Full-Scale Promotion of Yeongdeungpo Innovation Education District Project

Promotion of Village-Integrated Curricula Including Musical, Landmark Exploration, and Art Experience... Expansion of Village After-School Programs... Discovery of New Hub Spaces and Development of Content and Programs... Establishment of Innovation Education Monitoring Team and Strengthening of Public-Private-Academic Governance Including Village-Integrated Innovation Schools

Scene from the '2020 Online Popo Festa Live Communication Opening Ceremony' held for 30 minutes from 2 PM on October 24 last year (MC Youth Autonomy Union ‘Yu.Ja.Chung’ active youth)

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Yeongdeungpo District (District Mayor Chaehyunil) is set to fully launch the Yeongdeungpo Innovation Education Zone project in 2021 under the vision of "A village and school where no child is left behind and everyone moves forward together."

This year, the flagship project of the Yeongdeungpo Innovation Education Zone is the operation of the "Village-Integrated Curriculum."

It consists of village-school close-knit programs that support healthy and safe leisure activities for children and youth, providing practical learning experiences.

Key programs include the musical performance "Mamma Mia Safety Classroom" by the Parent Safety Theater Group, as well as village exploration programs such as ▲Our Neighborhood Expedition ▲Yeongdeungpo Village Nuri ▲Visiting Career Expedition Team.

In particular, the "River Forest Ecology School," a village-linked ecological transformation education program responding to the climate crisis, will be newly introduced this year.

The district is also strengthening the village activity support system by expanding village-based after-school programs under titles like "Visiting Space School" and "n Lives - n Schools" through the development of village-based educational content. Last year, 79 programs were operated in 22 locations, with about 4,000 participants.

Additionally, through the youth autonomy union "Yu.Ja.Chung" and the youth club support project "Jamong (自夢) Project," children and youth will be supported to grow as agents of life in both school and village settings in a substantial manner.

Public-private-academic governance will also be further strengthened. Starting this year, support will be provided for the operation of village-integrated innovation schools to activate governance at the school and neighborhood levels, with pilot governance operations at the neighborhood level.

Alongside this, an Innovation Education Zone monitoring team will be established, and parent club support projects and parent academies will be conducted to realize the values of innovation education?coexistence, cooperation, and growth?and to activate parent networks.

The regionally specialized project "Yeongdeungpo Dream Bojagi," reflecting Yeongdeungpo’s unique characteristics and issues, will continue. Representative programs include career art experience activities linked to the middle school free semester system and the newly established Yeongdeungpo-style "Wise Social Economy Exploration Life," which supports educational content in connection with social economy enterprises.

The district will also focus on building a healthy school culture and educational safety net for multicultural families and marginalized students through projects such as the "Dream Together Project" and "Dream High Classroom."

Moreover, leveraging the district’s characteristics, various projects that residents can tangibly experience will be promoted, including the "Popo Festa," an educational festival covering four fields (books, science, career, youth).

Previously, since 2016, the district has pursued the establishment of public-private-academic governance involving the city, district, education office, schools, and residents, aiming to realize a village-school educational community through diverse stakeholder participation and cooperation.

Based on this, the district has steadily implemented various projects such as ▲operating village-integrated curricula linked to village resources ▲strengthening village activity support systems ▲supporting children and youth autonomy activities, which has been praised for expanding educational infrastructure in the region and activating networks among participating stakeholders.

Chaehyunil, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo District, stated, "Now entering its sixth year and a stable phase, the Yeongdeungpo Innovation Education Zone will continue to support the balanced growth of governance participants including students, parents, teachers, and residents. By sharing the values and philosophy of the Innovation Education Zone, we will create a happy village-school educational community through learning connected to life."

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