Exploring Photographic Writing about Korean Mothers’ Educational Strategies

Photography has been continuously attempted as a research tool in social science research. Photo-based qualitative research continues to this day while branching out into various methods such as the visual methodology (Rose, 2016), photovoice (Wang, 1999), and photo essay (Quinn et al., 2006). The purpose of this study is to present a case of reconstructing the research results presented in the existing text as photo-based qualitative research. The subject of the study is 'A Qualitative Case Study on the Educational Practice of Mothers for Their Children's Academic Success: Korean Bear Moms,' a study by Kyung-ri Kim, Young Chun Kim, and Jae-seong Jo (2022). The four significant subjects presented as the study's main results were converted into visual data, including photos, to reconstruct the existing results differently. The research methodology was participatory observation and in-depth interviews using photographs. The research participants were parents who actively supported their children's academic achievement. Data were analyzed using a comprehensive data analysis procedure among about 100 photos taken in 2022. One or two photos most suitable for the four areas of the research topic were presented. First, the participants turned their homes into places suitable for their children’s study. Second, parents become learning experts to teach their children effective learning methods. Third, parents make an intensive financial investment in children’s shadow education. Fourth, mothers use the coffee gathering to collect useful information for their children’s academic success. This study exemplifies how photography transcends the limits of text, delivering intuitive and implicit messages, including the symbolic expression of the inner feelings of the participants, which might not have been revealed in the written text.