Gwangju Office of Education’s International Exchange Sees Zero Participation from Out-of-School Youth

Not a Single Out-of-School Youth Among 283 Participants This Year
Violation of Non-Discrimination Principle and Lack of Support Pointed Out
Special Admissions Track for Socially Disadvantaged Also Fails to Meet Quotas Every Year

There have been criticisms that the international exchange programs, which the Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education is promoting as a key initiative, are being operated without considering out-of-school youth. Among the 283 participants this year, not a single out-of-school youth was included.

Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education.

On September 23, the Citizens’ Coalition for a Society Without Academic Elitism stated, "The international exchange project of the Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education is disregarding the principle of non-discrimination stipulated by the Framework Act on Youth and the Act on Support for Out-of-School Youth." Last year, only one out-of-school youth participated among 348 participants in the international exchange program.

The city office of education is operating 15 international exchange programs with the goal of nurturing global leaders with a sense of global citizenship, in line with Superintendent Lee Jungseon's campaign pledge. The civic group said, "Out-of-school youth are outside the formal education system for various reasons such as alternative education, family circumstances, health, or social environment, but they are not outside the realm of education itself." They added, "If the city office of education ignores their rights, it undermines its own status as the first city in the country to enact an ordinance supporting out-of-school youth."

The special admissions track for socially disadvantaged students in the international exchange programs has also failed to meet its recruitment targets every year. Last year, only 81 out of 100 places were filled, and this year, only 52 out of 82. The civic group pointed out that the cause is a lack of promotion and support.

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