Fun Fact Friday (4)

As I had to punish my first students this week, I thought it would be appropriate to mention the changes in student’s rights here in Gyeonggi Province. 

Fact: As of last week, Gyeonggi Province is beginning to recognize student’s individuality with their first ever student’s rights ordinance, particularly granting student’s the ability to express themselves through changes in clothing and hairstyle.

Previously, my students had restrictions on skirt length, tightness of pants, and hair length. With this lifted, I fear, with Korean girls’ obsession with MINI skirts, that schools will solicit sex.  No joke, this is one of my concerns with Korean fashion.  If you think mini skirts in the U.S. are too short, just glance across the world for a minor second and you will understand my apprehension.

And while tight pants (for men) are a thing of the past for the U.S., they are in full force here.  I’d prefer not to see my children’s “junk”, but apparently I don’t get a vote in that department.

And most important, with this student’s right ordinance, corporal punishment has been banned.  Perhaps this attributes to my children’s out-of-control behavior this week.  Sans beating, I have noticed a shift in their behavior and attitudes- those of vanity, as if they suddenly sit on a pedestal just above their “teach-ah”.  So despite my years of English experience and education, they are refusing the pay attention in class- talking over me, sleeping in class, and just straight up not doing their work.

So long, corporal punishment- you were so good to me those 5 short weeks!

Although a strike wasn’t placed upon their little behinds, they had a little visit with my head teacher, and despite not understanding what she was saying, tone is universal.

It will be interesting to see where punishment advances from here and the changes in student’s behavior or this next year.

One last note: With the generally conservative attitudes of most principals, I believe that it will take a minimum of 5 years for corporal punishment to be completely banished from Gyeonggi schools.  

For more information on this top, please refer to the following article: Yonhap News Agency: First student rights ordinance proclaimed in Gyeonggi Province