Dormitories also a hotbed for school violence? Over 1,000 cases in 5 years...

Decreased During COVID-19 Surge, Then Increased Again
Political and Educational Sectors Call for Effective Measures

The number of school violence cases reviewed in schools with dormitory life has exceeded 1,000 in the past five years.

On the 16th, Yang Kyung-sook, a member of the Planning and Finance Committee and the Steering Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea, received data from the Ministry of Education on the "Number of School Violence Countermeasure Committee Reviews in Dormitory Schools (Middle and High Schools)." According to the data, the total number of reviews from the 2017 to 2021 academic years was 1,110. The number of victim students reached 1,781, and the number of perpetrator students was 1,805.

The number of school violence reviews in dormitory schools increased from 188 cases in the 2017 academic year to 246 cases in 2018 and 258 cases in 2019. However, it decreased to 107 cases in the 2020 academic year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nevertheless, in the 2021 academic year, which combined remote and face-to-face classes, the number rose to 311 cases, surpassing the record of the 2019 academic year before COVID-19. Considering that the total number of school violence reviews nationwide in middle and high schools was 11,815 cases in 2021, about half of the 23,977 cases in 2019, this is unusual.

On the 14th, a hearing was held by the National Assembly Education Committee to investigate the truth about school violence involving Jeong Soon-shin's children and to establish measures against school violence.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Unlike regular schools, dormitory schools have victim students living in the same spaces as perpetrator students even after school hours, and victim students are separated from their guardians, making it relatively difficult to find psychological stability. For this reason, educators and politicians have pointed out that "in cases of school violence in dormitory schools, it is necessary to actively protect victim students through effective measures."

In fact, in the case involving the son of lawyer Jeong Soon-shin, who was appointed as the head of the National Investigation Headquarters but was dismissed after the revelation of his child's school violence, the victim student was reportedly subjected to verbal abuse and bullying in various places within the school, such as the dormitory and cafeteria, even after school hours.

Representative Yang pointed out, "If the separation of perpetrator and victim students is not properly implemented in dormitory schools, victim students may not only fail to concentrate on their studies but also experience psychological and emotional instability, making normal life difficult."

She added, "There is virtually no response manual suitable for the characteristics of dormitory schools," emphasizing, "The Ministry of Education and local education offices must establish specific manuals and practical response systems to separate perpetrator students and protect victim students in dormitory schools."