"Withdrawal is a Decision for Career Path"
Recently, a person claiming to be the high school student involved in a video showing a dispute with a teacher, which sparked an issue of declining teacher authority, has come forward. He apologized to the teacher in question and clarified that his withdrawal from school was not due to the incident but a choice for his future.
A video showing a female high school student in Korea arguing back at a middle-aged male teacher has sparked controversy. [Photo source=Online community]
According to online communities on the 26th, Mr. A, who claims to be the student in the video, posted an apology stating, "I bow my head and apologize to the teacher who was harmed in the video, and I want to say sorry to the OO High School students and teachers who were affected by my thoughtless actions."
Mr. A explained that due to the flood of sexually harassing comments and speculative remarks that were not true, he posted the statement to correct the misinformation.
He said, "The appearance of me in that video is just a fragment. I had a very good relationship with the school teachers, and the day after the incident, I went to the teacher in the video and sincerely bowed my head to apologize."
Regarding the fact that it was already known he had withdrawn from school, Mr. A claimed, "I did not withdraw to avoid expulsion but left school for my career path."
He added, "I also respected and liked the teachers very much, and the teacher in the video supported me a lot. Until he left the school, we maintained a really good teacher-student relationship."
"The Current State of Declining Teacher Authority" as the Video Spreads
Earlier, a video titled "High School Girl Talking Back to Teacher" rapidly spread across various online communities.
The video showed a student, presumed to be a high schooler, and a teacher loudly confronting each other in a school hallway.
In the video, the teacher shouted at the student, gesturing "Go inside." The high school girl retorted, "Why are you yelling at me? I'm not someone else's precious daughter either."
The teacher explained, "You grabbed the bag. Your hair was tangled in the bag strap," pointing to the student's head with his hand. The student protested again, "You grabbed my hair." The angry teacher said, "Isn't this fun? Enjoy it then," and tried to leave. However, the student followed him, sarcastically asking, "Did you enjoy grabbing my hair, teacher?"
The teacher shouted, "I will report this to the committee (Teacher Authority Protection Committee) as it is," and left. The student responded, "Go ahead and report to the committee," and the video ended. A female student, presumed to be filming the incident, giggled as if finding the situation amusing.
According to the description accompanying the video, the student was caught by the teacher going to the school store during class. The teacher tried to stop her by grabbing her bag, and her hair got tangled in the bag strap.
Netizens who saw the video lamented, calling it "the current state of declining teacher authority."
Ministry of Education Announces 'Notice on Teachers' Student Life Guidance'
On the afternoon of October 14, the area in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, was filled with teachers participating in a rally urging legislation to normalize public education. [Photo by Yonhap News]
Earlier, after the death of an elementary school teacher in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and the rising demand for protecting teacher authority, the Ministry of Education announced the 'Notice on Teachers' Student Life Guidance' in August. This notice defines the scope and methods of teachers' authority in managing student behavior, including the ability to separate students who exhibit problematic behavior in the classroom. Accordingly, frontline schools must reflect this notice by the end of this year by establishing life regulations and revising school rules.
Additionally, the National Assembly passed the 'Four Laws for Teacher Authority Protection' in September to protect teachers' legitimate educational activities. The legislation includes provisions that do not consider teachers' legitimate life guidance as child abuse and allows legal action against parents who interfere with educational activities.
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