The purpose of this study is to explore which factors played important
roles in foreign language high school policy change of 2009. Kingdon's policy
stream model as an analytical framework is extended to the policy change
process that includes policy decision-making and policy implementation. The
findings are as follow: First, the focusing event was a major factor to
couple problem stream, policy stream, and political stream. For instance, the
disclosure of high school rankings in the college scholastic ability test was
critical. Second, the political stream was also important factor for the
coupling, in that Lee Myung-Bak government should consider the change of
public opinion for preparing incoming elections. Third, policy entrepreneurs
played central roles in inducing policy agenda-setting through enforcing the
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology(MEST)to place the foreign
high school issue as a government agenda. On the other hand, policy
decision-making mainly came from meetings among the executive branch,
the ruling party, and the presidential staffs. Lastly, the MEST could not play
an initiative role in the entire policy process, although it was officially
responsible agency for the foreign language high school policy in the
government.