All Busan 1st to 3rd Grade Students Requesting After-School Care Will Be Accepted

Busan Office of Education Launches 'Busan-style Neulbom School'

Strengthening Support to Prevent Increased Workload for Staff

All first to third grade elementary school students in the Busan area who wish to receive care will be accommodated at Neulbom School.

The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education (Superintendent Ha Yun-su) announced on the 23rd that starting this year, Neulbom School will be implemented across all 304 elementary schools in Busan, and all students who wish to participate will be fully accommodated.

This year, all first-grade students who wish to participate will be accommodated first, and it is expected that most second-grade students who wish to participate will also be accommodated. By next year, the plan is to accommodate 100% of first to third grade students who wish to participate.

To secure additional care spaces due to the full implementation of Neulbom School, 384 care classrooms will be added within schools this year (increasing from 715 to 1,099 rooms). If there is a shortage of care spaces within schools, 120 regional linked care facilities (increasing from 18 to 138 rooms) utilizing affiliated institutions, local governments, universities, and private kindergartens will be expanded. If students using regional linked care facilities have difficulty commuting on foot, transportation vehicles will also be provided.

For seven elementary schools in the Myeongji area, where demand for care is high and full accommodation is difficult, temporary use of apartment spaces and modular installations will be used to secure care spaces, with plans to resolve all shortages by September this year.

Additionally, to continuously secure care spaces, care facilities will be mandatorily expanded in newly established (or rebuilt) schools. Books provided by the education office and school libraries will be stocked in all care classrooms to foster habits of reading and to develop thinking skills and creativity.

For first to third graders, various after-school learning programs that enhance learning ability through care combined with reading, play-based learning, and sports activities will be operated. In particular, first graders will be provided with two hours of free after-school learning programs daily.

Programs such as the 3R’s Basic Academic Skills Program, AI PengTalk English Speaking, and Busan Speaking English 1.1.1. will be operated to support the improvement of self-directed learning abilities.

For fourth to sixth graders, excellent personnel and facilities from universities and local institutions will be utilized to introduce various new programs that are difficult to operate at schools, such as learning finance with ChatGPT and artificial intelligence through mathematics, providing high-quality after-school programs linked with academic elements.

Regular satisfaction surveys and monitoring will be conducted, and the results will be fed back to ensure the continuous operation of high-quality after-school programs. The operation of the ‘24-hour Care Center,’ which is always free for children aged 3 to third grade in elementary school who require emergency care, will be significantly expanded.

Currently, seven 24-hour care centers operating in a time-based care format using libraries, education office civil service offices, and community centers will be expanded to 30 centers by the end of this year.

To prevent an increase in workload for school staff due to the implementation of Neulbom School, administrative support personnel will be assigned at a rate of one person per two schools (154 people) within the first semester, and 120 already secured temporary teachers will be operated on a temporary basis.

Sixty-one Neulbom School managers (one per five schools) will be assigned for overall management including personnel management and school administrative support, and additional care specialists will be assigned to meet the increased demand for care classrooms, with relaxed placement standards.

The School Administrative Support Headquarters will establish an administrative support system to improve convenience by allowing parents to electronically apply for care services at a glance, including information on care facilities (locations), instead of manually submitting notices as before. The Neulbom After-School Support Team and Care Call Center will be operated to expand practical support.

To prepare for safety accidents related to regional linked Neulbom care, the location of ‘regional linked care’ will be reflected on commuting safety maps, student safety education will be strengthened, and the education office will directly support student safety insurance fees. Additionally, requests will be made to local governments to install additional CCTV in blind spots near regional linked Neulbom facilities.

Budgets for personnel expenses and operating costs for regional linked Neulbom Schools operated by kindergartens, daycare centers, universities, and local facilities will be supported by the education office based on actual expenses incurred.

Ha Yun-su, Superintendent of Busan Metropolitan Office of Education, stated, “In the face of regional extinction crises, through the promotion of the Education Development Special Zone, we will provide all support so that our children can grow and stay here, ensuring that not a single child is left behind not only in education and welfare but also in care.”

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