Critical Issues of Historical Sociology of Education: Focusing on ‘Triadic Formation’ (Society-Human-Education)

In order to examine the characteristics of the historical sociology of education, this study discusses the significance and limitations of triadic formation (society-humanity-education). A deeper understanding of the historical sociology of education in the context of Korean education is equivalent to identifying the characteristics of Korean education. To this end, this study identifies the ideas underlying the formation of the historical sociology of education and the philosophical method of social science, and then identifies the distinguishing point raised by Kim Ki-Seok. In order to materialize the realism ap p roach, w e comp rehensiv ely reviewed the social science philosophical methods formed in the Anglo-American world, and based on this, we p resent the significance and limitations of the triadic formation. Limitations include, first, the unidirectional nature of the concept of time presented in the triadic formation. Second, the triadic formation presents the connections between each driver as causal, but this can be mistaken for causality based on methodological positivist correlation. Third, the triadic formation model has no place for theories that explain complex phenomena. Fourth, the triad does not guarantee the ontological independence of each driver. The significance of this study is that it reveals that these limitations operate as a framework that defines existing historical sociological research in education, which is characterized by answering how-questions rather than why-questions.