"Is My Child's Father Really That Angry?"... 'Teachers' Rights Protection Team' from 'Real Class' Becomes Reality

Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education Launches Teacher Rights Protection Task Force

First in the Nation to Introduce "Teacher Rights Protection Officer" System

The Gyeonggi Province Office of Education will launch the "Teachers' Rights Protection Team" and establish a dedicated Teachers' Rights Protection Officer system to protect teachers from malicious complaints and infringements on their rights.

An Minseok, Superintendent of the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education, approved the "Teachers' Rights Protection Team Operation Plan" as his second official policy decision on July 13, 2026, following his inauguration.

Kim Mu-yeol, lead actor of Netflix's "Real Class," captured from YouTube's "Netflix Korea"

The Teachers' Rights Protection Team is a direct response unit under the superintendent's command, with Superintendent An personally serving as the head. The team will oversee major cases of rights violations and policies to protect educational activities.

Until now, limitations in support systems for affected teachers have been consistently pointed out, as responses to teachers' rights violations, indiscriminate child abuse reports, and malicious complaints have been scattered across various departments, forcing victimized teachers to navigate complex procedures themselves.

The Gyeonggi Province Office of Education plans to centralize investigations, legal support, counseling, healing, and educational activity protection work—previously dispersed among departments—around the Teachers' Rights Protection Team. The office aims to establish a comprehensive response system that takes responsibility for incidents from occurrence to resolution and recovery.

In particular, for the first time in the country, the new Teachers' Rights Protection Officer system will provide one-on-one support for teachers who have suffered rights violations, offering initial counseling, on-site response, fact-finding, legal consultation, psychological and healing support, and post-incident care.

The Office of Education will publicly recruit 50 Teachers' Rights Protection Officers from among citizens with interest and expertise in teachers' rights protection. This includes current and former teachers, as well as professionals in law, counseling, mental health, and conflict mediation.

As it operates the Teachers' Rights Protection Team, the Office also plans to establish a new department under the superintendent tentatively named the "Bureau for the Protection of Educational Activities" in the future.

An Minseok, Superintendent of Gyeonggi Province Office of Education. Superintendent An's Facebook

Superintendent An Minseok Announces Public Recruitment for Teachers' Rights Protection Officers: "Please Stand with Our Teachers"

On this day, Superintendent An also announced the plan for a public recruitment of Teachers' Rights Protection Officers. Through his Facebook page, he stated, "With a spirit of mutual cooperation, we are opening applications for anyone in Gyeonggi Province interested in teachers' rights protection—including lawyers, doctors, counselors, police officers, and retired teachers—to become Teachers' Rights Protection Officers." He added, "The Office of Education will now shoulder the burden of teachers' rights infringements that teachers have had to bear alone."

He continued, "The superintendent, the Teachers' Rights Protection Officers, and every employee of the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education will serve as a strong shield to protect educational activities. We will never forget the sacrifices of our teachers. Please stand together to protect them."

After Netflix's "Real Class," Discussions to Improve Teachers' Rights Protection Accelerate

The Netflix drama "Real Class," which addressed the issue of teachers' rights violations, generated significant public response and has accelerated discussions on institutional reforms to restore teachers' rights. In this context, Superintendent An Minseok expressed his commitment to establishing a new organization called the "Bureau for the Protection of Teachers' Rights," inspired by the fictional organization in the Netflix drama "Real Class."

Superintendent An stated, "The issue of the Bureau for the Protection of Teachers' Rights, triggered by the 'Real Class' series, has become a heated topic. I suggested that we take this opportunity to candidly discuss the reality of our classrooms and bring the idea of a Bureau for the Protection of Teachers' Rights into public debate. I did not want it to be dismissed as just another trending drama or for the issue to fade away like a passing fad."

He emphasized, "Protecting teachers' rights is not just about safeguarding teachers; it is also about upholding students' right to learn and ensuring the sustainability of public education. This is an urgent issue that must not be ignored. The protection of educational activities I advocate is not merely about strengthening teachers' authority; it is about establishing the foundation for protecting students' learning rights and public trust in education."

However, Superintendent An drew a clear line regarding violent methods of protecting teachers' rights as depicted in the drama. He stated, "No educator would ever condone violence or human rights violations as shown in the drama."

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