Imagine studying an average of 14 hours a day to catch on school homework, tutor work and self-study? Imagine having to sacrifice doing the things you want to do most, simply because you can’t waste your time? This is the reality of thousands of students in South Korea today.
In South Korea, graduating from one of the three prestigious universities of Seoul National University, Yonsei University or KAIST and formally entering into the harsh business world, is how you would define success. Education in Korea may be harder than many other education systems. However the problem of the education structure isn’t from the national curriculum but rather the competition of trying to achieve better than their peers is what burdens and pressures students of South Korea.
As a result it isn’t unusual to see high school students attending tutoring school and receiving private tutoring every single day for each subject until they graduate. However this concept of constant study is something that is supported by almost all parents in Korea, to the point that many families end up in serious debt as a result of borrowing large sums of money from shark loaners to provide for their children’s education. Furthermore, this idea of being a step ahead of other’s is so imbedded into the minds of parents of the 21st century that parents enrol their 5 year old kid into English college or art classes. By the end of primary school, more than 50% of primary students are attending, English tutoring, Piano classes, Tae-kwondo and many more. It’s the mind-set that they need their kids prepared to be able to live a balanced lifestyle and also being able perform to the best of abilities in all genres whether it be academic or social when needed.
On top of all the extra curriculum activities they are engaged with, it is expected that all students are then expected to spend extra ‘individual study time’ after school. It wouldn’t be surprising to see that Korea has the highest rate of youth suicidal rates as many students, especially those in their final year of education, taking their lives as they desperately try and escape the reality of exams, failures and harsh competition. This suicidal rate dramatically escalates the day the student’s final exam results are released.
Ultimately, “the pressure is literally killing Korea’s youth”- (ABC News). Sorensen is also aware of the high expectation Korean parents have as he states that “ Since Koreans deem education to have intrinsic worth as a marker of social status, parents rarely leave educational success to chance : they subject their children to intense pressure to study”. They believe that by having a ‘successful’ education, they are able to enter the elite social circle and live a socially ‘recognised’ life.
In order to escape the harsh student life of Korea, it is also quite normal to see many students study abroad to generally English speaking countries to learn in a more relaxed study environment.
However it seems that this is how Korea’s education will continue to be run. There doesn’t seem to be an alternative way or answer that could improve the situation. In the end, putting a child through that much pressure and stress, is that success?
Reference:
Sorensen. C, “Success and Education in South Korea”, date Accessed : 27/10/2013 http://faculty.washington.edu/sangok/education.PDF
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