A Qualitative Comparative Study on How Multiculturalism Is Embraced in Primary School Settings in New Zealand and Korea through Teachers’ Experiences

New Zealand (NZ) and South Korea (Korea) have undergone different historical trajectories in the courses of nation building, which are reflected in their education goals. NZ has focused on incorporating Māori and Pasifika elements within largely European based curriculum to allow for a harmonious national identity that underscores diversity as a strength. Meanwhile, Korea has only in the last few decades put concrete efforts to shed the monoethnic cultural ideology in the schools. This qualitative study looks into how multiculturalism is perceived and acted upon by teachers in NZ and Korea respectively. The results suggest that there are marked differences on how the concept of multiculturalism is embodied in everyday teaching situations. In the NZ case, the concept was a natural extension of cultural processes, allowing the teacher to exercise autonomy in designing and carrying out relevant activities. Therefore, ‘multiculturalism’ was not an operational key term used as a daily vernacular. In contrast, teachers in Korea tended to rely on formulaic methods to incorporate multiculturalism in their pedagogical practices, which largely stems from top-down, state-led policies.