiring independence, confidence and strength. They do not focus on their own needs, but always bring the discussion back to focus on their children. However, in the process of overseeing their children's education, they themselves are learning English and a vast array of intercultural knowledge and skills which cannot be overlooked in evaluating the whole experience. This hypothesis needs to be tested through further in-depth interviews.

INFLUENCE ON THE FUTURE FLOW OF STUDENTS

In conclusion, in order to attempt to address the major research question of the project on the basis of the data gathered and discussed above, we can suggest that change in the following factors would make a more productive and positively evaluated study abroad experience, instead of leaving the bulk of responsibility for support to the

Korean churches.

-- At the official level, modifications to the stringent requirements of the guardian
visa would enable accompanying mothers to personally gain more personally from
the experience of living abroad with their children. Better access to information
about the nature of the Australian education system and their options within it
would save a lot of frustration and annoyance. On the cost side, more
transparency on how the expensive international fees are spent and the perception
of better value for money would raise the reputation of the Australian study
experience.

-- In schools, more effort should be taken to provide more effective pastoral care, and
not to prioritize the profit motive. It is equally important that the mothers (and
children) perceive that a genuine concern for their wellbeing is more important
than profit. There should be a dedicated International Student Coordinator
position at all schools who take in overseas students. There should be training in
cultural awareness for all teachers in such schools, and also some such training
included in the school curriculum. The suitability of the English language services
should be assessed for the case of each group of children, not just one size fits all.
The school should ensure that effective communication with mothers takes place, so
that their voices can be heard, and so that they feel their children are getting a
quality education.

Ultimately, the market for international education depends on the quality of the educational outcomes for students, and to ensure the future of this source of students quality needs to be maintained and improved, and services tailored to the needs of various groups of students. The Korean students come from a society which highly values education, especially an English-language education. As highly motivated and diligent students they have a lot to contribute to the Australian system, and if the experience is positive they will retain a positive attitude to Australia in later life, or they may eventually become good Australian citizens.

List of references

Choi Yang-Sook 2005 Chogi yuhak, kazok; keurigo kireogi appa (Early study abroad, families and goose fathers), KSI (Hanguk Haksul Cheongbo), Paju-shi, South Korea

Han, Gil-Soo 2004 'Expansion and schism of Korean churches in Australia', in Thirty years of Korean ministry in Australia, ed. By M.D. Yang, United Theological College,

Sydney.

Han, Gil-Soo 2005 'Korean Christianity in multicultural Australia: is it dialogical or segregating Koreans? (Lecture given at Japanese Studies Centre, March 14)

Kang, MyungKoo 2003 'Kankoku no asshuku kindaika (Korea's compressed modernization)', in Ajia shinseiki (Asia's new century), Iwanami Shoten, Tokyo, vol. 5 Shijo (Market), edited by T. Aoki et al., pages 161-173

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Kirogi omma and Korean overseas students in Melbourne