(EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Feb. 25)

Discontent of Youth: Korean Students More Negative About School, Society

A recent survey shows that South Korean middle and high school students are more
discontent with their school, society and country than their peers in China and
Japan. It is shocking to see that 59.9 percent of Korean students wish they had
been born in other countries. The figure was much higher than the 49.4 percent of
Chinese and 38.8 percent of Japanese with the same wish.
The finding has significant implications in that Korean students are found to
have more negative views than those in China and Japan. South Korea's National
Youth Policy Institute, the China Youth and Children Research Center and the
Japan Youth Research Institute conducted the poll among 2,000 schoolchildren in
each country in November and December last year.
According to the joint survey, 51.9 percent of Korean students said they were
interested in study, compared with 78.6 percent of those in China and 53.9
percent of those in Japan. And only 26.7 percent of Korean pupils said society
was fair, while 68.1 percent of the Chinese students and 35.1 percent of the
Japanese students said so. South Korean students also showed lower pride in their
country than their counterparts.
We have no choice but to ask the question: What has driven our children to
develop a negative attitude toward their school life, society and country? Social
pathology is certainly to blame. Koreans have been fed up with structural
problems such as rampant corruption, political skullduggery, growing social
conflict and gruesome crimes.
Against this backdrop, young students are increasingly feeling despair and
frustration about their campus life which focuses on achieving high scores in
college entrance exams. And a series of horrible news items about serial killers,
sexual violence and crimes against minors have apparently forced schoolchildren
to have a distorted value system. It might be natural that students feel the urge
to escape from their stifling environment to other countries where they can enjoy
more freedom and develop creativity.
Now, we have to wake up to the stark reality. First, the government and local
authorities should take revolutionary measures to normalize school education. It
is urgent to help students regain their trust in school, have fun with their
study and show self-esteem. For this, the country ought to push reform to change
college entrance exam-oriented curricula and concentrate on personality
education.
It goes without saying that the future of our nation depends on the education of
the younger generation. Education is a long-term investment to cultivate creative
human resources that will lead not only our country, but also the world.
Therefore it is important to encourage children to think positively and have
creativity and hope for our society, country and the future.
(END)