Teacher Wearing Bulletproof Vest to Work... "Students Threatened to Kill Me After Criticizing Their Attitude in Class"

A current high school teacher working at a high school in Gunsan, Jeonbuk, was revealed to have worn a stab-proof vest to work after receiving death threats from students.

According to a statement from the Jeonbuk Teachers' Union on the 17th, Teacher A received continuous death threats for two years from a student whose poor attitude during class was pointed out. The Jeonbuk Teachers' Union claimed that the students repeatedly said things like "I will definitely kill you," "I will stab you in any part of your body with a knife and kill you," "I will tear your family apart and kill them," and "We are minors, so we won't face criminal punishment, so it's okay," in front of many other students.

A teacher claiming to have received death threats from students is wearing a stab-proof vest in the classroom.
[Photo by Jeonbuk Teachers' Union]

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Other students who could not stand watching this voluntarily informed the teacher about the threats from the offending students. They also prepared a witness statement. Upon hearing this, Teacher A experienced extreme stress and wore a stab-proof vest to school for a while.

The union explained, "The teacher is under severe stress, wears a stab-proof vest to work, and has been recommended psychiatric leave for more than six months," adding, "The school principal has shown a passive attitude toward separating the students involved and protecting the victimized teacher."

They continued, "The School Teachers' Rights Protection Committee took mild measures because the students wanted to apologize to the victimized teacher, but ultimately the students did not apologize, and some students and their guardians have filed administrative appeals against the committee's decisions, showing no sign of remorse," and "The victimized teacher has filed civil and criminal lawsuits to create a safe educational environment and to make the still minor students reflect on their wrongdoings before they become adults."

The union also stated, "Some of the students and guardians suspected of violating teachers' rights reported the teacher for child abuse in January based on disciplinary actions taken two years ago," and argued that "most of the allegations are based on false information, raising suspicions that this is a retaliatory child abuse report," asserting the teacher's innocence of child abuse charges.

Furthermore, the union requested the Jeonbuk Provincial Office of Education, "Instead of concealing or downplaying the infringement on educational activities, please protect the victimized teacher and guide the offending students to reflect on their actions," and "We demand strengthening the protection of teachers' educational activities so that teachers can focus on student guidance and education."

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