Gangdong-gu 'Age 0 Class Teacher-to-Child Ratio Changes from 1:3 to 1:2'

Gangdong-gu 'Age 0 class: 3 children → 2 children · Age 3 class: 15 children → 10 children'

Teacher-to-child ratio improvement project underway

Enhancing quality of care through close infant and toddler care... Creating a safe childcare environment

Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Su-hee) announced on the 27th that it will pilot the ‘Gangdong-type Teacher-to-Child Ratio Project’ starting this March to improve childcare teachers' working conditions and create a safe childcare environment.

Currently, the Infant and Toddler Care Act stipulates the teacher-to-child ratio by age as follows: 3 children per teacher for age 0, 5 children for age 1, 7 children for age 2, 15 children for age 3, and 20 children for age 4 and above.

Reducing the number of children per childcare teacher below the legal standard to create a safe childcare environment

The ‘Gangdong-type Teacher-to-Child Ratio Improvement Project’ is designed to reduce the number of children cared for by each childcare teacher below the legal standard and increase the number of teachers. This aims to create a safer childcare environment and reduce the workload of childcare teachers, thereby improving the quality of care.

First, the district will pilot the project targeting age 0 and age 3 classes. For age 0, due to significant developmental differences caused by months of age, focused care by childcare teachers is necessary. For age 3, the teacher-to-child ratio sharply increases, significantly raising the childcare burden. Accordingly, the district plans to reduce the number of children per teacher from 3 to 2 in the ‘age 0 class’ and from 15 to 10 in the ‘age 3 class,’ operating the pilot project from March through December this year.

Gangdong-type Teacher-to-Child Ratio Improvement Project... Support expanded to private and home daycare centers

The ‘Gangdong-type Teacher-to-Child Ratio Improvement Project’ expands on the Seoul city teacher-to-child ratio improvement project, which supported public daycare centers, to include all types of daycare centers, including private and home daycare centers.

Previously, the district assessed enrollment rates and childcare room space conditions by daycare center type and gathered various opinions to ensure a safe childcare environment.

Earlier this month, the district accepted applications from daycare centers wishing to participate in the project. The eligibility criteria require that for the ‘age 0 class,’ at least 3 classes (6 children) and for the ‘age 3 class,’ at least 2 classes (15 children) must be operable, and the exclusive childcare room area must be at least 2.64㎡ per child. After screening, the district finally selected 3 public, 7 private, and 2 home daycare centers to participate in this year’s pilot project.

The district expects positive effects such as reduced job stress for childcare teachers due to the decreased teacher-to-child ratio and improved childcare environment through increased interaction between children and teachers.

Accordingly, the district plans to complete the pilot operation this year with a total of 12 daycare centers in the region and gradually expand the project to more daycare centers in the future.

Lee Su-hee, Mayor of Gangdong-gu, stated, “We expect the Gangdong-type Teacher-to-Child Ratio Improvement Pilot Project to create a safe childcare environment in daycare centers and improve the quality of childcare services. Going forward, the district will do its best to prepare various policies to ensure a safe childcare environment so that parents of infants and toddlers can feel at ease.”

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