Education spending gap hits 10-year high

By Yi Whan-woo

The education spending gap between the rich and poor reached its highest level in 10 years during the fourth quarter of last year, data showed Wednesday.

According to Statistics Korea, households in the top 20 percent income bracket spent an average of 407,038 won ($375) per month on education in the fourth quarter of 2012.

That amount was 7.1 times higher than the average for those in the bottom 20 percent (57,248 won) in the same period.

The difference in spending for public and private education as well as extracurricular activities was the highest since the fourth quarter of 2003. The top 20 percent spent 260,985 won back then, 4.8 times more than households within the lowest 20 percent, who spent 58,153 won.

“The gap in educational spending began to grow in 2008 when the country was hit by the global economic crisis,” a Statistics Korea official said.

The fourth-quarter monthly spending among the wealthier group between 2003 and 2012 increased consistently except for 2006. The figure was 282,858 won in 2004 and 311,336 won in 2005. It fell to 302,842 won in 2006 but climbed back to 322,126 won in 2007, 414,978 won in 2009, 381,195 won in 2010, and 395,337 won in 2011.

The agency said the increase was attributed to a rise in spending on private education such as cram schools. Last year, wealthier households directed an average 319,892 won, or 78.5 percent, of their educational spending outside of regular school classes.

Education spending by the poorer group continued to fluctuate during the same period. Their average monthly spending for the fourth quarter stood at 57,248 won last year, down from 59,955 won in 2011 and 62,541 won in 2010.

The agency said prices at private institutes and supplementary education services across the country jumped 5.3 percent last month from a year earlier. That marked the fastest gain since January 2008, when fees rose 5.8 percent year-on-year.

The rise is more significant given that the country's overall consumer prices rose 1.4 percent in the same month from a year earlier, with the growth rate staying in the 1-percent range for the fourth straight month.