Kim Man-gon's Educational Forum What's the Fun in Going to School?
She appeared to be about a third-year middle school student. Carrying a heavy backpack, she was coming down the path in front of an apartment building. With hair falling down and covering her face, I was startled for a moment, and as I passed by, I could barely catch a glimpse of her expression. It was severely distorted.
In that instant, I felt inexplicably sorry for the girl. What kind of suffering or sorrow might be scratching at the tender girl's heart? Someone close to her must have pointed out her mistake, but ultimately, the cause might have been that very person's actions. And then they must have scolded her anyway.
If there were no one at school to comfort that bruised heart, I wanted to apologize in place of the person who made the mistake. If we could find a way to turn that heart around, the girl could go to school with a peaceful mind and a bright face, and joyfully meet her friends and teachers. What major wrong could a girl like her have committed? Why must she go to school in the morning with such a distorted expression?
What could be the reason for going to school with such an expression and such a heavy heart? What education must the girl go to school to receive? Rote memorization training for the college entrance exam? That Jeong Seon, a renowned painter from the late Joseon period, had 'Inwangjesaekdo' as his representative work? Why doesn't school or textbooks help students appreciate that remarkable painter's other works and the depth of his spirit? Is it meant for students who will specialize in art to learn more? When and how can they study more?
Why do textbooks show only this painting because someone designated it as the representative work? What is the use of such studying? Does it broaden and purify the mind? No matter how difficult and hard life is, is it essential or crucial to the experience that life holds sufficient value and that by living this way, one can feel happiness?
What kind of place is school? What does it mean that, under the ideal of 'benefiting humanity,' it 'fosters the character of all people and equips them with self-directed life skills and the qualities necessary as democratic citizens, enabling them to live dignified lives and contributing to the development of a democratic nation and the realization of humanity's common prosperity' (Elementary and Secondary Education Act)? In practical terms, what kind of studies does it teach?
Does it include getting along well with mom and dad and building good relationships with friends and teachers? Does it provide opportunities to think about a life of showing interest in, participating in, and cooperating with many matters of the world, such as going through high school to university, finding work, getting married, and living—reflecting on the meaning of that life?... Or are such things trivial matters that don't need to be studied specifically?
According to an online survey of elementary, middle, and high school students nationwide, more than 210,000 youth were found to be at risk of smartphone and internet dependency. One out of five is at risk of overdependence, experiencing difficulties in daily life, with middle school students representing the largest group. One newspaper article's headline showed daily reality very provocatively: "Son, are you looking at that smartphone again?"
Of course. If there is no fun at home or at school, what these youth will seek is something that arouses curiosity and interest, and what they can easily access without difficulty is smartphones and the internet.
If that is not allowed, what are they supposed to do? Read books? Now they should forget detective novels and comics, read textbooks, solve problem sets, and listen to EBS lectures by subject, is that what they mean?
Who should we ask? Whether youth are actually living enjoyably right now, whether we have ever researched how to live enjoyably, whether such research is being sufficiently conducted but we just don't notice it, or whether such research is not being conducted at all because it doesn't seem like proper research... Education scholars and education administrators are certainly absorbed in something, but what is their purpose and what are they working so hard on? Perhaps they are researching methods to focus students on textbook study and college entrance exam training even if it's not fun.
Was that morning special for the girl? I asked middle school students her age. They said school is fun sometimes. In short, they say it's fun when they can laugh freely with friends or teachers, when they feel empathy while talking and playing together.