• Authors: Sungsang Yoo, Yonghan Bang, Kyunghee Park, Gayoung Kim
• Publication Date: December / 2024
• Publisher: Kyoyook Books

About the Book

The core focus of this book is to analyze education in developing countries from the perspective of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), using case studies from ten countries in Asia. This approach does not assume a commonality among these countries based on their geographical, cultural, or social characteristics, nor does it aim to identify overarching patterns in how education is practiced and implemented within the region.

In particular, the concept of education in this book is treated as a concrete reality within a given society, rather than as an intrinsic value or practice aimed at pursuing an idealized philosophical or ideological framework. Discussing abstract values related to education and development in ten developing countries—each classified based on economic growth—poses clear analytical challenges.

However, in the final chapter, which extends beyond the specific target metrics set by the SDGs, we will explore education as a value-driven, socially and culturally embedded practice that contributes to the identity of a community. This discussion will also consider shared educational policies aimed at realizing this broader, value-oriented perspective on education.

About the Authors

Sungsang Yoo

Professor in the Department of Education and the Graduate School’s Global Education Cooperation program at Seoul National University. His primary research focuses on educational development cooperation with developing countries. He has been involved in development cooperation projects in Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Latin America. His published works include Education and International Development Cooperation and International Education Development Cooperation: Theory and Issues, along with numerous translated works on education.

Yonghan Bang

Professor at the Office of International Affairs, Konyang University. His research focuses on the internationalization of higher education and international development cooperation in education, particularly in higher education, TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training), and education policy. He has participated in numerous educational development cooperation projects funded by organizations such as the Ministry of Education, KOICA, UNESCO, the World Bank, and UNICEF. His primary research and project focus is on Southeast Asia, particularly Cambodia. He is also the lead professor for the K-MOOC bundle course Roadmap to International Development Cooperation (RIDC) and Global Education Cooperation Development (GECD), managing K-MOOC lectures in this field.

Kyunghee Park

Professor in the Department of Education at Woosuk University. Her research interests include lifelong education and global citizenship education. She actively participates in regional higher and lifelong education initiatives. Her key publications include Relationship between educational mismatches and job satisfaction: Evidence from Korean young employees’ lifelong learning and University faculty’s informal learning and professional reflections, among many others.

Gayoung Kim

Senior Researcher at the Learning Sciences Research Institute at Seoul National University. Her research focuses on education and development within the field of international education development cooperation, exploring educational possibilities in various regions and spaces, as well as the expansion of education through technology and media. She actively participates in diverse educational development cooperation projects in Southeast Asia and Africa. Her research and practical work emphasize integrating ICT into education in developing countries and exploring the potential of non-formal education for inclusive education.