Attending Academy Instead of School? Gwangju in Uproar Over "All-Day Classes"

Academy Claims to Offer Programs for Students Preparing to Study Abroad

There have been claims that a private academy in Gwangju is operating much like a school, conducting regular curriculum classes for kindergarteners, elementary, and middle school students from morning to afternoon on weekdays. In response, the Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education has launched an investigation.

According to the Citizens' Coalition for a Society Without Academic Hierarchy, an educational civic group in Gwangju, Academy A in the region is reportedly carrying out such educational activities for young children, elementary, and middle school students.

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The academy is said to transport some students to the academy using shuttle vehicles, where they attend classes. According to the civic group, students at the academy are taught subjects such as English, Chinese, mathematics, science, physical education, music, Korean, and Korean history from around 9 a.m. to 3:50 p.m. on weekdays.

A representative of the civic group pointed out, "It is known that some parents enroll their children in school and then use loopholes to have them attend the academy instead. This constitutes a violation of students' basic right to education, as it means children are not sent to school without justifiable reasons or proper procedures." The representative added, "We have repeatedly informed the city education office about the issues with this academy, but they have failed to recognize the seriousness of the matter and have not taken meaningful action so far."

The city education office explained that it conducted an on-site inspection in June to determine whether the academy was operating as a school, but did not find any significant problems at that time. An official from the office stated, "There is a checklist to distinguish school-like operations, such as the use of school names, operation of grade and semester systems, and the use of principal titles. This academy did not fall under those categories."

The academy's website is currently inaccessible due to ongoing renewal work. The academy told some media outlets, "About 100 of our students are young children, and the remaining 100 are elementary and middle school students. Our academy provides educational programs for students preparing to study abroad due to their parents' overseas assignments or postings, or for admission to foreign universities. We believe this is an area that public education does not cover."