Many schools in South Korea are in danger of closing due to low birth rates

An elementary school in Busan, South Korea, has celebrated its 40th anniversary, but it is facing the threat of closure. Last year, the number of students at the school decreased to around 100, and the school's management was virtually bankrupt.
is. However, the process of ``closing the school'' is progressing slowly. The Busan Office of Education held several briefing sessions and managed to obtain consent from parents, but now neighboring residents and merchants are complaining that it is ``local alienation.''
. An official at the Busan Office of Education said, ``It is extremely rare for a school to willingly agree to close a school, and the process of gathering opinions alone can take several years.''
Amidst the reality that the number of students is decreasing due to the effects of low birthrates, problems surrounding ``school closures'' continue to arise in South Korea.
are doing. The municipal and prefectural Boards of Education are promoting the ``closing'' of small schools that have become difficult to operate due to a sharp decline in the number of students. In addition, private schools, which are in financial difficulty, want to ``close'' the school.
There are also cases. However, in many cases, actually promoting the closure of schools is not easy. Not only parents and alumni associations, but also residents who have been using the school facilities and nearby merchants are protesting.
is. Under the current law, there are no clear guidelines governing which schools should be closed or consolidated. According to the Ministry of Education, depending on the location of the school, cities have fewer than 240 students per school, and other areas have less than 120 students each.
~Schools with fewer than 60 students are classified as subject to consolidation. However, these standards are ``autonomous'' by each educational agency. After collecting opinions, many educational offices have decided that 50% of parents or 3% of parents
If more than two-thirds of the parties agree, the school will close or consolidate the school. Regarding this, Professor Jung Jae Young of the Department of Education at Ewha Womans University said, ``The problems surrounding school closures are increasing.
"Therefore, we need a plan to encourage schools that are in danger of closing to merge with other schools in order to keep their traditions alive and pass on their history."