Frequent School Violence in Areas with High Educational Enthusiasm... Prestigious High Schools Are No Exception

Jongno Academy, Analysis of School Violence Disclosures on School Information
Regions with the Highest Incidence of School Violence: Nowon, Eunpyeong, Gangseo, Songpa, Gangnam

It has been revealed that school violence occurs regardless of region or school level. Areas with high educational enthusiasm, including the Gangnam area of Seoul, and prestigious high schools were no exception.

On the 12th, Jongno Academy analyzed the School Information Disclosure and found that the number of school violence deliberations conducted at 320 schools in Seoul in 2021 was recorded at 622 cases.

The number of school violence deliberations decreased from 1,078 cases in 2019, before the outbreak of COVID-19, to 412 cases in 2020, the first year of the pandemic, but turned to an increasing trend again as in-person attendance normalized with the easing of COVID-19. It is expected that the number in the fully normalized attendance year of last year increased much more than in 2021.

Between 2019 and 2021, there were also 4,206 cases of school violence punishments, with serious punishments of level 4 or higher accounting for 1,563 cases, or 37.2% of the total measures taken.

By school type, 59.0% of cases occurred in general high schools, 34.9% in specialized high schools and Meister high schools, and 6.1% in special purpose and autonomous private high schools. The proportion of serious punishments of level 4 or higher was 58.0% in general high schools, 35.7% in specialized and Meister high schools, and 6.3% in special purpose and autonomous private high schools. Notably, six prestigious general and autonomous private high schools in the Gangnam area, known for high educational enthusiasm, were included among the top 30 schools with the highest number of school violence deliberations.

Looking at the data by region, during the same period, Nowon-gu had the highest number of deliberations with 223 cases, followed by Eunpyeong-gu (149 cases), Gangseo-gu (136 cases), Songpa-gu (128 cases), and Gangnam-gu (112 cases). Conversely, the regions with the fewest deliberations were Gwangjin-gu (40 cases), Geumcheon-gu (43 cases), Yeongdeungpo-gu (45 cases), Gangbuk-gu (46 cases), and Dongjak-gu (47 cases). This result was somewhat unexpected compared to previous predictions that school violence would be more frequent in underdeveloped areas.

Regarding school violence, if it is reflected in future university admissions, victims are likely to demand stronger deliberations and harsher punishments, while perpetrators are expected to increase legal judgments and appeals to minimize damage.

Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongno Academy, explained, “Depending on the admission reflection situation, students who have been punished may also leave school through qualification exams if there are no further admission relief measures within the school.”