Will the Teaching Rights Protection Bureau from the Netflix drama "Study Group" become reality? After Ahn Min-seok, the education superintendent-elect for Gyeonggi Province, unveiled a plan to establish an "Educational Activity Protection Bureau" (tentative name), teachers who served in the Marine Corps and Special Forces have reportedly expressed active interest in joining, saying they would "become the Na Hwa-jin of Gyeonggi Province."
Appearing on CBS Radio's "Park Sung-tae's News Show" on the 16th, Ahn said, "The current state of schools shows that teaching authority has collapsed, and as a result, education is facing a comprehensive crisis." He added, "It is now time to make a decision and take action."
He stressed, "We need an Educational Activity Protection Bureau (tentative name) that can protect both teaching rights and the right to learn."
Earlier, on the 12th, Ahn proposed a public debate through his social media to discuss whether to establish a Teaching Rights Protection Bureau within the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education.
"Study Group" is a drama based on a Naver webtoon, depicting characters from a fictional government agency, the Teaching Rights Protection Bureau, as they set right the collapsed state of schools. While the way Na Hwa-jin (played by actor Kim Mu-yeol), an inspector of the bureau, resolves problems through forceful methods has drawn responses calling it cathartic, criticism that it glorifies violence has also been raised.
Ahn argued that some elements of the drama need to be applied to reality. "Bringing the Teaching Rights Protection Bureau into public discussion absolutely does not mean reviving corporal punishment," he explained. "The aim is to prevent infringements on teaching authority and on other students' right to learn."
He continued, "The characters in the Teaching Rights Protection Bureau punish through violence, so they are difficult to exist realistically. It seems an 'Educational Activity Protection Bureau' (tentative name) that can protect both teaching rights and the right to learn could be introduced."
Ahn said that among teachers holding teaching qualifications, a considerable number have served in the Marine Corps, Special Forces, and airborne units. He also noted that some of them had contacted him to the effect that they "want to become the Na Hwa-jin of Gyeonggi Province."
"We can secure 20 to 30 people who are fully capable of playing such a role," he said. "They should be immediately deployed to matters that schools or teachers cannot control, and change the school atmosphere through guidance and admonition rather than violent punishment."
Ahn intends to move forward with detailed institutional design through future National Assembly debates and the gathering of expert opinions. "We must boldly review a system that allows teachers to exercise their rights while protecting students' human rights," he said. "Students' human rights and teaching authority are not in conflict with each other, but rather should be mutually respected."
He continued, "Without the restoration of teaching authority, education is impossible." He urged, "Since this is the starting point of a major transformation in our country's education, I ask parents and citizens alike to gather their strength for the restoration of teaching authority."
