"Controversy Over Children's Literacy... An Issue Since the 1990s"

Professor Shin Ji-young, Department of Korean Language and Literature at Korea University
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At the 578th Hangeul Day commemorative 'National Dictation Contest,' a participant is writing down the given text on a practice sheet. Photo by Yonhap News

With Hangul Day (the 9th) approaching, the lack of literacy skills among students has emerged as a serious issue. Professor Shin Ji-young of Korea University's Department of Korean Language and Literature stated that it is difficult to measure literacy skills solely based on controversial words such as 'sibaljeom' and 'ibujari'.

On the 8th, during CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' Professor Shin explained, "These are not words that are rarely used in daily life. It is a lack of vocabulary, but lacking vocabulary does not necessarily mean lacking literacy skills." She added, "Words are used more or less over time, and some disappear or are newly created. The problem lies with adults assuming that children naturally know these words."

According to the 'Teacher Perception Survey on Student Literacy Status' conducted by the Korea Federation of Teachers' Associations, which surveyed 5,848 elementary, middle, and high school teachers nationwide, about half of the teachers responded that 2 out of 10 students lack literacy skills. Examples cited by over 5,000 teachers of situations where they were embarrassed or perplexed by students' poor literacy include: "During a debate on freedom of hairstyle, a student thought 'hair' referred to 'two legs'," "When I said 'the starting point (始發點) of the incident,' a student asked if I was cursing," "Mistaking 'geumil' (today) for Friday," "Not understanding the meaning of 'three round trips'," and "Thinking 'ibujari' (bedding) was a constellation."

Professor Shin gave an example from a 1980s newspaper article. He said, "It was a thesis published by a professor at a certain university stating that the Korean language skills of university students are seriously declining nowadays," and added, "The claim that children's literacy is declining has been around since the 1990s." He also mentioned that the adult reading rate was just over 40% as of last year. Professor Shin criticized, "Looking at the parent generation, reading rates sharply drop from the 40s age group. Adults need to read books so that children can see and learn."

Professor Shin argued that school education should also be checked to see if it aligns with the educational goals we aim for. He emphasized, "To improve literacy skills, more practical education in speaking, listening, writing, and reading functions is necessary," and added, "Korean language education, which requires a lot of effort, must be conducted." He compared language use to dressing. Professor Shin said, "When writing or speaking, children need to know which words are used in which situations," and stressed, "Education is needed that explains specific reasons, such as 'this clothing is not worn in this situation, but rather that clothing should be worn in that situation.'"

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