"'Bukdaejeon IC' Is Not an Insult"... Successor of Deceased Daejeon Teacher Also Victimized

Daejeon Substitute Teacher Filling in for Sick Teacher
"First Time in 35 Years of Experience, Vivid Memory"
"Received Parent Complaints Despite Proper Guidance"

A teacher at an elementary school in Daejeon, who had been suffering from malicious complaints by parents for years, died by suicide. Meanwhile, a 35-year veteran contract teacher who filled in during the deceased teacher’s past sick leave also claimed to have experienced violations of teacher authority.

"Staring into my eyes, repeating 'Bukdaejeon IC8'... I was shocked"

On the afternoon of the 9th, students and parents visited a memorial space set up at an elementary school in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, where the elementary school teacher who passed away due to malicious complaints was employed, to pay their respects to the deceased.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 19th, the Daejeon Teachers' Union revealed statements from contract teacher A, who worked as a substitute at an elementary school in Yuseong-gu from December 2019. It was reported that A quit after about ten days due to hearing students swear during class and receiving complaints from parents about legitimate student discipline.

A said, "What happened in that class was something I had never experienced in my 35 years of teaching, so I still remember it vividly. From the moment I entered, I felt that some students made the others intimidated rather than the usual bright and cheerful atmosphere typical of first graders."

He added, "From my first day, I was advised by administrators and department heads not to provoke certain students."

A also shared an incident of teacher authority violation he personally experienced. He claimed, "While explaining (insufficient curriculum content) face-to-face, I noticed one child wasn’t paying attention and was staring at me, repeatedly saying 'Bukdaejeon IC8, Bukdaejeon IC8.'"

He continued, "When I asked the child, 'Did you curse?' he said he was just saying 'Bukdaejeon IC.' I was so shocked that I couldn’t continue teaching and told him to study at home."

"Parents complain that legitimate discipline is unpleasant"

On the morning of the 9th, the bereaved family of an elementary school teacher in Daejeon who passed away due to malicious complaints entered a 5th-grade classroom at an elementary school in Yuseong-gu where the teacher was employed, carrying a portrait of the teacher.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

A also recalled complaints from parents. When one student severely pinched another’s hand, A called the student aside for guidance. However, the parent filed a complaint against A.

A said, "I was informed by administrators that parents were displeased with the discipline. Despite it being proper guidance, I received complaints, and even when teachers face violations of their authority from students, there is nothing they can do. I felt I could no longer continue as a contract teacher, so I quit."

Lee Yoon-kyung, chairperson of the Daejeon Teachers' Union, stated, "Even a 35-year veteran contract teacher had to endure unbearable pain alone. The reality that teachers still have no protection from violations of their authority and must fight and endure alone has not changed."

The Daejeon Teachers' Union and the Elementary Teachers' Union plan to hold a press conference at the National Assembly at 11 a.m. on the 21st, urging official recognition of the deceased teacher’s death as work-related. It was revealed that the deceased teacher had received a total of 14 complaints from parents over four years, in addition to reports to the police and the School Violence Countermeasures Committee (Hakpokwi).

Meanwhile, according to the police and the Daejeon Teachers' Union, the deceased elementary school teacher B, in his 40s, was found after attempting suicide at his home on the 5th and was transferred to a nearby hospital, where he passed away on the 7th.

B reportedly submitted his own case when the Elementary Teachers' Union collected cases of violations of teacher authority in July. His report included circumstances from 2019 when he was a first-grade homeroom teacher, where four students repeatedly bullied classmates and disobeyed instructions.

In particular, B requested the principal’s intervention after one student continuously assaulted a friend. For this, B was accused of child abuse by parents and suffered from complaints.