Gyeonggi Superintendent An Minseok: "Teacher Protection Officers Play a Key Role in Safeguarding Teachers and Reviving Education"

An Minseok, Superintendent of Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, urged the officers dedicated to protecting teachers’ rights to proactively respond onsite, emphasizing, "You bear the weighty responsibility of safeguarding teachers while reviving education in Korea."

During the capacity-building training for school authority protection officers held on August 18, Superintendent An stated, "With the appointment of 300 officers for the protection of teachers’ rights, a system has been established to provide relief and comfort to teachers at the frontlines. If you are swiftly deployed onsite and fulfill your roles, teachers will no longer have to face issues in isolation."

He continued, "Restoring hope in education is synonymous with ensuring the future of Korea," stressing, "The future of Korean education rests on your shoulders, as officers dedicated to safeguarding teachers’ authority."

This training was designed to enhance the procedures and onsite response capabilities regarding different types of infringements of teachers’ rights, such as child abuse allegations, serious interference in educational activities, and malicious complaints. It was held twice, on the 13th and the 18th, with Superintendent An attending the August 18 session to encourage the officers.

An Minseok, Superintendent of Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, is speaking at the Capacity Building Training for the Director of Teacher's Rights Protection on the 18th. Provided by Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education.

At the training session, guidelines on the operation of the school authority protection officer system were provided, along with response training tailored to cases of child abuse reports, serious disruptions to educational activities, and malicious complaints, as well as a special lecture by experts. The onsite response manual development team presented response strategies based on real cases, while Moon Nayoun, deputy head of the Teacher Protection Task Force and an attorney, delivered a practical session on "Laws and Systems Related to the Protection of Teachers' Authority at the Frontline."

School authority protection officers provide one-on-one support for teachers facing infringements of their rights, from the initial occurrence of an incident through to its resolution. The officers consist of experts from diverse fields in the province, including teachers, lawyers, doctors, counseling experts, and police officers, who together offer comprehensive aid in fact-finding, legal advice, psychological counseling and recovery, as well as follow-up care.

The provincial office plans to hold an inauguration ceremony for the school authority protection officers on August 22, officially launching their activities. Moving forward, the office will strengthen an integrated support system that spans prevention, response, and recovery, aiming to create a Gyeonggi education environment where teachers can focus on teaching with peace of mind and students can concentrate on learning.

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