Teaching Korea in U.S. Social Studies: Curricular Framing, Teacher Practice, and the Implementation Gap in AAPI Curriculum Reform

How is Korea represented in the social studies curriculum that prepares K–12 students in some of the most ethnically diverse states? This mixed-methods study examines Korea’s representation across three sites in the New York State social studies system: the K–12 Social Studies Framework, twelve adopted textbooks (grades 6–10), and the practice of 37 New York State public high school social studies teachers, with semi-structured interviews from a subset of 5. Drawing on critical textbook analysis and post-colonial framings, the study analyzes 182 Korea-related textbook entries (intercoder reliability κ = .83) alongside standards and teacher data. Findings show that Korea is included in the curriculum but in consistently instrumentalized ways: most frequently as a cultural intermediary between China and Japan (14.29%), followed by the Korean War (7.14%) and Japanese colonization (6.59%). This Korea-as-mediator pattern operates across all three sites. Survey and interview data reveal a previously unreported gap between what teachers currently teach about Korea—conflict-centered framings rooted in war and colonization—and what they want to teach: contemporary Korean culture and current political issues. Meaningful AAPI curriculum reform requires structural revisions to how non-Western actors are framed, not only additive content changes.