School and sexual violence prevention application released

A smartphone application that allows users to report school and sexual violence against students, receive counseling information and provides tips against violence has been released by the Education Ministry, officials said Thursday.

The application, named “Goodbye school violence,” is available for free on iPhone and Android phones from Thursday.

It features five services: it sends a text message or makes a call to a nearby police station in case of emergencies; provides guidelines in case a student encounters school or sexual violence; offers a counseling service by transferring a call to a nearby counseling center; provides online advice for disabled students; and offers violence prevention information and contact information for the multi-counseling service called Wee center.

“We expect the application will be of great help to students, parents and teachers in the prevention of such violence as it features reporting, counseling, treatment and prevention in one program,” said officials.

The ministry also said the real-time information on school and sexual violence will make the application the most optimal prevention program for students and parents who have experienced difficulties accessing related information before.

It also plans to distribute leaflets on the application to students who don’t have smartphones.

By Lee Woo-young

(wylee@heraldcorp.com)