Private education spending for kindergarteners surges 유치원사교육비 폭등

[김우정]

지난 5년간 유치원 사교육비가 38% 폭등했습니다.
주요원인은 국민들이 공교육을 믿지 못하기 때문입니다.
일부 학생들은 학교에서 잠을자며 학원공부를 준비합니다.
심각한 교육문제에 대한 해결책은 없을까요?
 
Private education spending for kindergarteners surges 38% in 5 years
유치원사교육비 5년사이에 38% 폭등

By Lee Yeon-woo 이연우 기자
Posted : 2023-09-17 15:55 Updated : 2023-09-17 17:00
Korea Times

Two children play at a kindergarten in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, in this Jan. 30 file photo. Yonhap 강원도 춘천에서 두 어린이가 놀이를 하고 있다. 1월30일 사진 연합

Distrust in government leads to rising private education costs in Korea
정부불신이 한국 사교육비 상승유발

Korean households with kindergarten-aged children have ramped up their spending on private education by more than 38 percent over the last five years, according to a report released on Sunday by the Korea Institute of Public Finance (KIPF).
한국 조세재정연구원(KIPF)dl  보고서에 따르면, 유치원생 자녀를 둔 한국의 가정은 지난 5년간 사교육비 지출을 38퍼센트 이상 늘었다고 한다.

The report, penned by Kim Hye-ja, a researcher from the Korean Educational Development Institute, revealed that spending on private education rose consistently from 2018 to 2022, except in 2020 when the impact of COVID-19 was most severe.
김혜자 한국교육개발원 연구위원이 집필한 이 보고서는 코로나19 영향이 가장 극심했던 2020년을 제외하고 2018년부터 2022년까지 사교육비 지출이 꾸준히 증가했다고 밝혔다.

On average, monthly spending on private education per child amounted to 420,000 won ($315) for elementary students, 545,000 won for middle schoolers and 684,000 won for those in high school.
평균적으로, 한 아이당 사교육비는 초등학생 42만원 (315달러), 중학생 54만5천원, 고등학생 68만4천원에 달했다.

Among all the education levels, kindergarten witnessed the most significant surge in expenditures. The monthly spending jumped from 162,000 won in 2018 to 224,000 in 2022, marking a 38.3 percent increase.
모든 교육 수준 중에서 지출이 가장 크게 증가한 곳은 유치원으로, 2018년 16만 2천 원이었던 지출은 2022년 22만 4천 원으로 38.3% 증가했다.

Parents of kindergarteners often think that if this period is missed, there may not be another chance to nurture a child's artistic talents, especially since academic focus intensifies by middle school. Some also suggest that such education provided in formal settings, like elementary schools, might not fully meet their expectations.
유치원생 학부모들은 특히 중학교때 학업에 집중하기 때문에 이 시기를 놓치면 아이의 예술적 재능을 키울 기회가 또 없을 수도 있다고 생각하는 경우가 많은데, 초등학교처럼 형식적인 환경에서 제공되는 교육이 기대에 충분히 미치지 못할 수도 있다는 의견도 있다.

"I'm concerned that I might be neglecting my 5-year-old child (by not engaging them in any structured learning). Many mothers I know are enrolling their children in English-specialized kindergartens or introducing them to painting or ballet," a mother posted on an online parental community with over 2 million members.
"(아이들을 체계적인 학습에 참여시키지 않음으로써) 내가 5살짜리 아이를 방치하는 것은 아닌지 걱정된다. 내가 아는 많은 엄마들이 아이들을 영어 전문 유치원에 등록시키거나 그림이나 발레를 소개하고 있다."라고 200만 명이 넘는 회원을 가진 온라인 부모 커뮤니티에 글을 올렸다.

"I've also come across criticisms of mothers who send their kindergarteners to 'hagwon' for seemingly trivial pursuits. But isn't it a mother's role to expose her children to various stimuli while they're young and receptive? I'd appreciate your advice."
"사소한 것처럼 보이는 공부 때문에 유치원생을 '학원'에 보내는 엄마들에 대한 비판도 접했는데, 아이들이 어리고 수용적인 상태에서 다양한 자극에 노출시키는 것이 엄마의 역할 아닌가요? 조언해주시면 감사하겠습니다."

The responses for her posting varied, but a common thread emerged: "If it's financially feasible, why not?"
그녀의 글에 대한 반응은 다양했지만, "만약 그것이 재정적으로 가능하다면, 왜 안될까요?"라는 공통된 실마리가 나타났다.

Children listen to their teacher at a kindergarten in Seoul in this April 6 file photo. Korea Times file 이 4월 6일자 자료사진에서 서울의 한 유치원에서 아이들이 선생님의 말씀을 듣고 있다. 코리아타임즈 자료사진

In a separate study by the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education, 40 percent of the parents who put their kindergarteners through private education feel financially strained by the cost. Yet, when asked why they still choose private education, 35 percent admitted fearing their children would fall behind their peers, and 30 percent expressed a desire to nurture their children's inherent talents.
한국 육아교육연구원의 별개의 연구에서, 유치원생들을 사교육에 빠뜨리는 부모들의 40퍼센트는 비용 때문에 경제적으로 부담을 느끼고 있다. 그러나, 왜 아직도 사교육을 선택하냐는 질문에, 35퍼센트는 아이들이 또래 아이들보다 뒤쳐질까 봐 두려워한다고 인정했고, 30퍼센트는 아이들의 내재된 재능을 키우고 싶다는 바람을 나타냈다.

Kim also noted that the trend was intensified by public distrust of government policy.
김 위원은 또 정부 정책에 대한 국민들의 불신 때문에 이 같은 추세가 심화됐다고 지적했다.

"Growing mistrust in politicians, public officials and media professionals appears to be linked to increased investments in private education," Kim said.
"정치인, 공무원, 언론인에 대한 불신이 커지는 것은 사교육에 대한 투자 증가와 관련이 있는 것으로 보입니다."라고 김위원은 말했다.

#Privateeducationspending(사교육비) #Kindergarteners(유치원생) #Surges(폭등) #Distrustingovernment(정부불신) #Expenditures(지출) #Artistictalents(예술적재능) #Structuredlearning(체계적인학습) #English-specializedkindergartens(영어전문유치원) #Hagwon(학원) #Financiallyfeasible(재정적으로가능하다면)