Exploratory Research on Achievement and Limitations of Arts and Culture Education Policy: Focusing on In-Depth Interviews with Stakeholders and Experts

Korea's arts and culture education policy is widely acknowledged as having been swiftly established and effectively implemented within a relatively short timeframe. However, Korea's government is now facing a challenge to update its current policy, which has been in place for over 20 years, to meet today's needs. Consequently, the government is encountering difficulties in this transition process. Amid criticism regarding the confusion in policy concepts and concerns over the limitations of policy target settings, this study gathered diverse opinions from stakeholders and academic experts within the arts and culture education sector. The insights provided by these experts, who not only analyzed key policy achievements and goals but also proposed policy revisions, can be summarized into four main points. First, although the current arts and culture education policy has successfully raised awareness about the importance of such education by implementing policy strategies such as improving creativity, developing community spirit, and fostering social healing, it has inadvertently encouraged the instrumentalization of such education and failed to consider the various aspects of this education. Second, while the current policy has played a huge role in shifting the focus from the artist-centered to the public-centered approach in the arts and culture policy, significant challenges still remain in transitioning from a target group policy to a nationwide policy. Third, although the current policy has effectively served as a job creation strategy for arts majors, whether the jobs created align with the intended purpose and meet expected standards needs to be critically evaluated. Finally, since the inception of the current policy, the Korean government has emphasized the significance of policy implementation mechanisms between central and local governments and kept developing them. Nonetheless, the roles of each government entity and the level of cooperation between them need to be reassessed. This study holds significance in its exploration through the analysis of experts' perception of the achievements and limitations of Korea' current arts and culture education policy. Furthermore, the study also advocates for continued follow-up research to further investigate and suggest various policy alternatives discovered in the analysis process.