(EDITORIAL from the JoongAng Daily on Oct. 29)

Cut the cost of cramming

The Korean government has introduced a strong policy in an attempt to control the
unreasonably expensive fees charged by cram schools. With the new policy, the
tuition rates for all such schools will be posted on the Internet for everyone to
see starting next year. Fees for teaching materials and supplementary lessons
also have to be included in the total tuition. If the institutes make false
reports, they will be severely punished.
In addition, when students or their parents pay the fees, each institute is
required to issue a receipt, in an effort to prevent tax evasion. This is a step
in the right direction. The policy shows that the government intends to put a
stop to overly expensive tuition.
In Korea, many parents of students are struggling under the weight of high
academy tuitions. Even if they must sacrifice in other areas, they don???t try to
cut down on education expenditures. Such are typical Korean parents.
The numbers explain the true nature of Korean parents. According to the Bank of
Korea, in the first half of the year, each family???s total spending decreased
due to the economic slump, but educational expenses still exceeded 15 trillion
won. That represents a 9.1 percent increase over last year???s first half. In
addition, 6.2 percent of each family???s total spending was on education.
As the global economic crisis continues, we can???t be sure how long parents must
endure the heavy cost of education. People can???t give up eating due to
education fees. So this policy should immediately provide satisfactory results.
If all goes well, the tuition for cram schools will fall. Similar plans proved to
be nothing but a bluff during past administrations. But this time, the policy
should produce real results.
The education authorities and other government offices - such as the Ministry of
Justice, the National Police Agency, the National Tax Service and the Fair Trade
Commission - all have to work together. Parents are counting on the help of the
government.
We know that improving the quality of public education is a fundamental measure
in reducing the expenses caused by private education. The government should do
its best to change the overall perception that cram schools are necessary by
making parents feel comfortable with public education. They should reform the
system so that sending a child to a public school is sufficient. The government
must not give up on this issue, because school expenses are too much of a burden
in Korea.
(END)