This overview of Korean Americans and their culture is designed to help administrators, teachers, and other instructional personnel understand general factors about the presence of Korean Americans in the United States and their cultural backgrounds and attitudes toward education. An attempt is made to improve English language instruction by exploring similarities and differences between Korean and English. The five sections discuss (1) Korean history; (2) culture and the acculturation process; (3) education; (4) religion; and (5) the Korean language. Korean parents hold ambivalent and often inconsistent expectations about the cultural choices their children make in finding their places in American life. Biculturalism becomes a useful construct for realizing that children can develop new values and cultural orientations while still respecting the cultural traits of the Korean family and community. Appendixes contain a map of Korea, a timeline of Korean history, and some information on classroom behavior and relationships. (Contains 21 references.) (SLD)