When I went to Neulbom School for the first year of elementary school… “Safe to take care of the school” vs. “Not enough space and manpower”

‘Half expectation, half confusion’ in operation of 2741 schools
300 people including elementary school workers deployed to Busan
Parents of dual-income families generally welcome
“It’s a shame I couldn’t receive specific guidance,” the response said.

Point out lack of idle space and budget in schools
Gangwon-seon teachers protest for “increased workload”
Ministry of Education “Summary after intensive inspection for one month”

“It’s fun to play games like this at school. “I plan to make many friends in the future.”

Ahyeon Elementary School, Mapo-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 5th. Fifteen new students were participating in various programs in the Neulbom classroom, including soccer practice, origami, and singing African songs. The children, who were singing with bright expressions, expressed their curiosity at the reporters who visited the classroom, saying, “There are so many people.” Principal Shim Young-myeon of this school said, “In the case of our school, this was possible because we had an idle space called a special classroom.” He added, “It is true that it is a burden to have educational issues handed down without (teachers’) consent. “Teachers need a willingness to make concessions, and the government and society need to wait for teachers,” he said.

The afternoon before, in the customized program classroom on the first floor of Neungsil Elementary School in Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, an after-school class instructor and a freshman sat around a table and continued playing with books affectionately. It was noticeable that the teacher responded positively when the student read the book and drew the images that came to mind. At the same time, in the local care center on the 3rd floor, eight first- and second-year students played a bingo game to learn the names of other students. They smiled brightly and gradually revealed their intimacy by asking their names or telling jokes. In the case of Neungsil Elementary School, 56 out of 183 first-year students are participating in Neulbom Classrooms, which include △ customized program for 1st graders, △ after-school program, △ elementary school care class, and △ local base care class. Book play, creative character play, traditional play, board games, total crafts, etc. are being held, and the number of programs has been increased to eliminate waiting demand.

Neulbom School, where dual-income couples can take their first-grade children from morning to evening, began in 2,741 schools across the country on the 4th, and expectations and confusion are mixed everywhere. The government plans to expand the target population to all elementary schools and all grades, but the remaining tasks are to increase the number of teachers to care for students and secure educational space.

According to each city and provincial office of education, on the second day of the implementation of Neulbom School, parents generally welcomed it, but in some areas, considerable friction arose due to lack of space or manpower. Some point out that there is significant room for improvement ahead of full implementation in approximately 6,000 elementary schools across the country starting from the second semester.

On this day, new students at an elementary school in Yeonje-gu, Busan spent time with a learning program that incorporated play, such as reading books and board games.

In addition to existing dedicated teachers, practical workers (154 people) and temporary teachers (150 people) were assigned. A parent in his 40s in the Busan area said, “In the case of dual-income families, it is difficult to find a place to leave their children after school, so there is no other solution other than sending them to an academy.” He added, “With Neulbom School in full operation, parents will be able to work comfortably.” “I think so,” he said, expressing his expectations.

In some regions, it was revealed that they were not properly equipped with everything from dedicated personnel to classrooms and were therefore creaky. Some elementary school teachers in the Gangwon area held a protest rally, saying, “Work has increased because we are hardly able to recruit instructors needed to operate the program.” A teacher in the metropolitan area pointed out, “The annual cost of teaching aids and materials to run the Neulbom program is approximately 1 million won,” and “It is less than 40,000 won per student.” An elementary school teacher in Seoul said, “There is almost no idle space in the school, so it is difficult to secure space.”

Some parents also expressed their response, saying, “It’s unfortunate that we didn’t receive specific guidance and don’t know (the contents) well.” Oh (42, female), a parent of an elementary school student in Busan, said, “The purpose of Neulbom School is good, but it is a play-oriented program, so I don’t think it is right for my son.”

The Ministry of Education announced that it plans to intensively inspect progress during the month of March and address any problems.

Suwon·Busan=Reporters Oh Sang-do and Oh Seong-taek, Reporters Lee Ji-min, National Comprehensive

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