The Ministry of Education announced that 43 instructors related to the conservative education organization Rebox School have been teaching at 57 elementary schools nationwide for up to four years.
On the 16th, the Ministry of Education released the results of a 'comprehensive survey of Rebox School-related instructors at Nuribom Schools and future plans.'
Earlier, the Ministry of Education had investigated whether Nuribom School instructors were related to Rebox School from the beginning of this month until the 13th, in collaboration with 17 regional education offices across the country.
The survey results indicated that among the 17 regions, 57 schools in 7 areas including Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Gwangju, Daejeon, Gyeonggi, and Gangwon had a total of 43 instructors with ties to Rebox School.
The Ministry of Education used criteria for determining the relevance to Rebox School based on whether the instructor was dispatched by a Rebox School-related organization, whether they completed training from related organizations, or held qualifications issued by those organizations. Five organizations are related to Rebox School: the Korea Nuribom Education Association, Glory Social Cooperative, Unam Network, Freedom College Scholarship Society, and the Korea Education Consulting Research Institute.
By region, Daejeon had the highest number with 20 elementary schools and 17 instructors. This was followed by Seoul (14 schools, 14 instructors), Gyeonggi (10 schools, 6 instructors), Incheon (5 schools, 2 instructors), Busan (4 schools, 2 instructors), Gwangju (3 schools, 1 instructor), and Gangwon (1 school, 1 instructor).
In Seoul, the figures were higher than those previously reported by the Ministry of Education. Previously, the Ministry of Education had stated that, after conducting joint inspections with the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, 11 instructors related to Rebox School were active at 10 elementary schools.
Currently, outside of Seoul, 32 instructors related to Rebox School are still reported to be teaching at Nuribom classes.
Director General Ye Hye-ran of the Ministry of Education noted during a briefing that 'these 32 instructors were directly contracted by the schools' and emphasized that 'merely holding a certificate issued by a Rebox School-related organization does not warrant the termination of contracts.'
The Ministry of Education plans to conduct field investigations starting this week at the 57 elementary schools identified in this comprehensive survey. Additionally, they intend to request an investigation concerning the representative of the Korea Nuribom Association, a Rebox School-related organization.
Director General Ye stated that 'that organization (Korea Nuribom Association) appears to have impersonated a foundation and caused public anxiety regarding the Nuribom School policy,' and added that 'the Ministry of Education plans to report this for investigation on charges of obstruction of public duties through deception, among others.'