Anxious parents are using bugs to eavesdrop on teachers

Reports of parents sending their children to day care or kindergarten with recording devices have sparked controversy online.

While the parents claim that they are “collecting evidence of possible abuse,” some teachers complain that the illegal practice is a sign of “unfounded distrust from the parents."

Searching for "day care recorder" on the internet turns up numerous small recording devices on sale that come in diverse forms, from necklaces to badges. Some are even called “secret recording device,” and look like ordinary animal keychains.

“After buying the voice recorder, I was able to figure out how my child’s teacher teaches and disciplines my child,” read a review written by a parent who purchased the device. Another review read, “I bought this to protect my child. The world is too dangerous and scary these days.”

Parents buying recording devices for their children appear motivated by news reports about teachers abusing their students. On May 16, nine teachers who were working at a daycare center for disabled children were taken in by the police for physically abusing their students.

Some teachers say that while parents' concerns are understandable, they are frustrated about how little trust exists between the parents and the teachers.

“I feel sad that whenever I or the other teachers see our students with a new keychain or a new accessory, we suspect that it might be a recording device. There’s a growing sense of mistrust between the parents and the teachers," a kindergarten teacher of eight years experience said, wishing to be identified only by the surname Yu.

Some parents also resort to recording devices as security cameras cannot record sounds.

"I've seen other moms buying recording devices for their children saying that verbal abuse is just as harmful as physical abuse for children," said Park, who has a 5-year-old child.

Another teacher who has taught at an English-speaking kindergarten said, "Recording our voices is different from sharing security footage since there is a difference in the matter of consent. The parents recording us without our consent is an abuse of our personal rights as a teacher and can act as an obstacle to us teaching."

It is a criminal offense for a third party to record a conversation without the consent of those involved. However, there have been cases where a recording of a conversation has been accepted as hard evidence during a court trial.

In 2019, Daegu District Court accepted a recording as evidence in a verbal abuse case toward a 10-month-old infant at a daycare center. The teacher was sentenced to a fine of up to 3 million won ($2,357).

"As a teacher who is also a mom, I understand that parents can feel curious about how their child is doing outside of their homes," said another teacher who's taught at a day care center. "Trust should be built between the parents and the teachers by inviting the parents to join the classes, or through more regular one-on-one meetings with the teachers and the parents."