Jeon Seohyun of Jeonnam Provincial Assembly Raises Concerns Over Training Gap at Wando Fisheries High School Due to Decommissioning of Training Vessel

Must Thoroughly Prepare to Ensure Students' Right to Education Is Not Infringed

Concerns have been raised about a potential gap in student training following the planned decommissioning of the Cheonghaejin-ho, the training vessel of Wando Fisheries High School in Jeonnam.

At the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education's review of the 2024 fiscal year settlement and reserve fund expenditure approval held on June 13, Jeon Seohyun, a proportional representative of the People Power Party in the Jeonnam Provincial Assembly, stated, "While I understand that the decommissioning of the Cheonghaejin-ho is a decision made for student safety, a considerable budget was invested in inspections and repairs for this vessel even last year, so a thorough explanation is necessary."

Jeon Seohyun Jeonnam Provincial Assembly Member

Jeon particularly emphasized, "There are concerns from the field that the required on-board training hours for obtaining maritime officer qualifications may be insufficient, as the Haenuri-ho offers shorter training periods compared to the previous Cheonghaejin-ho. Therefore, supplementary measures are needed to ensure students have enough time for practical training."

She also said, "Wando Fisheries High School is a school with a tradition of nurturing local talent for the fisheries industry. During the process of replacing the training vessel, it is essential to communicate closely with the local community and thoroughly prepare to ensure that there is no disruption to student education and that students' educational rights are not infringed upon."

In response, Jeon Seona, Director of Career Education, explained, "The Provincial Office of Education, together with the Jeonbuk, Gyeongnam, Gyeongbuk, and Chungnam Offices of Education, has been promoting a 'joint training vessel construction project' to address safety issues caused by the aging of fisheries high school training ships. In June, the construction of the Haenuri-ho was completed, and it is now being operated with an annual shared cost of about 1.2 billion KRW."

Director Jeon added, "We are developing training plans with student safety as our top priority. Currently, there are no major issues for second- and third-year students in meeting training requirements, but some difficulties are expected for first-year students in securing enough training time. We are working in consultation with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Korea Institute of Maritime and Fisheries Technology to secure additional training periods using not only the Haenuri-ho but also the Hanmir-ho." She continued, "We will prepare a variety of measures and respond proactively to ensure that there are no gaps in student training."

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