Lee, Soo Jin2019-03-132019-03-132018-12https://hdl.handle.net/11299/202174University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. December 2018. Major: Music Education. Advisor: Keitha Hamann. 1 computer file (PDF); viii, 200 pages.The traditional method for learning gukak (Korean traditional music) was rote learning through enculturation. Music in traditional Korean society was usually learned holistically through participating in and observing musical practices in daily lives. As Korea has been modernized, gukak began to be included in formal education. However, gukak is often regarded as the music of the past, even though gukak itself has been constantly changing as a living tradition. Thus, there is a need to examine how to recontextualize gukak education in contemporary school settings. The purposes of this case study were to: (1) examine how gukak education is recontextualized in the formal education setting, which is far different from the original context in which gukak was taught, and (2) examine how teaching and learning gukak in this setting impact the reconstruction of Korean music in the lives of students. The findings indicated that the majority of students preferred the use of traditional pedagogical methods. They regarded the traditional way, in which they relied primarily on memorization, as either preferable or achievable. However, most teachers relied on supplemental materials, such as YouTube videos because of their lack of experience in gukak education. The most important finding was the shared agreement about the importance of gukak education ii among all participants. Whether they thought teaching and learning gukak was fun or not and challenging or not, participants all supported the gukak education program because it was to learn the music of Korea. However, the decision to discontinue the gukak education program the following year indicated that, while individuals who experienced challenges appeared to bear and manage the challenges, the major obstacle for operating the gukak education program was educational policy.eninstitutional music educationKorean traditional musicMusic educationrecontextualizationtraditional music learningtradition and changeThesis or Dissertation