Cho Hee-yeon "International Middle Schools Promote Educational Hierarchy"... Schools Involved Say "Evaluation Criteria Are Unfair" (Comprehensive)

Daewon and Yeonghun International Middle Schools to Convert to Regular Middle Schools Starting Next Year
Fail to Meet Re-designation Criteria for Specialized Middle Schools

Cho Hee-yeon: "Average Annual Tuition for 4 Private Middle Schools is 11 Million Won"
Separating Students in Compulsory Education Stage Deepens Educational Inequality

Concerned International Middle Schools: "We Will Discuss Response Strategies Including Administrative Lawsuits"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Daewon and Yeonghun, two international middle schools, will be converted into general middle schools starting next year after failing to meet the re-designation criteria scores for specialized middle schools. The schools are protesting, claiming that the superintendent's personal opinions were reflected in the evaluation.

On the 10th, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced the results of the specialized middle school performance evaluation and stated that it will proceed with the cancellation of the specialized middle school designation for Daewon and Yeonghun International Middle Schools.

Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, explained at a press conference that "this performance evaluation is not part of a policy to abolish international middle schools as some have feared, but a fair and objective assessment of the past five years of operation."

The specialized middle school performance evaluation is conducted every five years according to the Enforcement Decree of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. This year’s evaluation targeted three schools: Daewon International Middle School, Yeonghun International Middle School, and Seoul Sports Middle School. Seoul Sports Middle School will maintain its specialized middle school status.

Daewon and Yeonghun International Middle Schools failed to meet the standard scores in this evaluation. The Office of Education explained that the biggest factor in the deduction was that the two schools received audit sanctions for violating academic-related laws and guidelines. Additionally, the schools’ efforts to cultivate international professionals and reduce educational disparities were deemed insufficient. The standard score was raised from 60 to 70 points for this evaluation, and the penalty for audit findings increased from 5 to 10 points.

Kang Yeon-heung, Director of Education Policy at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, said, "International middle schools conducted English immersion education through after-school activities until 9 p.m. and organized overseas trips such as golf experiences and training camps, but since the expenses were borne by the beneficiaries, only a very small number of students participated in international activities." He added, "It is difficult to say that they made efforts to cultivate international professionals or to reduce disparities."

Superintendent Cho stated, "At the compulsory middle school education stage, the essential value of guaranteeing equal educational opportunities to all students in international middle schools and strengthening the public nature of education is being undermined." He continued, "Instead, it is perceived as a hierarchical school system that encourages private education." He emphasized, "International middle schools have become a middle school stage goal in the process of going to English academies for young children, private elementary schools, and specialized high schools. The average annual tuition for four private international middle schools reaches 11 million won, which has separated students based on parental economic power during the compulsory education stage and deepened educational inequality." He added, "I approached the evaluation with the belief that evaluation is evaluation and abolition policy is a different matter," and concluded, "Education should be a path of growth, not just a path to success."

Current students at Daewon and Yeonghun International Middle Schools will maintain their status as specialized middle school students until graduation. The Office of Education plans to request consent for designation cancellation from the Ministry of Education after a hearing process. During this process, the schools can present their explanations. The schools can present their explanations during this process.

Attention is focused on whether Seoul’s evaluation results will influence the review outcomes of international middle schools in Gyeonggi and Busan, which are expected to be announced later this month. Some voices are protesting, saying that the cancellation of specialized school designations causes confusion in the education field. A representative of the Korea Federation of Teachers’ Associations said, "The cycle of abolishing and creating schools based on ideology or politics is repeating. Schools have operated trusting government directives, but if they are suddenly abolished one day, who can trust the system?"

The schools are protesting the unfairness of the evaluation. They expressed their intention to actively present explanations during the hearing process, monitor future developments, and discuss response strategies such as administrative lawsuits.

Sung Ki-yoon, Vice Principal of Yeonghun International Middle School, said, "The evaluation indicators were set with standards that could not be met, such as per capita education expenses and integrated admission criteria, and the qualitative evaluation proportion was high," adding, "The evaluation was not accurate." Jeong Seon-hye, Vice Principal of Daewon International Middle School, said, "The evaluation indicators were created in violation of the principle of trust protection, and since it is a lottery-based school, how could it cause private education expenses?" She added, "We will present explanations during the hearing process and take legal steps."

The admissions industry predicts that due to concerns about academic decline caused by policies like the free semester system, students will flock to more competitive prestigious general middle schools located in elite school districts. Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongro Academy Haneul Education, said, "Despite the lottery-based selection, the two international middle schools still have high competition rates, which means their programs are evaluated as more competitive than general middle schools," and added, "There is a high possibility that prestigious general middle schools will be formed within the region."

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