By Kim Bo-eun
The government's plan to introduce its state-authored history textbook at schools has virtually collapsed, with only three schools applying for the pilot program, Wednesday. The education ministry plans to provide the textbooks to other schools to use if they want to.
According to the regional education offices, only three schools based in the traditionally conservative North Gyeongsang Province applied on the last day ― Munmyeong High School in Gyeongsan, Osang High School in Gumi and Gyeongbuk Aviation High School in Yeongju. This is only 0.06 percent of the 5,249 middle and high schools nationwide.
Even when narrowing down the schools to only those that have put history in first-year courses, the three schools only account for 0.19 percent.
No middle schools applied for the pilot program. Only 21 schools put history in the spring semester curriculum for first-year students, and all of the schools opted for textbooks of private publishers.
The education ministry had expected around 20 percent of schools to take part in the pilot program.
However, the ministry said earlier it would push forward with the pilot program "even if only one school applies."
However, a group against the state-authored history book plan criticized the government for refusing to give up.
"The education ministry must accept the demands of teachers, parents and students and halt its plan," the group said in a statement, Thursday.
The group is comprised of three opposition parties, 485 civic groups and 13 liberal regional education superintendents.
The nation's largest teachers' union said the Gyeongsangbuk-do Office of Education had ignored the guideline which states the schools can only apply with at least 80 percent support from teachers, in an apparent bid for more applications. The union said this makes the three schools' applications invalid.
Even the schools that applied made the decision amid opposition.
Parents and Gyeongsan residents gathered in front of Munmyeong High School to protest the decision, Thursday.
The provincial education office will review the schools' applications and decide whether they will be part of the ministry's pilot program by today.
The government had initially decided in 2015 to introduce a single state-authored history textbook at middle and high schools starting this year. However, the plan met with strong opposition from liberal historians, civic groups and regional education offices, who claim the book glorifies the achievements of former President Park Chung-hee, the father of President Park Geun-hye.
Continued resistance led the education ministry to recently alter its plan, to allow both state-authored and private publishers' textbooks at schools in 2018, after the state-authored textbook is voluntarily employed at schools in a pilot program this year.
The government's plan to introduce its state-authored history textbook at schools has virtually collapsed, with only three schools applying for the pilot program, Wednesday. The education ministry plans to provide the textbooks to other schools to use if they want to.
According to the regional education offices, only three schools based in the traditionally conservative North Gyeongsang Province applied on the last day ― Munmyeong High School in Gyeongsan, Osang High School in Gumi and Gyeongbuk Aviation High School in Yeongju. This is only 0.06 percent of the 5,249 middle and high schools nationwide.
Even when narrowing down the schools to only those that have put history in first-year courses, the three schools only account for 0.19 percent.
No middle schools applied for the pilot program. Only 21 schools put history in the spring semester curriculum for first-year students, and all of the schools opted for textbooks of private publishers.
The education ministry had expected around 20 percent of schools to take part in the pilot program.
However, the ministry said earlier it would push forward with the pilot program "even if only one school applies."
However, a group against the state-authored history book plan criticized the government for refusing to give up.
"The education ministry must accept the demands of teachers, parents and students and halt its plan," the group said in a statement, Thursday.
The group is comprised of three opposition parties, 485 civic groups and 13 liberal regional education superintendents.
The nation's largest teachers' union said the Gyeongsangbuk-do Office of Education had ignored the guideline which states the schools can only apply with at least 80 percent support from teachers, in an apparent bid for more applications. The union said this makes the three schools' applications invalid.
Even the schools that applied made the decision amid opposition.
Parents and Gyeongsan residents gathered in front of Munmyeong High School to protest the decision, Thursday.
The provincial education office will review the schools' applications and decide whether they will be part of the ministry's pilot program by today.
The government had initially decided in 2015 to introduce a single state-authored history textbook at middle and high schools starting this year. However, the plan met with strong opposition from liberal historians, civic groups and regional education offices, who claim the book glorifies the achievements of former President Park Chung-hee, the father of President Park Geun-hye.
Continued resistance led the education ministry to recently alter its plan, to allow both state-authored and private publishers' textbooks at schools in 2018, after the state-authored textbook is voluntarily employed at schools in a pilot program this year.
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