THE IDENTITY, SECOND LANGUAGE, AND THE CLASSROOM DYNAMIC: PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION IN A BEGINNING KOREAN AS A SECOND LANGUAGE CLASSROOM

The goal of this qualitative study was to explore the nexus between second language acquisition, identity, and the beginning second language classroom. Using a social constructionist framework, the study utilizes ethnographic methodology incorporating both narrative and autoethnographic elements. Specifically the author acted as a participant observer in a beginning Korean language class at an American university and enlisted seven classmates as co-participants. Through the author’s observations, participation, and interviews with the additional seven student participants, the role of identity is explored in the context of participant encounters with Korean as mediated by the classroom