Teacher Who Said "We Must Go Towards Communism"... Metropolitan Office of Education Launches Investigation

In Ulsan Korean History Class... "Why Do You Support the Yoon Government?"
Parents' Complaints Prompt San-si Education Office Investigation

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] A high school teacher in Ulsan made remarks during a Korean history class such as "The Itaewon tragedy is the government's responsibility, so why support the Yoon Seok-yeol administration?" and "We should move toward socialism and communism," prompting the Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education to launch a fact-finding investigation following a complaint.

The complaint was submitted to the Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education through the People's Petition system. According to the writer, who introduced themselves as a parent, Teacher A said in a Korean history class at the end of December last year, "Isn't the Itaewon tragedy the government's responsibility? I don't understand why 50% of people in their 20s support the Yoon administration."

Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education building exterior.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Furthermore, Teacher A reportedly said, "We should not remain in capitalism but move toward socialism and communism," "Many independence activists were socialists, but during the Korean War, the U.S. did not catch pro-Japanese collaborators but only socialists," and "President Yoon is promoting a policy where workers do not get paid for working on weekends, which is very unfavorable to laborers," according to the complainant.

In addition, the complainant raised concerns about remarks made by an invited external lecturer. The lecturer, invited to an after-school club activity supervised by Teacher A, reportedly said, "Christianity is declining these days, so they protest against homosexuality and queer festivals to collect tithes."

The complainant criticized, "I heard from my child that Teacher A often makes remarks unfavorable to the Yoon administration, making classes difficult," adding, "It is a serious problem that children, who are like blank slates, are exposed to overt political opinions during class and have no choice but to sit and absorb those words." They also added, "Club activities that convey untrue stories about a particular religion should not exist, and teachers who guide in such a direction should not be present."

The Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education, which received the complaint, has begun a fact-finding investigation. Through an interview with Teacher A, the office confirmed the facts, but Teacher A reportedly denied most of the allegations. Teacher A stated, "While expressing sorrow over the Itaewon tragedy, I made some government criticisms, but some parts have been somewhat distorted." Regarding the Christian-related remarks by the invited lecturer, Teacher A explained, "Those were the lecturer's personal opinions, and it was a fault not to properly explain this to the students." Teacher A also claimed, "The content related to socialism and communism is only what appears in the textbook, and I did not make any remarks about independence activists and socialists."

The Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education is conducting the investigation by comprehensively considering the differences in positions between the complainant and Teacher A, whether political remarks were made, and the teaching rights granted to the teacher. If the investigation finds any issues, it plans to request an audit in the future.

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