By Han Sang-hee
The names of schools in which principals and teachers have been caught engaging in corrupt or illicit practices will be made public from March, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said Monday.
A list of such schools will be posted on the office’s website (www.sen.go.kr) as part of moves to root out corruption at schools.
It will also disclose the outcome of audits on schools and staff members. However, the disclosure of the names of teachers and other staff members will be withheld.
``Revealing the names of staff involved in misconduct will be difficult as it could conflict with related laws, but school names will be made public regardless of the severity of the offenses,’’ said Song Byung-choon, an inspector of the city education office. ``It will help root out illicit practices,’’ Song added.
The names of the people involved in cases of sexual assault and bribery, and their schools have not been revealed until now considering the damage it would have on the reputation of the institutes.
In addition, the office will also post the outcome of its audits on schools. It has already posted the result of its audits of 171 out of 340 high schools, which were conducted in November and December last year.
Song said the education office will launch comprehensive audits of 10 private schools from March which have failed to correct their misconduct or improve substandard practices even after the disclosure of information.