Jeon Byeong-ju, Seoul City Councilor: "Revision Needed from Kindergarten to Early Childhood School"

"Claim that the term 'Yuchiwon,' a remnant of the Japanese colonial era, should be promptly changed to 'Yua School'"

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Jeon Byeong-ju, Vice Chairman of the Education Committee of the Seoul Metropolitan Council (Democratic Party, Gwangjin 1), called for the abolition of the use of the kindergarten name, a remnant of the Japanese colonial period, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Liberation Day on August 15.

According to Assemblyman Jeon Byeong-ju, the term kindergarten originated during the Japanese colonial period when the German word kindergarten was mistranslated into Japanese, and has been widely used since then. He pointed out the need to reconsider changing the name of early childhood schools on the 75th anniversary of liberation.

He also argued that although kindergartens are defined as 'schools' under the Early Childhood Education Act, just like elementary, middle, and high schools defined under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the use of the term kindergarten has caused confusion about whether they are included as formal schools, resulting in weakened accountability for early childhood education compared to elementary and middle schools.

Furthermore, he stated, “To strengthen the state's responsibility for early childhood education and to manage the quality of early childhood education through public control, early childhood education should be converted into compulsory education.”

Vice Chairman Jeon Byeong-ju previously proposed a recommendation at the 4th Education Committee meeting of the 287th regular session of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, urging amendments to the Framework Act on Education and the Early Childhood Education Act to implement compulsory early childhood education and change the kindergarten name.

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