Across the nation male teachers accounted for 24 percent of the total number of teachers at elementary schools, according to data submitted by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology to the National Assembly.
As of April the number of male teachers in elementary schools was 43,794 out of the total of 180,623 teachers nationwide.
By region, Seoul had the lowest percentage of male teachers at 15 percent, followed by 15.6 percent for Daejeon, 19 percent for Daegu and 19.6 percent for Busan.
“The influence of teachers is important especially for elementary school students,” said Kim Choon-jin, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party who released the report. “Although it would be wrong to artificially increase the number of male teachers, there is a need to find a long-term solution to this gender imbalance.”
South Jeolla Province had the highest percentage of male teachers in elementary schools with 40.4 percent.