Bo-eun leads the digital content team. She has covered foreign affairs, North Korea, tech, economy and gender issues at The Korea Times. She did a short stint at the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, where she obtained a new perspective on news production and life. Small sources of joy for her are lounging in the sun, having a good latte and swimming.
2 in 5 in teens ready to go to jail for W1bil.
By Kim Bo-eun
Forty-four percent of high school students said in a survey they were willing to break the law and serve a one-year jail sentence, if it could net them 1 billion won.
The survey also found that 28 percent of middle school students responded the same way, followed by 12 percent of elementary school children.
“The subject of ethics taught at schools has merely become a tool for students to achieve scores on a test,” said Ahn Jong-bae, a professor at Hansei University, about the low sense of morality of young students.
The survey was conducted by the NGO Heungsadahn Transparency Movement on 6,000 elementary, middle and high school students living in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province from Dec. 7 to Dec. 10 last year.
It was comprised of 25 statements which asked about choices they would make in situations that could compromise their integrity.
When asked about whether they often copy work from the Internet, 47 percent of elementary school, 68 percent of middle school and 73 percent of high school students said “yes.”
There were also statements that reflected a lack of a sense of morality in addressing family members. When asked about whether they lie to their parents about their grades, 5 percent, 24 percent and 35 percent of elementary, middle and high school students responded they do so.
Based on the responses by the students, an honesty quotient was calculated. The scores were 85, 75 and 67 for the respective grades. This indicates that the sense of ethics declines as the students get older.
The low moral sense can be attributed to the education system, which is based on rote learning and preparing for entering college, an official said.
He said parents, who only care about their children getting good grades, are also to blame.
“A shift should take place in the education system so it can instill correct values in young students,” said Ahn.
He said because Korean society lacks institutions promoting transparency as well as the fact that immoral behavior such as bribery is prevalent is also contributing to the problem.
Korea's score on the anti-corruption index has remained low. It scored 59 out of 100 in 2012, ranking 45th among 176 countries.
“There should be active campaigning to promote transparency and honesty,” Ahn added, also stressing the need for an effective anti-corruption system in society.