Yubotonghap, Gyeongnam Office of Education Leads the Way!

The Gyeongnam Office of Education has been selected as a '2023 Leading Education Office for Integrated Early Childhood Care and Education' by the Ministry of Education.

According to the provincial Office of Education, integrated early childhood care and education is a policy that supports all children aged 0 to 5 to receive high-quality education and care services without discrimination, regardless of the institution they attend.

On the 15th, the Ministry of Education selected the Gyeongnam Office of Education, along with the Seoul, Daegu, Incheon, Sejong, Gyeonggi, Chungbuk, Jeonbuk, and Gyeongbuk Offices of Education, as leading education offices.

Accordingly, the provincial Office of Education announced on the 16th that it will proactively implement preparations to reduce the educational and care gaps between kindergartens and daycare centers and improve the quality of education.

From September this year until 2024, it will operate as a leading education office and receive a special grant of 94.4 million KRW from the Office of Education to cover expenses necessary for promoting Gyeongnam projects in the second half of 2023.

Gyeongnam Office of Education.
Photo by Lee Seryeong

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Under the slogan "Renewed through Integrated Early Childhood Care and Education, Beneficial through Mutual Growth," teacher training and Nuri Curriculum consulting (support) will be conducted to strengthen teachers' expertise in early childhood education and provide field-centered customized counseling.

Maintaining a collaborative system with the provincial government, training and consulting focused on early childhood and play will be provided to all kindergarten and daycare center teachers in the province.

The key tasks of operating the leading education office include ▲strengthening teachers' expertise and capabilities in early childhood education ▲enhancing trust in early childhood education institutions through early childhood and play-centered consulting support ▲expanding participation in curriculum-centered projects to share play-centered cases ▲establishing a foundation for mutual understanding between institutions and supporting training to promote mutual understanding, thereby laying the groundwork for integrated early childhood care and education.

The provincial Office of Education operates a 'Hub Kindergarten' that supports early childhood and play-centered curricula and provides local early childhood education information, and improves classroom instruction by sharing classroom research activities such as 'Curriculum Operation Practice Presentations' and 'Class Sharing Festivals.'

Lee Kyung-hee, Director of Early Childhood Special Education, said, "We want to use the operation of the leading education office for integrated early childhood care and education as an opportunity for mutual understanding between kindergartens and daycare centers," adding, "We will strive to create educational conditions where all children, the core of integrated early childhood care and education, can grow as precious individuals without discrimination, and we hope that the operation of the leading education office will serve as a cornerstone for integrated early childhood care and education."