Innovative Lesson Plan Design and Implementation for Primary Social Studies Based on “Narrative Inquiry”: The Case of the “Jangseo” Project in Traditional Korean Markets

Kim Ji-hye  [South Korean]

Abstract

This paper addresses persistent challenges in South Korean primary social studies education: students' lack of empathy towards historical and social phenomena, the disconnect between academic learning and community life experiences, and the superficial cultivation of core competencies in “social participation” and “humanistic literacy”. To this end, the study designed and implemented an innovative teaching project titled ‘Jangseo’. Derived from the ancient Korean term for lengthy scrolls documenting land and population records, this project guides pupils to create a multidimensional ‘narrative scroll’ for their community's traditional market. The lesson plan employs narrative inquiry as its theoretical framework, treating the market as a ‘field’ teeming with life stories. Through participatory observation, in-depth interviews, visual documentation, and spatial mapping, pupils systematically gather narratives concerning vendors, customers, goods, spaces, and transformations. Employing action research methodology, the programme was implemented over one semester (16 weeks) in a Year 5 primary school class. Results indicate this model significantly enhances pupils' historical awareness and social empathy, effectively develops skills in data collection, critical thinking, and narrative expression, while deepening their understanding of local cultural identity. This study provides an operational lesson plan model and practical reflections for implementing localised, immersive, and humanities-oriented inquiry-based learning in primary social studies.

Keywords: Narrative inquiry; Social studies; Innovative lesson plan; Localised learning; Korean traditional markets; Core competencies

Introduction

Research Background and Problem Statement

South Korean primary social studies education has undergone multiple curriculum reforms, with the 2015 revision particularly emphasising the cultivation of ‘core competencies’ to nurture future talents possessing democratic citizenship awareness, creative thinking, and cultural inclusivity. However, practical teaching—especially in upper primary social studies (particularly history and culture components)—still faces significant challenges. Firstly, teaching frequently devolves into rote memorisation of textbook historical facts and concepts, leaving pupils struggling to form emotional connections with past individuals and events, resulting in weak historical empathy. Secondly, learning content remains disconnected from pupils' lived experiences; “community” exists merely as an abstract concept within textbooks, leaving pupils lacking an understanding of its deeper cultural context. Finally, despite “social engagement” being a core competency, common “visit-report” style experiential activities often remain superficial. Students, as passive observers, fail to undertake deep, methodologically meaningful inquiry. Against this backdrop, designing a social studies lesson plan that aligns with national curriculum objectives, is rooted in students' lived experiences, and stimulates deep emotional engagement and active inquiry has become an urgent issue. This study posits that a key solution lies in identifying learning environments that organically integrate ‘people,’ ‘place,’ and ‘events.’ Korea's nationwide network of traditional markets (전통시장) serves as an ideal ‘living classroom.’ Beyond economic transactions, these spaces function as repositories of local history, human networks, culinary traditions, and cultural evolution – veritable repositories of cultural DNA.

Research Objectives and Significance

This study aims to develop and implement an innovative primary school social studies lesson plan—the ‘Jangseo Project’—guided by the methodology of ‘narrative inquiry’ and situated within local traditional markets. Specific objectives are as follows:

Design Objective: Construct a systematic, reusable lesson plan framework that translates narrative inquiry theory into concrete teaching phases, tasks, and scaffolding.

Practical Objective: Validate, through action research, the effectiveness of this curriculum in enhancing pupils' historical empathy, social cognition, inquiry skills, and community belonging.

Theoretical Objective: Provide concrete case supplementation and practical reflection for the application of Korea's ‘localised education’ and ‘narrative pedagogy’ within social studies.

The innovation of this research lies in: firstly, adapting narrative inquiry methods—primarily employed in academic research—through pedagogical transformation to suit the cognitive level of upper primary school pupils; secondly, creating the project's core metaphor ‘장서’ (Jangseo), imbued with local cultural significance, which materialises learning outcomes as a collection of multiple narratives; thirdly, emphasising ‘thick description’ and ‘empathy’ as key skills for social studies learning, transcending mere fact collection.

Theoretical Foundation: Narrative Inquiry and Localised Learning

1. The Educational Value of Narrative Inquiry

Narrative inquiry is not merely a research method but a mode of understanding human experience. Clandinin and Connelly contend that humans inherently organise and comprehend experience through stories. In education, narrative inquiry holds unique value: it focuses on the lived experience of individuals within specific contexts, respecting multiple perspectives; it views knowledge as a process constructed through relationships and over time; it encourages learners to become ‘meaning-makers’ of their own and others' stories. In social studies learning, introducing narrative inquiry means shifting the focus from ‘what happened’ to ‘how different people experienced and understood what happened,’ laying the foundation for cultivating empathy and critical perspectives.

2. Localised Learning and Social Studies

Localised learning emphasises using students' immediate local environment, culture, and history as the starting point and core resources for learning. It posits that deep learning occurs through engagement with complex real-world issues. While South Korean social studies curricula encourage ‘community inquiry’ activities, these often lack systematic methodological support. Integrating narrative inquiry with localised learning provides students with a set of ‘cognitive tools’ for engaging with and interpreting their communities. This transforms inquiry from mere “sightseeing” into genuine ‘fieldwork,’ and from ‘information gathering’ into ‘meaningful understanding.’

Innovative Lesson Plan Design for the ‘Jangseo’ Project

1. Overall Framework and Core Metaphor This project centres on the core task of ‘creating a 21st-century Jangseo for our community's traditional market.’ Historically, the Jangseo documented land, population, and produce as static administrative records; the students' Jangseo will instead capture the market's human connections, memories, and pulse, forming a dynamic, multi-voiced ‘living archive.’ The project spans the second term of Year 5, integrated with the Social Studies unit ‘Our History and Culture’ and ‘Creative Experience Activities’ time.

2. Learning Objectives

Knowledge and Understanding:

Understand the role and evolution of traditional markets in modern Korean community life; gain insight into the work and lives of market practitioners.

Process and Methodology: Master fundamental narrative inquiry techniques (observation, interviews, artefact analysis); learn multimodal recording and information organisation; develop the ability to distil themes and structure narratives from diverse story materials.

· Attitudes, Values and Emotions: Cultivate respect and empathy for community elders and ordinary labourers; strengthen identification with and pride in local culture; foster civic awareness focused on community development.

3. Teaching Phases and Activity Design (Four Phases, 16 Weeks)

Phase One: Resonance and Preparation (Weeks 1-3)

·Activity 1: Initial Market Impressions: Students conduct an initial, theme-free exploration of the market using ‘Five Senses Record Cards’, documenting sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and tactile impressions.

·Activity 2: Formulating the ‘Big Question’: Following initial impressions, the teacher guides students to pose a driving question: ‘Why has this market endured to the present day? What is its story?’

·Activity 3: Narrative Exploration ‘Toolkit’ Training: Students learn ‘story listening’ techniques, designing simplified interview outlines, photographic composition and ethics, and basic mapmaking.

·Activity 4: Forming the ‘Market Chronicle Editorial Committee’: Students join one of four groups based on interest: ‘Character Narratives’, ‘Spatial Mapping’, ‘Object Histories’, or ‘Market Transformation’.

Phase Two: Deep Dive and Data Collection (Weeks 4-10)

·Activity 1: Fieldwork Week: Groups utilise after-school hours, accompanied by parent or teacher volunteers, to conduct multiple in-depth explorations within the market.

Character Group: Interview 2-3 vendors (e.g., a grandmother running a kimchi business spanning three generations, a young stallholder transitioning to a coffee shop), documenting their entrepreneurial journeys, daily routines, and joys and sorrows.

Spatial Group: Map the market, annotating functional zones and distinctive shops, while documenting spatial atmosphere shifts across time periods (dawn, afternoon, dusk).

Object Group: Select representative goods (e.g., Korean dried fruit, dried fish, medicinal herbs), tracing their origins, production methods, and significance within Korean cuisine/culture.

Transformation Group: Collect historical photographs and interview longstanding customers to contrast the market's past and present, understanding its challenges amid competition from supermarkets and e-commerce.

·Activity 2: Field Notes Workshop: Held weekly on campus, groups organise materials, transcribe interview recordings, develop photographs with captions, create sketches, and share encountered difficulties and moving moments. Teachers guide students to extract ‘emotion’ and “meaning” from ‘facts’.

Phase Three: Weaving and Creation (Weeks 11-13)

·Activity 1: Theme Distillation: Groups categorise collected stories, distilling core themes such as ‘Perseverance’, ‘Human Touch’, and ‘The Agony of Innovation’.

·Activity 2: Crafting ‘장서’ Chapters: Working in groups, students present their “장서” chapters through diverse formats. Examples include: the creating ‘Sound Portraits’ audio programmes and interview anthologies; the developing interactive ‘3D Story Maps’; the producing ‘Merchandise Travel Diaries’ illustrated reports; and the designing ‘Then and Now’ sliding slideshows.

·Activity 3: Integration and Exhibition Setup: The entire class collaboratively plans the ‘Our Market Jangseo’ exhibition, organically arranging chapter works within the classroom or school gallery. They design visitor flow routes and explanatory captions.

Phase Four: Presentation and Reflection (Weeks 14-16)

·Activity 1: Exhibition Opening and Guided Tours: Invite market traders, interviewees, parents, students and staff from other year groups, and community representatives to visit the exhibition. Students act as tour guides, narrating the stories they uncovered.

·Activity 2: Community Dialogue Session: Organise a small-scale community dialogue where students present their findings to market traders and residents, proposing micro-suggestions such as ‘How to attract more young people to the market’.

·Activity 3: Personal Reflection Journal: Students compose a final reflective journal addressing: ‘How did my understanding of “community”, “history”, and “others” lives' change during the creation of Jangseo?’

·Activity 4: Project Evaluation: Employ a multi-faceted assessment comprising: formative evaluation (field notes, workshop participation); product assessment (chapters of Jangseo); summative evaluation (guided tour performance); and final reflective journal.

Teaching Practice, Data Analysis and Findings

1. Research Context and Methodology

This study was conducted within a Year 5 class (30 pupils) at a standard public primary school in Songpa District, Seoul. An action research approach was employed, primarily qualitative with supplementary quantitative methods. Data comprised: pupils' field notes, interview transcripts, final projects, reflective journals, teacher observation records, pre- and post-interviews with six focus pupils, and a brief pre-post questionnaire assessing ‘sense of community belonging’ and ‘interest in social studies’.

2. Research Findings

Deepening historical empathy: Pupils' understanding evolved from perceiving ‘markets as places to sell goods’ to recognising them as ‘places bearing the sweat, memories, and emotions of many people's lives.’ One pupil wrote in their journal: ‘I used to think history was just stories about kings and wars in textbooks, but now I realise that kimchi granny's thirty years of steadfast dedication is also our community's real history.’ This reflects a shift in perspective from grand narratives to micro-histories of lived experience.

Enhanced Inquiry Skills and Disciplinary Thinking:

Students learned how to initiate conversations politely and pose follow-up questions to uncover deeper stories. When mapping, the spatial group spontaneously began recording ‘footpath routes’ and ‘gathering points for conversation,’ demonstrating nascent spatial sociological thinking.

Development of multimodal narrative expression: Students moved beyond textual reports, striving to capture expressions through photography, preserve local dialects via audio recordings, and visualise relationships through mapping. They integrated multiple symbolic systems to construct and convey meaning.

Enhanced community identity and connection: Post-project surveys revealed significantly increased agreement among students with statements such as ‘I understand our community's stories’ and ‘I am willing to contribute to the community.’ Multiple vendors were moved to tears after viewing the exhibition, establishing genuine emotional bonds between students and the community.

Successful Transformation of the Teacher's Role: Educators transitioned from knowledge disseminators to designers of inquiry methods, coordinators of fieldwork, and facilitators of meaning-making. This demands heightened capabilities in curriculum development and interdisciplinary integration, while yielding greater professional fulfilment.

Discussion and Reflection

The Innovative Core of the ‘Jangseo’ Project

This lesson plan's innovation lies in its ‘trinity’ design: the localised adaptation of methodology (making narrative inquiry child-friendly and structured), the cultural specificity of the learning environment (the traditional market as a richly charged Korean space), and the profound metaphorical significance of the outcome (‘Jangseo’ bridges past and present, imbuing the project with a sense of cultural stewardship). . Together, these elements transform social studies learning into a profound journey of cultural immersion and identity formation.

Challenges and Responses in Practice

Challenges primarily arose in three areas: safety management (risks associated with off-campus fieldwork), time constraints (extended project duration requiring coordination with other subjects), and assessment difficulties (challenges in standardising narrative-based outcomes). Our countermeasures included: establishing detailed off-campus activity safety protocols and securing parental volunteer support; deeply integrating the project with social studies, Korean language, and art classes to optimise time utilisation; adopting a comprehensive assessment approach combining rubrics, portfolios, and reflection, with a focus on process-based growth.

Implications for Korean Social Studies Education

Firstly, it demonstrates that translating academic research methodologies into appropriate instructional design effectively cultivates higher-order thinking. Secondly, it highlights the central role of ‘emotion’ in social studies learning, where knowledge must resonate emotionally to be internalised as competence. Finally, it provides an operational model for ‘school-community’ collaborative education, where learning outcomes authentically benefit and serve the community, realising education's public value.

Conclusion

The “Jangseo” project represents a successful pedagogical practice deeply integrating narrative inquiry, localised learning, and Korea's indigenous cultural context. It demonstrates that social studies teaching can be liberated from textbook constraints, venturing into the “field” of lived experience. Through listening to, documenting, and weaving the stories of ordinary people, it cultivates students' profound historical empathy, robust investigative skills, and deep-rooted local identity. Such learning yields not merely knowledge about markets, but a ‘narrative wisdom’ for understanding society, connecting with others, and locating one's self. The lesson framework developed in this study may also inform social studies inquiry activities centred on other community spaces (such as villages, old towns, or factory ruins). Future research could further explore integrating digital narrative tools more effectively into the project and establishing more robust long-term school-community collaboration mechanisms.

References

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