'Yaja,' How Long Has It Been? Busan High School Seniors Begin 'Hope Yaja' Sessions

Busan Office of Education Allows Night Self-Study for Examinees Starting from the 22nd

Busan Metropolitan Office of Education building. The Office of Education has allowed night self-study sessions for third-year high school students who wish to participate starting from the 22nd.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Night self-study for high school seniors in the Busan area will be allowed starting from the 22nd.

On the 17th, the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education announced that it has informed schools to allow high school seniors who wish to participate in night self-study to do so voluntarily.

Earlier, from the 9th for three days, the Office of Education conducted a survey on the implementation of night self-study among parents and staff of high schools in the district. Based on the trend of the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in the Busan area and the survey results, the decision on night self-study was made.

The survey results showed that among the parents of high school seniors, 50.32% were in favor of operating night self-study, while 49.68% were opposed, making it difficult to determine a clear majority.

Accordingly, reflecting the situation where the spread of infectious diseases in the district has stopped, the Office of Education took the "night self-study hopeful students" approach. Considering the urgency of career and college preparation for high school seniors compared to repeat students, schools were allowed to operate night self-study autonomously for students who wish to participate.

Regarding the start date for night self-study for high school seniors, the parent survey results showed 69.8% favored starting on the 22nd, and 30.2% favored July 1st, leading to the decision to begin on the 22nd.

In the survey targeting parents of first and second-year high school students, the opposition to night self-study was higher than the support, so night self-study for first and second-year students will not be operated until further decisions are made.

In this survey, staff members showed a higher opposition to night self-study, citing difficulties in guiding social distancing during night self-study as the reason.

Byun Yong-kwon, Director of Secondary Education at the Office of Education, said, "We have fully collected opinions from parents and teachers and asked schools to allow night self-study only for students who wish to participate, prioritizing students' safety and health."

Previously, the Office of Education had maintained the principle that high school night self-study would be autonomously operated by schools for students who wish to participate, with the consent of students and parents.

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