The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education is launching a full-scale project to reduce private education costs. However, critics point out clear limitations, as college admission processes remain as complex as "random number tables," while factors driving dependence on private education—including various performance assessments and relative grading-based competition for school records—remain unchanged.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced on the 15th that it will pursue four core measures: strengthening guidance and supervision through proposed amendments to the Private Academy Act, expanding public education policies, increasing career and college admission information, and establishing evidence-based policies.
First, the office will strengthen administrative penalty standards for academy advertisements that induce advance learning or raise human rights concerns, and conduct regular crackdowns on violations of teaching hour limits. It plans to intensively examine English academy level tests for infants and toddlers, known as the "4-7 year-old bar exam." The office will also propose legislative amendments to the Ministry of Education and National Assembly to improve the effectiveness of private education guidance and supervision.
Considering that elementary-level private education often serves childcare purposes, the office will operate two hours of free customized classes daily for first and second graders. Third graders will receive 500,000 won per student annually for after-school classroom education costs. The office will also promote "Village-wide Elementary Care" in partnership with local governments and the "Seoul Connection Mentoring System" linking at-risk students with local adults.
Additionally, the proportion of students recommended by school principals for after-school free course vouchers will increase from 15% to 20%.
Students who exhaust the 600,000 won voucher cap and wish to take additional after-school programs will receive up to 200,000 won in support. Public education strengthening measures include expanding EBS courses by proficiency level, activating customized AI and digital education, diversifying vocational high school student programs, and promoting arts and physical education. The office will also increase teacher counselors from 200 to 300 to ease the burden of expensive admission consulting.
Career and admission information will be posted twice monthly through SEN College Guidance Compass and the education office's social media channels.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education's private education reduction measures were developed based on a survey on private education participation and perceptions conducted over approximately one month starting September last year, targeting Seoul parents, students, and teachers. According to the survey, 89% (9,426) of 10,606 parents with children in kindergarten, elementary, or middle school responded that they use private education. When asked whether they had ever sent their children to English academies for infants and toddlers, 29% (3,045) answered "yes." Notably, more than half of parents in Gangnam-gu (56%) and Seocho-gu (52%) reported having such experience.
Regarding private education and retirement preparation, 41% said they spend on private education while also preparing for retirement, but 34% responded they plan to maintain current private education spending regardless of retirement preparation. Forty-nine percent of parents said they would not reduce private education spending even if it jeopardizes their retirement security.
Parents who said they do not provide private education for their children cited "heavy financial burden" (24%) as the top reason.
