With the education minister offering her resignation, the controversial plan to lower the school entry age to 5 could be shelved, nearly 10 days after it was first introduced. The Education Ministry on Tuesday apologized for a lack of communication concerning the previous report to the president, which proposed the system reform, saying it caused confusion.　 “It has become realistically difficult to push for the lowering of school entry age,” Vice Education Minister Jang Sang-yoon

Education Ministry in a quandary over school entry age plan

With the Education Ministry flip-flopping on its plan to scrap “elite high schools,” foreign language high schools have been once again pushed to the brink of abolition. Confusion has ensued over the fate of elite schools every time the government changed hands. The previous Moon Jae-in administration had planned to end autonomous private high schools, foreign language high schools and international schools, abolishing them or turning them into regular schools by March 2025, over

The Ministry of Education proposed a reform of the school system to send children to elementary school 1 year earlier. The Education Ministry got the green light to work on a reform of the current school system that would lower the age of entry to elementary school by one year on Friday afternoon. Education Minister Park Soon-ae directly briefed President Yoon Suk-yeol on the ministry’s agenda at the presidential office in Yongsan-gu, central Seoul, to which Yoon ordered Park to push fo

A school field trip to Jeju Island resulted in a mass infection of COVID-19 for a high school based in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. A total of 159 high school students and faculty members tested positive for COVID-19 as of Thursday. According to the North Jeolla Province Education Office, some 440 high school students and 20 faculty members went to Jeju Island from July 12 to 15. Though this trip is usually only taken by first graders, this year, second graders joined in as they could n

The government will lift restrictions on universities to train 150,000 people with expertise in the semiconductor industry over the course of 10 years, the Ministry of Education’s road map showed Tuesday. The announcement comes less than a month after President Yoon Suk-yeol called for special measures to boost the semiconductor industry, including training the next generation of talent. The local chip industry has repeatedly pointed out shortage of manpower to be a problem as many expe

The Education Ministry said it will tighten access to campuses at night and increase the number of closed-circuit TVs at Inha University in Incheon in response to the recent death of a student. “We are deeply sorry about the death of a student at Inha University, which happened on Friday,” the Education Ministry issued an official statement Monday. “We will do our best to ensure the safety of the university campus.” The ministry proposed increasing the number of close

With Korea’s consumer prices jumping at an unprecedented rate, the Seoul Education Office is planning to raise an extra budget for school meals. All kindergarteners and elementary, middle and high school students are subject to free school lunch in the city of Seoul. The city launched its free lunch program for students in 2011 and has since expanded it. However, with hiking consumer prices, the Seoul Education Office is planning to raise an extra budget to continue its support for f

Regional education office chiefs met with the Education Minister on Monday, calling for a task force to work out measures related to the government’s education budget reallocation plan. After the authorities have decided to reallocate part of budget earmarked for early childhood, elementary and secondary education for higher and lifelong education -- mainly to invest in training for semiconductor experts -- chiefs of education offices across the nation expressed disapproval. “The

Some 3.6 trillion won ($2.8 billion) earmarked in the Education Ministry budget for early childhood, elementary and secondary education will be reallocated for higher and lifelong education, such as nurturing semiconductor talent, the ministry said Thursday. The revamped education subsidy plans were put forward “in consideration of the changing education environment,” the ministry said in a statement. The extra budget will be used to strengthen research and training at universiti

Soongsil University is starting an employment support program for its students and young locals with a goal to help them start their careers in industries of their choice upon graduation. The university announced Thursday a program dubbed “Job Go,” running from July 18 to Aug. 5 will be available for current and former Soongsil University students as well as any young local job seeker. It will be available to 60 students on a first-come, first-served basis. The program includes thr

Lack of education prevents kids from smooth transition to adulthood

Sejong University was recognized for its research ability, taking the top place among local general universities in the Leiden Ranking for five consecutive years. The Leiden Ranking, provided by Leiden University in the Netherlands, ranks universities worldwide by number of academic publications, evaluating the volume and citation impact of the publications. While Sejong University was the No. 1 among local general universities on the list, it came in second among all local universities in

Named International School of the Year 2021 by ISC Research, Branksome Hall Asia is Jeju’s only all International Baccalaureate (IB) school offering full IB education to students of 3-19 years old. With the mission of inspiring students to love learning and shape a better world, the school fosters future leaders with remarkable problem-solving skills. The school consistently produces IB scorers who make the top 1 percent globally, with 100 percent of graduates having passed both the IB D

SPEP, a global education firm, offers customized training and human resource management consultations that help clients strengthen their global capabilities. The company offers tailored training solutions that go beyond language training, ranging from communications skills and business etiquette to education that helps clients develop an understanding of foreign cultures. The solutions are developed at SPEP’s R&D Center, which is the focal point of SPEP’s global education kno