Ministry of Education to Amend Academy Act for Sanctions on Academies Violating Quarantine Rules

Joint Inspection by Education Office and Local Governments
10,356 Out of 128,837 Hagwon Detected

519 Schools Adjusted Attendance Days, 15 Fewer Than Previous Day
99% Concentrated in Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye is presiding over a video conference on the morning of the 3rd at the Government Complex Sejong to check the support status for in-person classes with deputy superintendents of education from the Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi, and Busan Metropolitan Offices of Education. (Provided by the Ministry of Education)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] The Ministry of Education has decided to amend the Academy Act to sanction academies that violate quarantine rules related to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

According to the Ministry of Education on the 3rd, the education offices and local governments conducted joint inspections of a total of 128,837 academies from February 24th to recently, and among them, 10,356 cases of non-compliance with quarantine rules were detected.

When an academy violates quarantine rules, the Minister of Health and Welfare and the governors of cities and provinces can take measures such as closure under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, but the superintendents of education and the Minister of Education, who supervise academies, had no grounds for punishment, limiting inspections. Accordingly, through the amendment of the Academy Act, fines will be imposed for violations of quarantine rules, or if a certain number of penalty points are reached, business suspension for a certain period will be imposed. Forced closure is not being considered. Since February, a total of 78 people, including students and instructors, have been infected with COVID-19 at 42 academies nationwide.

On the first day of the third phase of school reopening, 519 schools adjusted their in-person class days, 15 fewer than the previous day. 99% of these were concentrated in Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon, and other areas.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye chaired a video conference at the Government Sejong Complex in the morning with deputy superintendents of education from Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi, and Busan to check the support status for in-person classes, stating, "Schools that adjusted in-person class days are concentrated in the metropolitan area, and we are taking seriously the recent sporadic infections through academies, maintaining vigilance without letting our guard down."

On the previous day, Minister Yoo met with Fire Chief Jeong Moon-ho to discuss support measures for transporting students with suspected symptoms via 119 emergency services. They agreed to analyze transport support cases by the end of this month and prepare effective support measures until the end of COVID-19.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.