"September 4 Must Not Become a Day of Chaos"
Ministry of Education, Council of Superintendents, and Teacher Organizations Must Gather
Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, proposed designating September 4th, the 49th day since the death of a teacher at Seoul Seoi Elementary School, as the "Day to Rebuild Public Education," and suggested forming a four-party consultative body consisting of the Ministry of Education, the Council of Superintendents of Provincial Offices of Education, teacher organizations, and the teachers organizing the rally.
In a statement released to the media on the 28th, Superintendent Cho said, "September 4th should not be a day of confusion. It must be a day of sincere mourning and restoration of the educational community." He added, "To this end, I propose promptly forming a four-party consultative body where the Ministry of Education, the Council of Superintendents of Provincial Offices of Education, teacher organizations, and the teachers organizing the September 4th rally come together."
He stated, "At this meeting, I suggest discussing measures to protect teachers, investigating the cause of the Seoi Elementary School teacher's death, legal amendments to safeguard educational activities, and countermeasures to reflect school field demands in the plans of the Ministry of Education and education offices." He earnestly appealed, "I sincerely urge us to put our heads together on ways to protect both students' right to learn and teachers' educational activities, while also mourning the teacher who sadly passed away."
Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, is speaking at the first meeting of the four-party consultative body consisting of ruling and opposition parties, government, and metropolitan and provincial superintendents of education, held at the National Assembly on the 17th to support legislation for the restoration and protection of teachers' rights. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
He continued, "I believe the will to restore public education is shared by both the central government and education offices," emphasizing, "If there are differences in positions and methods, the way to resolve those differences should be educational. That is proper educational administration."
Superintendent Cho said, "Efforts to make September 4th a day of restoring the educational community must be a joint effort by the Ministry of Education, education offices, teachers, and parents." He expressed his hope, "I wish that September 4th will be remembered as a new beginning of education, a 'Day to Restore an Educational Community of Coexistence and Mutual Growth,' going beyond just a 'halt of public education.'"
He added, "The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education will make September 4th another turning point to mourn the Seoi Elementary School teacher and to restore teachers' rights."
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