The purpose of this study is to analyze discursive techniques and characteristics of the
professionalism discourse in the neo-liberal teacher policy discourse of the Lee
Myung-Bak government. This article has two research questions: What are discursive
strategies to legitimate the neo-liberal teacher professionalism project and what is the
specific nature of the discourse of teacher professionalism. In order to analyze research
problem, research method use a critical discourse analysis. Result results of this study
are as follow. Firstly, the legitimacy discourse of the teacher professionalism project of
the Lee government is organized by the discourses of teaching expertise. The discourses
of teaching expertise are based on the learner-centered discourse of market ideology and
the anti-leftist ideology. Secondly, the neo-liberal professionalism discourses are related a
competitive compensation and evaluation policy, flexibility and openness of teaching
profession and market ideology in education, but are contrasting to the discourses of
teachers' professional knowledge, autonomous status and judgments. Especially, the
professionalism discourses of teachers as civil servants are defined by the needs of the
state, and are operated under the state control and surveillance.