Korea’s ‘Iron Rice Bowl’: The Rise (and Fall) of Civil Service and Teaching Careers
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When lifetime jobs vanished overnight, South Koreans chased a new dream: unbreakable security in public service.
Blog
This page gathers writing from an earlier season of my work, including posts on parenting, media literacy, communication, and cultural intelligence, along with some of my early Substack essays.
I’m glad these pieces still have a home here. But these days, I publish my current writing only on Substack, where I focus on Korea, its culture, society, history, politics, and everyday life.
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K-Parenting
Korea’s ‘Iron Rice Bowl’: The Rise (and Fall) of Civil Service and Teaching Careers
When lifetime jobs vanished overnight, South Koreans chased a new dream: unbreakable security in public service.
K-Parenting
The IMF Crisis and South Korea’s Hyper-Competitive Childhood
How Economic Trauma Turned Parental Love into Relentless Pressure
K-Parenting
Eleven Years of Grief: Remembering the Sewol Ferry Tragedy
Today marks the 11th anniversary of a disaster that claimed 304 lives—most of them schoolchildren—and forever changed South Korea. For those outside Korea, here’s why it still matters deeply.
K-Parenting
Shut Up and Do Math: Inside Korea’s Childhood Race to the Top
In Daechi-dong, Seoul’s most competitive education hub, children master middle school math before they’ve lost all their baby teeth—and English is done and dusted by age 12.
K-Parenting
Your Toddler Might Be Late—for College Prep in South Korea
Because in Korea, preschool kicks off the college plan—and kindergarten has entry requirements.
K-Parenting
The Royal Grind: How Joseon Dynasty Princes Studied (or Suffered?)
Before South Korea’s modern-day education craze, there was a centuries-old tradition of study… and survival.