Dr. Myung-Jin Kim
Areas of Expertise
- Early Childhood Education
- Teacher Education
Biography
Dr. Myung-Jin Kim is an Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education in the College of Education at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She earned her Ph.D. in Teaching and Learning from The Ohio State University, specializing in early childhood and elementary education and dramatic and arts-based pedagogy. Her research and teaching are guided by two central questions: “How can we make teaching and learning more engaging and meaningful to students’ lives?” and “In a rapidly changing society, what skills will students need, and how can education help them develop these skills?”
Drawing on her experience as a PreK-3 classroom teacher in both formal and informal educational settings, Dr. Kim has conducted diverse research projects in P-5 classrooms across Ohio, New York, and South Korea. She has applied the American Dramatic & Inquiry-based approach to STEAM, literacy, and interdisciplinary teaching in multicultural and multilingual educational settings. Through this work, she supports pre-service and in-service early childhood and elementary teachers in engaging in reflective teacher inquiry focused on play-based and holistic education.
She also leads professional development workshops for in-service teachers, implements programs to support multicultural and bilingual families, and actively engages in practice-based research in collaboration with schools and communities. Her work emphasizes building learning communities, designing curricula that honor cultural and linguistic diversity, and connecting research with practice to drive educational innovation.
In recognition of her contributions, Dr. Kim has received the International Leadership Award from the Office of International Affairs at The Ohio State University, theOutstanding Student Leader of the Year award from the Equity, Diversity, and Global Engagement Office, and the Excellence in Outstanding Teaching award from the National Association of Korean Schools, Midwestern Chapter.
Education:
Ph.D., The Ohio State University
Teaching & Learning
Joined UNK Faculty: 2025
