On the 11th, the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education held the "2025 2nd Metropolitan Area Superintendents' Meeting" at the Seoul Office of Education, discussing international exchange cooperation plans and educational issues with Jeong Geun-sik, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, and Do Seong-hoon, Superintendent of Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education.
At the meeting, the main agenda items included ▲development plans through sharing the current status of international exchange cooperation ▲measures to guarantee the educational rights of undocumented migrant-background students ▲efficient legislation for the "(tentative name) Haneuli Act" ▲common safety standards for field experience learning and strengthening teacher protection ▲and improvement plans for the teacher quota system.
The three regional superintendents first agreed to establish an international exchange network among metropolitan area education offices and to jointly work on sharing best practices and developing joint courses that can be utilized overseas, such as in Korean schools.
They also decided to propose to the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Justice to temporarily grant residence status, including visa extensions, for 1,374 students staying in the metropolitan area without foreign registration numbers.
Furthermore, regarding the "Haneuli Act," which is pending passage in the National Assembly, they agreed to suggest clarifying the school principal’s authority over teachers in crisis and the legal basis of the Teacher Job Performance Suitability Committee.
Moreover, they viewed that imposing legal responsibility on teachers leading field experience learning, which could discourage such activities, is educationally undesirable. Therefore, they agreed to actively submit the superintendents’ opinions on the safety of teachers leading field experience learning to be referenced in court decisions and to strive for legal support.
Finally, they decided to request a complete reconsideration of the teacher quota reduction policy and to propose to the relevant authorities that flexible institutional measures are necessary to adapt to environmental changes and improve educational conditions in the execution method.
Meanwhile, the next metropolitan area superintendents' meeting will be hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education in April.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
