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| Parents of children with disabilities are on their knees, pleading with residents of Gangseo-gu for the establishment of a new special needs school there, Sept. 5. The video clip of the scene went viral, sparking a national debate. / Courtesy of Korean Parents' Network for People with Disabilities |
A major breakthrough for disabled students in Korea
By You Soo-sun
Education Minister Kim Sang-kon vowed to build 18 new special needs schools in the country over the next five years, Tuesday.
The plan is a major breakthrough for disabled children and their parents, who have long requested more of these schools as regular schools have failed to meet their needs.
The move appears to have gained momentum after a video clip went viral last week showing parents kneeling in front of residents of Gangseo-gu in western Seoul, begging for consent to build a special needs school there.
It was the second public hearing over the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) plan to build the school on land previously occupied by Kongjin Elementary School.
The residents of the district have fiercely opposed it, arguing instead for a traditional medicine hospital as proposed by Rep. Kim Sung-tae of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP).
"Within one to two seconds after one parent got on her knees, all other parents got out of their chairs and knelt," Lee Eun-ja, vice chief of Korean Parents' Network for the People with Disabilities for the district, told The Korea Times. "I was stunned by the scene, but more so when some of the residents swore at the parents, accusing us of putting on a show."
However after the video clip went viral, over 80,000 people signed a petition in support of the school. And on Tuesday, the minister vowed to build 18 more special needs schools, including ones that have faced similar problems in the process such as residents' opposition and finding a good location.
"We are very grateful to the ministry for taking active steps," Lee said, adding she met with Minister Kim on Wednesday, where he and other national assembly members on the education committee promised to take more active interest in the matter.
The reason many parents opt for special education schools here is because of the lack of adequate support in regular schools. "In regular schools, the students ― including my kid in the past ― would just sit for hours without adequate support, just trying to get through the classes," Lee said, also emphasizing the need for more special needs teachers in regular schools.
But there are only 29 of these schools in Seoul and 170 nationwide, which accommodate less than 30 percent of the nation's 87,950 disabled students. Parents often wait years to place their children in one. When they do, many spend hours commuting to attend one.
Yet still, until the regular schools provide the necessary environment ― which Lee thinks unlikely in the foreseeable future ― many believe setting up more special needs school remains a better bid.
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