46 Gyeongnam Groups, Including Teachers, Parents and Unions, Call on Government to "Immediately Withdraw Education Grant Reform"

Forty-six organizations representing education, public officials, parents, and labor groups in Gyeongnam condemned the government's push to reform the local education finance grant system and unanimously called for the existing link to domestic tax revenue to be maintained.

The Gyeongnam Emergency Action Against Reform of Local Education Finance Grants held a press conference on the steps in front of the main entrance to the Gyeongnam Office of Education on the 15th, declaring, "We strongly condemn the government for plotting to cut education funding under the pretext of declining student numbers."

It continued, "The domestic tax revenue linkage system is a legal standard that has sustained public education for 55 years since its introduction in 1971, as well as an essential source of funding for city and provincial offices of education, which have no independent taxing authority." It called on the government and National Assembly to "maintain the current system, which links grants to 20.79% of domestic tax revenue."

The Gyeongnam Emergency Action in Response to the Reform of Local Education Finance Grants is calling on the government to withdraw its plan to reform the grants on the steps in front of the main entrance to the Gyeongsangnam-do Office of Education. [Photo by Lee Seryeong]

In August, the government announced that it would abolish the current system, under which 20.79% of total domestic tax revenue is allocated to local education finance grants, and introduce a new grant formula that reflects changes in the school-age population and nominal growth.

Starting next year, grants will be calculated using the formula: "previous year's grant × (1 + average nominal growth rate over the past three years) × {1 + (average change in the school-age population over the past three years × 0.35)."

If the proposed reform is implemented, under which the previous year's grant is multiplied by the "average nominal growth rate over the past three years" and "35% of the average change in the school-age population over the past three years," grants are expected to be about 20% lower next year than the target amount under the current system.

Superintendents of education nationwide and education groups have expressed concern that local education finance budgets will be cut and called for the proposal to be withdrawn.

The Gyeongnam Emergency Action predicted that, if the proposal takes effect, Gyeongnam's funding would fall by 300 billion to 400 billion won, worsening the educational environment and ultimately infringing on children's right to learn.

The group pointed out, "The government claims that the funding formula cannot be revised because the school-age population is declining. But essential fixed school costs, such as upgrading aging facilities, guaranteeing basic academic skills, and supporting special education, do not decrease in proportion to the number of students."

It added, "Among the country's 17 cities and provinces, Gyeongnam, with its high proportion of small schools in remote island and rural areas, will suffer the most severe financial blow from this grant reduction." It emphasized, "Cutting education funding will undermine Gyeongnam's educational foundation and only deepen the crisis of regional depopulation."

Kim Jiseong, head of the Gyeongnam branch of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union, said, "As I examined this reform, I felt keenly how much education is being neglected by politics. People say education is the future, but we must not allow our future to be treated this way. The Gyeongnam superintendent of education must make a firmer decision and take action."

Kim Gwangseop, head of the Gyeongnam chapter of the Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations, said, "Education is not an area that can be evaluated by numbers and efficiency. The fewer students there are, the more we need advanced, tailored education funding for edtech, basic academic skills, and mental health care, so that not a single child is left behind." He added, "Cutting local education funding will mark the beginning of a tragedy that accelerates regional depopulation."

Lee Chungsu, head of the Gyeongnam Teachers' Union, said, "The driving force that led the Republic of Korea from the ashes of the Korean War to industrialization, democratization, and becoming a powerhouse in artificial intelligence (AI) was the power of universal education. At its center was the local education finance grant system, which has sustained our education since 1971." He called for an immediate end to "armchair policies that reduce education, a hundred-year undertaking, to short-term calculations," and urged officials to listen to those on the ground and strengthen investment in universal public education.

At the event, the group urged the government to maintain the original system linking grants to 20.79% of domestic tax revenue; immediately scrap the grant reform proposal, which was pushed through without prior consultation or deliberation with stakeholders in the education sector, including teachers, education offices, parents, and students; establish a public deliberation body involving superintendents of education, teachers, parents, education workers, and civil society; and stop across-the-board cuts based on student numbers while developing measures for small schools and schools in rural areas.

It also called for an active response from the Gyeongnam Office of Education, saying, "Education funding is a legal responsibility of the state and cannot be arbitrarily cut in response to economic fluctuations."

Earlier, in August, Gyeongnam Superintendent of Education Kwon Sunki said at an emergency press conference held by the Korea National Association of Superintendents of Education at the National Assembly, "We oppose reforming the local education finance grant system without discussion with those on the ground."

Superintendents of education from 16 cities and provinces nationwide, including Superintendent Kwon, said, "To support future education and the stable operation of schools, the current system linking grants to domestic tax revenue must be maintained." "We cannot accept a reform proposal drawn up without meaningful consultation with city and provincial superintendents of education, who directly manage local education finances and are responsible for schools," they said.

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