Education 'Visiting Education Office' 44-Day Journey Concludes…An Min-seok's 'Field-Focused' Gyeonggi Education on Trial
Superintendent of Gyeonggi Province An Min-seok has completed the schedule of the '2026 Visiting Education Office' parent townhall meetings, which visited all 31 cities and counties across the province. The tour, which began in Hwaseong on September 17, concluded on October 30 with the Uijeongbu event, marking the end of a 44-day journey.
The final Uijeongbu townhall meeting was attended by approximately 200 people, including parents and school officials as well as regional National Assembly members, local government officials, and council members, who discussed regional education issues. Rather than merely paying a courtesy visit, this event created a structure where regional political and government figures and parents gathered together to coordinate education policies.
Gyeonggi Education Agenda Reshaped by Field Voices
The key issues raised intensively during the visits to all 31 cities and counties are evaluated as having addressed areas neglected by existing education policies. At the grassroots level, the core topics that emerged included ▲support for slow learners and students with borderline intellectual disabilities ▲transition to comfortable school uniforms ▲Phone-Free School and RAS (Rest, Activity, and Socializing) education policies.
Superintendent An's responses also focused on administrative structural reform beyond immediate responses to individual issues. A prime example is his statement regarding support for slow learners: "We are devising substantive measures tailored to individual student characteristics, moving away from the existing one-size-fits-all support framework."
Regarding uniform policy, he addressed both the inconvenience of formal-style uniforms and unfair bidding issues. Administrative duties related to uniforms will be transferred from individual schools to the Office of Education to reduce administrative burden on schools, while establishing strict investigation measures against unfair practices such as bid-rigging among suppliers. The plan is to separate schools from the center of administrative disputes.
Taking on 'Malicious Complaints' Directly…Ensuring Effectiveness in Teacher Rights Protection
The most notable point is the message protecting teachers exposed to malicious complaints. Superintendent An emphasized, "Please direct complaints to the superintendent, not to teachers." This is interpreted as diagnosing the cause of recent teacher rights violations—a social problem—as a 'complaint structure concentrated on individual teachers,' and expressing the education office's commitment to serve as a direct buffer.
Furthermore, the call for participation in the 'Phone-Free Home' movement, which promotes digital detox within families, and in RAS (Rest, Physical Activity, and Communication) education reflects a realistic judgment that school education policies cannot be effective without family cooperation.
Remaining Tasks: 'Policymaking' and On-Ground Implementation of Converged Proposals
This townhall meeting served as an opportunity to reconfirm major challenges including reducing private education costs, transforming the education system in the AI era, and bridging the educational gap between northern and southern Gyeonggi. The Gyeonggi Province Office of Education plans to prepare customized policy improvement plans for each city and county based on the requests gathered during this tour.
However, the key question is whether the converged opinions can actually translate into budget allocation and institutional improvements. The 'School Principal Townhall Meeting' scheduled for November is expected to serve as another test of how parent demands can be implemented at the school, the administrative frontline.
