[[8.2. Lowering elementary school entry age sparks debate]

[vJ든쌤v]

Education Minister Park Soon-ae briefs reporters at the presidential office in Seoul on Friday, after giving a policy briefing to President Yoon Suk-yeol. (Yonhap)

  A proposal to allow all children to enter elementary school one year earlier at 5 years old, starting as early as 2025, has been met with support and criticism from the education sector.

  On Friday, Education Minister Park Soon-ae directly reported the reform of the school system, which would require amending the country’s education law, to President Yoon Suk-yeol at the presidential office in Yongsan-gu, central Seoul. Yoon ordered Park to push for the reform “immediately,” according to his spokesperson Kang In-sun.

  The ministry said the lowering of the school starting age could go into effect in 2025 at the earliest if there is social consensus. If changed, it will be the first time the country amends its education law in 76 years since the law was created in 1949.

  Park noted that the ministry will consult school officials, education experts and parents before finalizing its plan.

  The government argues that it is significantly more effective to invest in early childhood education, the sooner the better.

  The lowering of school entry age would also allow the country to bring the children from families in need into the public education system earlier and provide public support in advance.

  Some experts said the school system change will be necessary in the future as it would allow them enter the job market sooner and help counter the decline in the country’s working-age population, caused by rapid aging and low birth rate.

  Woo Tong-ki, president of Daegu Catholic University, said students should not be kept in the public school system for too long in a rapidly changing world.

  Despite support from the government and some experts to change the public school system, many have also expressed concerns.

  Korean Federation of Teachers’ Associations said the reform will require a massive budget to allow public schools to handle the additional influx of students in 2025.

  The association noted that the students, who enter elementary school during the period when the new system is being introduced, will have to endure a more competitive environment when taking university entrance exams and entering the job market.

  The Justice Party said children that will be affected by the change in the education system are bound to be at a disadvantage. The party said parents will still be reluctant to have their children enter elementary schools a year ahead and have them compete with other children who are older.

  ”The country already allows students to enter elementary school a year earlier. But the number of children who entered elementary schools a year ahead last year dropped to 537, from 9,707 in 2009,” an official from the Justice Party said.

  A nongovernmental organization that has lobbied against private education also said the change in the public school system will increase competition among young students and could see parents start spending on private education earlier, and more than they would now.

  An association of private kindergartens too criticized the government’s plan as they would be hit hard financially if children enter public school at an earlier age. Children aged 5 currently account for 40-50 percent of all children going to local kindergartens, according to the association.

  An education policy research institution also hit out at the government’s plan, calling it “market and corporate-oriented.” The institution warned that changing the education system, without considering the impact on the stages of child development, could come with side effects.

  The ministry said the new system, if finalized, will take place over a period of four years due to limitations in the supply of teachers and school space.

  The 12-year school system, which includes six years in elementary school, three years each in middle school and high school, and four years in university -- will stay unchanged.

(ws@heraldcorp.com)

1. push for

1. (push for something) demand something persistently

the council continued to push for the better management of water resources 

2. amend GB [ əˈmɛnd ] Verb [with object]

1.make minor changes to (a text, piece of legislation, etc.) in order to make it fairer or more accurate, or to reflect changing circumstances

the rule was amended to apply only to non-members 

2. improve the texture or fertility of (soil)

amend your soil with peat moss or compost 

3. bound GB [ baʊnd ]

Verb

1. past and past participle of bind.

Adjective

1. [with infinitive] certain to be or to do or have something

there is bound to be a change of plan 

• a. obliged by law, circumstances, or duty to do something

  I'm bound to do what I can to help Sam 

• 2. [in combination] restricted or confined to a specified place

  his job kept him city-bound 

  • a. prevented from operating normally by the specified conditions

    blizzard-bound Boston 

• 3. [in combination] (of a book) having a specified binding

  fine leather-bound books

4. hit out

1. try to strike someone with one’s hand or an object

I swung round and hit out at him 

• a. criticize someone or something in forceful terms

  he hit out at the club's decision to place him on the transfer list 

[vJ든쌤v]

The Education Ministry drew up a proposal to lower the school entry age one year earlier, and the public opinions on this proposal are divided. Some support the government's plan on the grounds that children from families in need will be able to be taken care of by the public education sector in advance. They also noted that having children graduate one year earlier will efficiently help the nation cope with the rapid drop in the workforce population. On the other hand, objectors insist that students will have to endure heated competition

[vJ든쌤v]

for the entrance exam due to a surge in the total number of test takers and that the heated competition will lead to heavier reliance on private education from an earlier age than now. Further, they maintain that many of the children at the age of five are not fully developmentally ready to receive the elementary school education and that enforcing the earlier start will have reverse effect on the child development.

[그랑블루]

Starting public education system one year earlier the government's plan is face up with support and criticism. Although some experts advocate, others sill worry about the different sides of it :A massive budget for public school , competitive environment of students, the financial problem of kindergarten, and so on. It is hard for The education ministry to neglect these concerns.