The Gwangju City Office of Education announced on February 26 that it will promote projects to strengthen students' competencies as democratic citizens.
First, it will select nine elementary, middle, and high schools this year and operate them as "Leading Schools for Democratic Citizenship Education."
The "Leading Schools for Democratic Citizenship Education" initiative was launched to teach constitutional values, spread a horizontal school culture, and develop new models for democratic citizenship education.
The City Office of Education plans to designate the "Leading Schools for Democratic Citizenship Education" through an open call in early March and to run a variety of democratic citizenship education programs with budgetary support.
The leading schools are required to carry out three core tasks: constitutional education for students; revitalizing student self-governance activities to create a democratic school culture; and job training to strengthen competencies in democratic citizenship education.
In addition, the schools may choose to run 5.18 education programs linked to the curriculum and centered on student participation, to develop teaching materials and educational activities on social and political participation, and to operate professional learning communities focused on history and peaceful reunification.
They will also provide media literacy education and global citizenship education activities so that students do not accept misinformation as fact.
Separately from the operation of the leading schools, the City Office of Education is launching the "Participation UP, Citizenship ON Student Club" support project, which will help students enhance their democratic citizenship by engaging in inquiry-, discussion-, and practice-centered club activities related to democratic citizenship education within schools.
This year, 30 teams will be selected to carry out student-led campaigns, policy proposals, and field trips in the areas of democratic citizenship practice, social and political participation, and history.
On February 26, the City Office of Education held the "2026 Teachers' Sharing Session on Commitments to Practicing Democratic Citizenship Education for K-Democracy" in the main auditorium of the Gwangju Civic Cooperation Promotion Institute for about 200 teachers in charge of democratic citizenship education at elementary, middle, high, and special schools, and presented these plans.
The sharing session introduced the direction and key projects of democratic citizenship education, followed by a special lecture by an expert on the theme of "K-Democracy and the Direction of Democratic Citizenship Education in Schools."
The special lecture was delivered by Professor Kim Heesong of the May 18 Institute at Chonnam National University, under the theme "K-Democracy and the Direction of Democratic Citizenship Education in Schools." Professor Kim emphasized, "5.18 education must go beyond simple history learning and become the foundation of democratic citizenship education," and added, "We must guide students to put the values of democracy, human rights, and peace into practice in their daily lives."
The session also presented this year's major participatory programs, including the operation of the 4th Youth Political School, the Gwangju Student Policy Proposal Festival, and international exchange programs on democracy, human rights, and peaceful reunification, as well as key commemorative projects such as the operation of the 46th anniversary week of the May 18 Democratization Movement, the May 18 Historic Sites Walking Festival, and the 46th May 18 Democratic Peace March.
Superintendent Lee Jeongseon said, "K-Democracy is completed through students' interest, participation, and practice," adding, "We will strengthen field-centered democratic citizenship education by thoroughly implementing 5.18 education, political participation education, human rights education, and history and peaceful reunification education."
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