"Student Character Levels Are Low" Increase for Three Consecutive Years

Korean Educational Development Institute Reports Highest Teacher Trust in 10 Years
"Impact of 2023's Teacher Rights Violations and School Violence Expected"

While the public views student character as an important factor, the actual level of character is evaluated negatively. On the other hand, perceptions of teachers have become more positive. The education sector attributes this to issues such as violations of teachers' rights and school violence last year.

According to the "2023 Education Opinion Survey" by the Korea Educational Development Institute on the 22nd, when 4,000 adults nationwide were asked about the character level of elementary, middle, and high school students, 45.9% responded negatively. This is the highest figure in the past five years of surveys and the first time that "average" (40.2%) was surpassed.

Negative responses that "student character level is low" have increased every year for the past three years. It rose from 36.8% in 2021 to 38.9% in 2022, and 45.9% last year. In this survey, when asked which factor should be most reflected in college admissions, "character" ranked first, surpassing the "College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT)" for the first time in six years. This means that while student character is seen as more important than grades, the character level is evaluated negatively.

Although public perception of student character was negative, perceptions related to teachers changed positively. Regarding trust in teachers' abilities and qualities, 32.7% responded that they "trust" or "strongly trust" teachers. This is 6.3 percentage points higher than the 26.4% in the same survey last year.

In particular, public trust in elementary, middle, and high school teachers reached its highest level in 10 years. When the annual survey responses were converted to a 5-point average, last year's public trust in teachers overall was 3.14, and parents' trust in teachers was 3.15, both the highest in the past decade.

This result is interpreted as being influenced by the heightened awareness of teachers' rights violations last year. A Korea Educational Development Institute official explained, "There was the tragic case of a teacher at Seoi Elementary School last year, and many incidents related to school violence and teachers' rights raised awareness."

However, it is uncertain whether this survey response will become a long-term trend. The official added, "The survey period, July to August last year, was when social issues related to teachers' rights violations were strongly emphasized. Since the same group is not surveyed repeatedly every year, it is difficult to make a definitive judgment."

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