Ban on Late-Night Hagwon Classes Looms...Superintendent An Min-seok Says "10 PM Lights-Out for Hagwons is for Children's Dreams"

It appears that authorities will be cracking down on late-night hagwon classes in Gyeonggi Province.

Gyeonggi Province Superintendent of Education An Min-seok stated on the 3rd, "I have instructed the relevant department at the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education to strictly crack down unannounced on late-night hagwon classes."

Superintendent An posted a message titled "Hagwons Lights Out at 10 PM! Children Need Time to Dream" on his Facebook account that day, noting that late-night hagwon classes are robbing children of their time to dream.

He conducted inspections of late-night hagwon classes in person on August 25 and September 1, writing that there were four hagwons with lights on past 10 PM at night, and one of them had young elementary school students inside.

Superintendent An stated, "Children must dream. And dreams can only be dreamed when you sleep. Sleep is not a time to stop studying. While a child sleeps, what was learned during the day is organized neatly in the mind, a tired body gains strength, and the heart settles itself. "

Superintendent An continued, "When a dream visits at that time, it asks the child, 'What do you want to do?' Through such conversations with dreams, children grow. Taking away sleep is taking away a child's dreams and growth. 'Hagwons lights out at 10 PM' is the minimum regulation for the sake of education," he emphasized.

Superintendent An went on to say, "That night, I thought long about what is causing even this minimum requirement to not be upheld." He continued, "I will firmly support families so they do not need to rely on private education. I will expand the 'Gyeonggi-style Self-Directed Learning Centers' to 100 locations across the province, and will not spare practical support and encouragement for students who challenge themselves to study. A family's financial situation must not determine a child's learning. Public education will be the foundation for reducing educational gaps."

Superintendent An stated, "I have instructed the relevant department at the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education to strictly crack down unannounced on late-night hagwon classes. Violations of teaching hours will be dealt with strictly in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Making it so that parents can rest assured even when the lights go out at 10 PM at hagwons. That is the paradigm shift in Gyeonggi education. 10 PM should be a time of peaceful nights for children, freedom to dream, and ripening growth."