Starting Next Year, 'Education Development Zones' to Operate... Experts Say "University Collaboration and Administrative Integration Are Key"

Government Announces 'Education Development Special Zone Promotion Plan'
Support System Established from Early Childhood to University
Talent from Special-Purpose High Schools Must Be Recruited to Universities
Integration of Administrative Support Between Local Governments and Universities Is Key

On the 2nd, the government announced plans to promote the establishment of 'Education Development Special Zones' to address regional educational imbalances. However, it is expected that systematic and concrete policy design must support the government's efforts to balance education between the metropolitan area and local regions through related systems. Education experts emphasized that methods to absorb talented high school students into universities and administrative coordination between institutions and universities must be supported.

The main point of the 'Education Development Special Zone Promotion Plan' draft announced by the Ministry of Education and the Presidential Committee on the Local Era on the same day is to create a system where local governments, education offices, universities, regional companies, and public institutions cooperate to comprehensively support regional education and talent development. The plan is to establish a support system from early childhood and care to elementary, middle, and high school, and university levels, linking employment within the region.

November 2nd, 2 PM Embargo----- Jang Sang-yoon, Deputy Minister of Education, is announcing the draft plan for the promotion of the Special Education Development Zone at a joint briefing of the Local Era Committee and the Ministry of Education held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 31st. Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

Professor Kim Seongcheon of the Department of Educational Policy at Korea National University of Education said, "The education sector has a strong 'partition culture,' and the linkage structure within local governments, education offices, and universities is weak," adding, "A collaborative model among each sector must be created through the policy announced this time." Professor Jeong Jeyoung of the Department of Education at Ewha Womans University also said, "This policy provides a framework for autonomous development in the respective regions," and "a follow-up task to design concrete plans tailored to the characteristics of each city and province is necessary."

However, since regional support models have not been disclosed except for the plan to apply special cases by region, opinions have emerged that prerequisites must be met to ensure effectiveness. In particular, there is criticism that although there are autonomous private high schools and prestigious high schools within regions, they do not lead to the recruitment of local talent. For the Education Development Special Zones to be effective, a systematic structure linking admissions to employment must be established.

Professor Song Kichang of the Department of Education at Sookmyung Women's University said, "The current major problem is that students from specialized high schools or science high schools move to universities in Seoul and other metropolitan areas after graduation," and predicted, "If students are encouraged to remain at local universities through regional talent admission tracks, significant effects can be expected." In fact, the government explained in this announcement that it would autonomously expand the proportion of regional talents in highly preferred departments such as advanced technology fields, so it remains to be seen how effective this will be.

The Policy Committee Office of the Justice Party also released a statement the day before, saying, "Although birth rates are higher in local areas than in the metropolitan area, talented individuals continue to flow into the metropolitan area for university admission after high school graduation and for employment after university graduation," and expressed concern that "if only the Education Development Special Zones are promoted without solving these problems, it could be distorted into another channel for the outflow of regional talent."

Since existing projects and institutions have different systems, how effectively they are integrated and operated is also crucial. The National Assembly Budget Office stated in the 'Regional Specialized Development Special Zone Project Evaluation Report' that "there is a risk that the project may become poorly executed and ineffective due to the failure to secure funds for specialized projects as originally planned," and "a detailed review of whether prior consultations on funding plans with local governments, related institutions, and companies are conducted is required when designating regional special zones." Professor Kim said, "The positions of local governments, regional education offices, and universities in the region differ in many respects," and added, "These issues must be resolved to achieve effectiveness."

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