Lee Pledges Fight Against Hagwon
By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
President Lee Myung-bak told the Cabinet, Wednesday, to take steps to drastically reform public education in a bid to reduce the country's private tutoring burden.
At the meeting, Lee said, ``It is very important to eliminate private education, but now even my daughter does not trust the government's pledge to do so. The education ministry should speed up efforts to reduce private education costs, which are directly related to people's financial burden.''
``In the past, those in the lower-income bracket could get out of poverty if they studied hard. But with private education taking up more and more weight, people from poor backgrounds are suffering more,'' Lee said.
It is not the first time for the President to stress the importance of cutting private education costs. Last September, he ordered the ministry to develop measures against rising hagwon fees, and in February's radio address, he said the government goal is to see students enter college without private education.
According to the ministry and the National Statistical Office, the nation spent 20 trillion won on private education last year.
Lee is said to have re-ignited the issue because so far education policies have failed to produce results.
He had pledged to preside over a halving of the costs during his five-year term, but experts say his competition-oriented policies have led to an increase.
Some lawmakers from the governing Grand National Party (GNP) proposed measures including strict regulation on nighttime lectures at hagwon, but the proposal was dropped due to the education ministry and GNP leaders' opposition.
Following presidential instructions, the ministry said it would first ensure that anti-private education measures ― announced earlier this month ― were implemented fully: the banning of admission tests at elite high schools; the expansion of free English lessons; and regulations on hagwon fees.
GNP lawmakers are promoting their proposals again. ``We believe a fundamental change in high school and college admission systems is needed to cut private education costs. We'll also promote the banning of hagwon lectures after 10 p.m. for students' health,'' Rep. Chung Doo-un said.
President Lee also stressed the importance of reinvigorating public education in a meeting with top educators from 16 cities and provinces Wednesday. He urged colleges to select students according to their potential rather than their high school records.