Imsil Bonghwang Talent Academy Leads Talent Development... Tackling Educational Inequality

Published 10 Jan.2024 15:05(KST)

Imsil Bonghwang Talent Academy, which has been leading efforts to eliminate educational inequality between urban and rural areas, as well as between regions and social classes, and to nurture customized talents required by future society, has taken a strong step forward as it enters its 7th year since opening.

According to the county on the 10th, Imsil Bonghwang Talent Academy selected a total of 202 students, including 150 middle school students and 52 high school students from the district, through a recruitment announcement and selection exam for new students last December, and started the first attendance on the 8th.

Imsil Bonghwang Talent Academy. [Photo by Imsil-gun]

It also conducts educational program classes aimed at improving academic achievement for middle and high school students.

The middle school division consists of 9 classes in total, with 3 classes per grade, and the high school division consists of 3 classes in total, with 1 class per grade, making 12 classes in total. After-school education is provided focusing on Korean, English, and Mathematics subjects by instructors from the Seoul metropolitan area who graduated from prestigious universities.

On weekends, advanced classes are operated, and during final and midterm exam periods, special lectures on science and history subjects are held, receiving great responses from local parents and students.

In particular, the academy operates personalized programs by measuring each student's learning strategy, personality type, and learning ability, and runs extracurricular programs such as career aptitude tests in parallel, helping students not only improve their learning abilities but also develop the capacity to design their own career paths.

Bonghwang Talent Academy runs counseling weeks to provide time for communication regarding students' grades, college admissions, and learning concerns, and based on this, plans to send monthly regular newsletters to resolve parents' questions.

Additionally, to support students' safe commuting to and from school, the academy signed a business agreement with the local taxi association and plans to operate three buses and fourteen taxis, preparing various support measures so students can focus on their studies with peace of mind.

Since its opening in 2018, Bonghwang Talent Academy has produced 150 graduates annually and is evaluated as having improved the insufficient educational infrastructure and raised the quality of secondary education significantly.

Since last year, it has been operating a high school division and is making every effort to nurture local talents.

Notably, it has been recognized as a major achievement that the academy has transformed from an educationally underserved area, where children had to leave for neighboring cities for education, into an educational hub that attracts people back through education.

County Governor Shim Min said, “Bonghwang Talent Academy has contributed greatly to improving the educational environment in rural areas and closing the academic gap with large cities. We will continue to spare no support to nurture the next generation of talents who will lead the region.”