Teacher's Mother Appeals in National Assembly Petition
"Forced Atmosphere Led to Unfair Resignation Letter"
In Incheon, a private kindergarten teacher claimed to have been insulted and unfairly dismissed due to a misunderstanding of child abuse, prompting the education authorities to launch a fact-finding investigation.
According to the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education on the 25th, Yonhap News reported that a National Assembly petition titled "Please rescue a teacher collapsing due to the abuse of power and harassment by the kindergarten principal and vice principal" was submitted. The petitioner identified herself as the mother of kindergarten teacher A and claimed, "My daughter, a newcomer to society, was threatened by the kindergarten principal and vice principal, forced to kneel before parents unfairly, and then unfairly dismissed."
The petitioner explained that the incident began when teacher A allowed children to clean up powder from grilled kim (Korean seaweed) that had fallen on the classroom floor during lunch at a private kindergarten in Incheon on the 6th, which was distorted as "making children clean up feces."
At the time, a parent reportedly heard from their child that "they cleaned up feces at the kindergarten" and visited the kindergarten to request a review of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage. The petitioner wrote, "Teacher A wanted to explain to the parent suspecting child abuse that the cleanup time after meals was part of basic hygiene habits and developmental processes for young children, and that they were not made to clean up feces, but the principal forced her to apologize unconditionally even if she was wrong."
The CCTV footage showed children cleaning the kim powder, and during this process, one child reportedly had an accident in their pants, causing a smell to spread. However, it is known that no feces were found on the classroom floor or hallway.
However, the principal and vice principal allegedly told teacher A, "If the police come to investigate the kindergarten, it must never happen," "If parents say it's child abuse, then it is child abuse," and "Kneel down and apologize," according to the petitioner. They also reportedly instilled fear by saying things like, "The parents look like gangsters," and "It will be hard for you to work in this area from now on."
Furthermore, the petitioner stated, "In the end, teacher A knelt before about ten parents without being able to explain any situation, and the principal said in front of them that it was natural for the teacher to be dismissed and unfairly fired her." She added, "The principal and vice principal used pressure and threats to exploit the teacher’s frightened state, preventing her from speaking and coercing her into writing a resignation letter, engaging in abuse of power and workplace harassment."
The Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education reportedly received the related matter through the National Petition System and has begun an audit process on the kindergarten. An official from the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education said, "We first conducted an on-site inspection to check for any deficiencies at the kindergarten and plan to proceed with an audit. We will investigate the exact facts."
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