Whose History? An Analysis of the Korean War in History Textbooks from the United States, South Korea, Japan, and China

TLDR

This article examines how recent history textbooks from the United States, Japan, China, and South Korea present the Korean War, aiming to give students a critical comparative approach that develops their critical‑thinking and reasoning skills. The comparative analysis focuses on four areas: the causes of the Korean War, American involvement, Chinese involvement, and the war’s results. Analysis of the central story lines reveals that while some consistent statements exist, inconsistencies and conflicting views dominate the textbooks in these countries. Authors are affiliated with universities in the United States and South Korea, and keywords include historical thinking, Korean War, and textbook analysis.

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines how recent history textbooks from the United States, Japan, China, and South Korea present the Korean War. The comparative analysis focuses on four areas: the causes of the Korean War, American involvement in the war, Chinese involvement in the war, and the results of the war. Analysis of the central story lines reveals that some consistent statements exist about certain events in the Korean War, but inconsistencies and conflicting views seem to dominate the history textbooks in these countries. The authors believe that comparing international history textbooks creates a good opportunity for students to see the complexity and controversy of history interpretation. Such a critical comparative approach helps students better understand how people in different countries perceive and interpret historical events. The authors argue that reviewing the similar and conflicting interpretations of the war gives students a unique opportunity to develop their critical-thinking ability and reasoning skills. Keywords: historical thinkingKorean Wartextbook analysis Acknowledgments LIN LIN is currently an Assistant Professor of Social Studies at the State University of New York, Cortland. YALI ZHAO is an Assistant Professor of Social Studies and Multicultural Education at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. MASATO OGAWA is an Assistant Professor of Secondary Education at Indiana University Kokomo. JOHN HOGE is an Associate Professor of Social Studies at the University of Georgia, in Athens, Georgia, BOK YOUNG KIM is Professor of education at the University of Incheon, Incheon, South Korea.