Teaching Beyond Politeness: Integrating Speech Style Shifts and Critical Pedagogy in Korean Honorifics Instruction

ABSTRACT

This study proposes a pedagogical model for teaching Korean (non)honorifics that moves beyond traditional politeness frameworks by emphasizing a range of sociopragmatic awareness, learner agency, and critical engagement with language use. Implemented in a beginner-level Korean course, a four-lesson instructional sequence incorporated authentic multimedia materials, collaborative analysis and discussions, and learner-generated dialogue tasks. The lessons were designed to help students interpret and produce speech style shifts across pragmatic functions, including expressing romantic intimacy, asserting authority or anger, conveying sarcasm, or pursuing self-benefit. Findings suggest that students developed a more nuanced understanding of the sociocultural and interactional meanings embedded in these shifts and reflected more critically on their own linguistic choices. The approach also created space for students to examine sociolinguistic inequalities, such as how L2 Korean speakers are variably positioned by L1 interlocutors. This study illustrates that even early-stage language learners can meaningfully engage with critical pedagogical goals and that Korean (non)honorifics instruction can serve as a site for fostering linguistic competence alongside ethical reflection and socially conscious communication.