South Korea is set to reopen its schools this week as its COVID-19 curve finally begins to flatten out. But this doesn’t mean business as usual, even for schools. Although classes will resume, the spring semester will be unlike previous ones as South Korea experiments with online education on a massive scale. Already being hailed as one of the best examples to follow to contain the virus, all eyes will once again be on Korea to see whether this high-tech country can become a global leader in online education.

New Education Policies

The Ministry of Education announced last week that school lectures will be offered virtually starting April 9. Middle and high school seniors will begin classes that day while non-seniors, as well as fourth to sixth-grade elementary school students, will resume their studies on April 16. The reopening of kindergartens and daycare centers has, however, been postponed indefinitely.

The highly competitive annual college entrance exam, the College Scholastic Ability Tests (CSAT) or the ‘Suneung’, originally taking place on Nov. 19 has also been rescheduled to Dec. 3.

The South Korean spring semester usually begins in March. However, in the wake of the coronavirus crisis, the Ministry of Education was forced to further postpone the start of the new semester. Concerns about crowded classrooms and the possibility of cluster infections in schools have encouraged the Ministry to consider adopting more modern solutions.

New Challenges

This unprecedented delay in the South Korean academic calendar has presented an array of new challenges for teachers, students, and parents alike. The sudden decision by the Education Ministry has left teachers scrambling to find ways to seamlessly transition from traditional classroom-based teaching to remote learning; having to transform the country’s education system overnight.

Since the beginning of the outbreak, the lives of Korean students have been severely disrupted. Due to the closure of many ‘hagwons’ (private after-hours cram schools) children are forced to stay home. As a result, free time—a largely foreign concept to Korean teenagers who study an average of 8 hours per day—has affected the daily lives of students in an overwhelming way. As a result of the preventative measures taken by the Korean government, these students are discouraged from going out with their friends to PC rooms or Norebangs (a Korean version of karaoke) in order to avoid contracting the virus through risk of contact.

As a result of lengthy school closures and other public restrictions, the usual high-pressure atmosphere surrounding Korean education has relaxed. But not everyone is experiencing this positively. Korean parents across the country have been left to deal with the outcome of these changes practically overnight. The prolonged closure of schools and daycare services have left working parents in a difficult position, having to juggle between their roles as providers, teachers, and caretakers, all while abiding by quarantine restrictions.

To address this challenge, the Ministry of Education established “child-care classrooms” at select schools for parents who cannot afford to leave work to care for their children at home. But despite their best efforts, a survey conducted by the Ministry showed that only 2.2 percent of parents (of elementary school-aged children) have applied to the program.

This is but one of many concerns surrounding children’s education amid the pandemic. Parents are also worried about the educational gap that is being created by the virus. Because of the closure of several cram schools and limited resources, certain education districts in Korea are at an advantage given the higher availability of after-school programs and private tutoring, leaving others at a disadvantage.

Still, there are reasons to be optimistic. The Ministry of Education’s campaign for this new chapter in education is focusing on addressing concerns coming from all sides. Increases in school budgets and programs have been implemented to help ensure that students of all ages and backgrounds can participate equally. For instance, to address worries of income inequality and the education gap, students of low-income families will be able to rent smart devices from their schools. Such initiatives could help narrow the gap in access to needed educational tools.

Moving Forward

The COVID-19 pandemic has shed much-needed light on the failures of government institutions throughout the world, most notably affecting healthcare institutions and emergency response. As South Korea recovers from this pandemic, it is finding modern ways of moving forward. One of the most important components of the country’s post-COVID period strategy will undoubtedly be related to education.

There is no roadmap on how to go back to normal in the midst of a pandemic. Even the country’s Prime Minister echoed this sentiment of uncertainty: “Resuming school online is a new road we’ve never walked, we are in fact opening a new road.” Although the country will face new challenges with these new policies affecting education, a lot can be gained from these changes, especially in the long-term.

In the coming weeks, as South Korea ventures forward through some online-lecture awkwardness and technological bumps on the road, there is a lot to be learned and much that can change for the better. Despite all the uncertainty, and new challenges facing parents, students, teachers, and the government, there is hope. Through these measures, South Korea could be setting a global standard for the future of education that will not only benefit Korean youth but students all around the world for years to come.

Cover photo by Feliphe Schiarolli on Unsplash