The Shadow of Low Birthrate... Even After Merging 4 Middle Schools, Total Enrollment Is Less Than 50 Students

Development of 'Hub-type Optimal Scale School' Model... First Attempt at Large-scale Consolidation
Integration of Four Middle Schools: Daegangjung, Sujijung, Geumjijung, and Songdongjung into One

As the school-age population declines, four middle schools in the western region of Namwon, Jeonbuk Province, are expected to be merged into one.

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On the 1st, the Jeonbuk Provincial Office of Education announced plans to integrate four middle schools in the western region of Namwon (Daegang Middle School, Suji Middle School, Geumji Middle School, and Songdong Middle School) into a single school. The goal is to develop a 'hub-type appropriately sized school' model by merging middle schools with low student numbers. This will be the first large-scale school consolidation in the province that crosses town, township, and neighborhood boundaries.

Among the four schools scheduled for consolidation, the school with the fewest students has only 3 students, while the school with the most has just 21 students. The total number of students across the four schools is 42. Suji Middle School, due to its low enrollment, is scheduled to close in August.

The integrated school will be located at one of the four existing school sites, chosen with consideration for student accessibility and other factors. The old buildings will be demolished and new facilities constructed. The provincial education office stated that after conducting feasibility studies and holding community briefings, the site for the integrated school will be selected as early as the first half of this year. If the project proceeds smoothly, the integrated school could be launched as early as 2028.

An official from the provincial education office said, "Having an appropriately sized school allows for increased investment in facilities and educational programs, which improves the quality of education and ensures the sustainability of the school." They added, "We aim to make the integrated school a model school and a benchmark for the consolidation of rural schools struggling with declining school-age populations."

Meanwhile, with the rapid decline in the school-age population due to low birth rates, school closures are accelerating accordingly. According to surveys by the Ministry of Education and local education offices, out of 12,027 elementary, middle, and high schools nationwide this year, 33 schools are scheduled to close. This is more than double the 18 closures in 2023. Additionally, as of 2023, the number of schools with 10 or fewer incoming students includes ▲Gyeongbuk (344 schools) ▲Jeonnam (343 schools) ▲Jeonbuk (301 schools) ▲Gangwon (252 schools) ▲Chungnam (233 schools) ▲Gyeongnam (233 schools) ▲Gyeonggi (156 schools) ▲Chungbuk (139 schools). In Gyeongbuk, 36.6% of all elementary, middle, and high schools have 10 or fewer incoming students, and in Jeonnam, the figure is 40.9%. As the risk of school extinction is expected to worsen, there is a growing call for proactive government measures.

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