Violence cases reported in middle schools surged nearly 30% in 2023: report

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Cases of school violence reviewed by disciplinary committees in middle schools across Korea surged nearly 30 percent in 2023 compared to the previous year, raising concerns over a lack of deterrence compared to high schools where such records can impact college admissions.

According to data released by Jongro Academy on Sunday, a total of 17,833 cases were reviewed at 3,295 middle schools nationwide last year, marking a 27.3 percent increase from 14,004 in 2022. The figure is 2.4 times higher than the number of deliberation cases reported in high schools, which stood at 7,446.

All 17 metropolitan and provincial education offices saw an increase in middle school cases. South Gyeongsang Province posted the highest year-on-year rise at 40 percent, followed by Daejeon (38.6 percent), Gyeonggi Province (35.9 percent), South Chungcheong Province (35 percent), North Gyeongsang Province (33.5 percent) and Incheon (30.4 percent).

By type, physical violence accounted for the largest share at 30.9 percent, followed by verbal abuse (29.3 percent), cyberbullying (11.6 percent) and sexual violence (9.2 percent). Notably, cyberbullying saw a sharp year-on-year increase of 52.4 percent. Incidents involving ostracism and extortion also rose by 34.6 percent and 32.3 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, the number of disciplinary measures handed down to middle school perpetrators reached 36,069 cases — 2.8 times higher than the 12,975 issued to high school students. The most common disciplinary action was a restraining order banning contact, threats or retaliation (29.2 percent), followed by school service orders (20.9 percent) and written apologies (20.1 percent). Harsher penalties also rose significantly, with class transfers increasing from 389 to 536 cases and school transfers jumping from 474 to 891.

"Unlike in high schools where school violence can result in serious disadvantages in college admissions, there is little perceived risk in middle school," Jongro Academy CEO Lim Sung-ho said. "However, the significantly higher number of middle school cases indicates a need for thorough awareness and preventive measures among students, parents and schools."