Daegu Office of Education Announces 33 Measures to Reduce Private Education Costs... 10 'Schools Without Private Education Burden' Selected

The Daegu Metropolitan Office of Education (Superintendent Kang Eunhee) announced on the 13th that, following the release of the "2024 Survey on Private Education Expenses for Elementary, Middle, and High Schools," it will implement a comprehensive plan to reduce private education costs for local parents.

This plan includes a total of 33 detailed measures aimed at reducing private education expenses by enhancing public education and strengthening students' self-directed learning.

Daegu Office of Education

The main initiatives include expanding Neulbom School, introducing and utilizing AI digital textbooks, strengthening support for EBS content and basic academic achievement, innovating classes through the IB program, fully implementing the high school credit system, operating schools without private education burdens, providing college entrance and career counseling, stabilizing private academy fees, and improving parents' perceptions of private education.

Specifically, Neulbom School will be expanded to include 1st and 2nd grade elementary students, offering a variety of programs desired by parents?such as physical education, arts, English, creativity and science, and AI/digital?free of charge for two hours daily. High-quality programs will be provided in collaboration with local universities and libraries, and about 20% of all programs will focus on literacy to improve basic academic skills for elementary students.

The newly introduced "AI Digital Textbook" will also be actively utilized this year. Through the AI digital textbook, students' individual learning levels will be thoroughly analyzed and customized content will be provided, supporting real-time online supplementary learning, individual learning history management, and achievement analysis to prevent learning gaps.

The office will also participate in EBS's "Personalized Video Tutoring" program. For students from 1st year of middle school to 2nd year of high school, small-group video tutoring sessions will be provided by university student mentors to support learning in challenging subjects, focusing on improving academic performance in areas with high private education expenditures such as mathematics and English.

Schools will also be selected and operated as "Private Education Burden-Free Schools" to discover successful models for reducing private education expenses. Various programs to reduce private education costs will be implemented at about ten elementary, middle, and high schools in the region, and best practices will be expanded based on performance analysis, such as cost reduction rates and parent satisfaction.

In addition, various "basic academic achievement and supplementary programs" such as the "one class, two teachers" system, Doodream School, and the Responsible Education Year System (3rd grade elementary, 1st grade middle school), the "International Baccalaureate (IB) Program" for classroom innovation, the "high school credit system" to support customized curricula, and the "College Entrance Counseling Center" for college and career counseling and information will be continuously operated.

Furthermore, guidance and inspections of private academies and tutoring centers will be strengthened to "stabilize academy fees," and efforts to improve parents' perceptions of private education will be made through the "Da:Happy Daegu Education Campaign" and "Parental Capacity Building Education."

Superintendent Kang Eunhee stated, "By thoroughly operating various educational policies newly introduced or expanded this year, such as Neulbom School, AI digital textbooks, and EBS video tutoring, we will enhance the competitiveness of public education and continuously reduce private education expenses."