The Price of Victory
When Bang Kyeong-hwan learned his son had clinched first place among fourth graders at a national swimming competition, he anticipated celebration. The young athlete had represented his school with distinction, overcoming months of rigorous training to reach the podium. Instead of a public celebration, the champion received his award in a private, low key ceremony with only his teacher present. No classmates cheered. No applause filled the room. No announcements celebrated his achievement in front of his peers.
For Bang, this quiet recognition represents a troubling shift in South Korean education. Schools across the nation increasingly suppress competition and public recognition to avoid triggering complaints from overprotective parents. The father worries that an entire generation is losing the ability to process success and failure. “For kids growing up, there should be a culture of cheering for a classmate’s success, but now these are things of bygone days,” he explained. “A recognition of how hard he or she tried to reach a certain goal is not just a reward, but a crucial element in the growth of a child. Otherwise, they would not be able to experience what it is like to achieve something.”
His son’s muted victory reflects a deeper crisis gripping classrooms across the nation. Schools increasingly avoid elements that might trigger complaints: competitive sports, field trips, awards ceremonies, and even routine playground activities. A December survey by the Korean Federation of Teachers Unions found that 51.9 percent of 2,746 teachers suffered malicious complaints from parents during the second half of 2025. While authorities do not track annual complaint statistics, educators report exercising severe restraint to avoid sanctions. The phenomenon has intensified despite recent legislative reforms intended to shield educators from harassment.
Disappearing Traditions
The transformation extends far beyond quiet award ceremonies. Data compiled by Representative Chun Ha-ram reveals that elementary schools in Seoul, Daejeon, and Gyeonggi Province halved their daylong excursion programs between 2025 and 2026. The decline accelerated after a 2022 incident in which a child died in a car accident during a school trip. Now teachers avoid organizing field trips entirely to eliminate liability risks.
Sports have also vanished from many campuses. Nearly 4 percent of 5,584 elementary schools outside Seoul officially banned students from engaging in any sports inside school grounds. Busan leads this trend, with 34.7 percent of its 303 elementary schools imposing playground restrictions in 2026, followed by Incheon at 9.3 percent and Gyeonggi Province at 4.4 percent. These restrictions leave children without physical outlets during the school day.
Competition itself has become controversial. In Seoul, only 14.5 percent of 605 elementary schools held awards ceremonies where students received recognition before their classmates, according to data compiled by Seoul councilor Chae Su-ji. Sixty percent of Seoul elementary schools either refused to honor winners at annual sports days or canceled the events entirely. Some institutions now orchestrate sporting events to end in draws, eliminating winners and losers to avoid parental complaints.
A Legacy of Tragedy
The current climate follows years of escalating tension that culminated in national tragedy. Between January 2018 and June 2023, 100 public school teachers in South Korea died by suicide, with elementary school educators representing the majority. The crisis reached a breaking point in July 2023, when a 23 year old primary school teacher in Seoul was found dead at her school after reportedly suffering anxiety over complaints from abusive parents.
Her death sparked nine weeks of nationwide protests, with up to 200,000 educators demanding legal protection. The diary entries of the teacher, later made public, described the terror she felt entering her classroom: “My chest feels too tight. I feel like I am going to fall somewhere. I do not even know where I am.” She had written that she “wanted to let go” just two weeks before taking her own life.
Another teacher, identified only as B for privacy, described being suspended without proper investigation after making students stand during class for failing to bring materials. After more than a year of legal battles, a judge ruled in her favor, yet education authorities still imposed disciplinary measures including forced transfer and withheld wages. She continues to struggle with emotional distress and anxiety disorders resulting from this traumatic event.
The protests pressured legislators to act. In September 2023, the National Assembly passed four bills collectively known as the Teacher Rights Restoration Bills. These laws prevent automatic suspension when teachers face child abuse accusations, require evidence before disciplinary action, and provide financial support for educators fighting lawsuits. The legislation also prohibits principals from concealing violations of teacher rights.
Competition and Overprotection
Experts trace the roots of parental aggression to South Korea’s hypercompetitive society, where academic achievement determines access to elite universities, career prospects, and even marriage opportunities. Parents who experienced this pressure firsthand increasingly view teachers as service providers rather than authority figures, filing complaints to shield their children from failure or discomfort.
Lim Myun-ho, a psychology professor at Dankook University, argues that parents have inverted the purpose of protection. “The goal of the parents is to prevent their children being worn down by such a competitive society, but it should not be achieved by trying to remove the possibility of failing,” he explained. “Children should learn how to cope with failure rather than be shielded from it.”
The professor warns that schools disadvantage themselves when facing complaints, leading to passive solutions like forgoing sports days or ensuring events end without winners. “Sporting events orchestrated to end in draws could have a negative impact, such as making people think that there is no need to compete,” he noted. “Shielding children too much from competition, because of the competitive nature of Korean society is not a good way.”
This dynamic creates what teachers call “gapjil,” a term describing abuse of power by parents who exploit legal and administrative systems to harass educators. The phenomenon intensified after a 2014 child welfare law mandated automatic suspension for teachers accused of child abuse. Parents have weaponized this provision, reporting educators for routine discipline such as restraining violent students or criticizing poor performance.
Violence in the Classroom
The pressure on teachers comes not only from parents but from students themselves. A recent survey by the Korean Federation of Teachers Associations of 3,551 educators revealed that 86 percent experienced violations of their rights and personal safety. Nearly half, 48.6 percent, reported being assaulted or injured by students or witnessing colleagues suffer such attacks.
The survey documented widespread classroom disruptions, with 93 percent of respondents citing deliberate lesson interruptions and refusals to follow instructions. Verbal abuse affected 87.5 percent, while 80.6 percent faced threatening behavior including glaring, spitting, and intimidation. Sex related misconduct affected 47.5 percent.
Despite these dangers, only 13.9 percent of teachers report incidents to protection committees. The majority remain silent, fearing retaliatory complaints or false child abuse allegations from parents. Kang Joo-ho, president of the KFTA, stated that fear of retaliatory malicious complaints keeps teachers silent.
The organization has demanded systemic reforms, including making the state rather than individual teachers responsible for lawsuits related to educational activities, and requiring superintendents to file countersuits against false accusations. Kang demanded an end to the absurd reality where teachers face court accusations while conducting legitimate instruction.
Legal Progress and Persistent Gaps
The government has acknowledged the severity of the crisis. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok apologized during a National Assembly session for failing to address the issue with sufficient urgency. “I would like to sincerely apologize for not having given this matter much thought,” he said. “This may seem like a simple issue, but it is a grave one.”
Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin has committed to additional legislative reforms, including clearer exemption clauses protecting teachers from liability when they exercise due diligence. A revision to the Act on the Prevention of and Compensation for Accidents at School took effect in June, exempting teachers from civil and criminal accountability for deadly incidents involving students when educators have acted with due diligence.
However, recent court rulings reveal persistent vulnerabilities. In November, an appellate court found a teacher guilty for failing to prevent a child’s death during a field trip in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, partly because exemption clauses remained unclear. Choi acknowledged that teachers continue avoiding field trip duties because they remain fully responsible for accidents despite the new legislation.
Many educators argue the 2023 Teacher Rights Restoration Bills do not go far enough. Parents who file false accusations face no penalties, allowing the cycle of harassment to continue. The Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union described the legislation as a first step but cautioned that achieving full effectiveness requires additional budget support, manpower, and legal amendments.
The Essentials
- Over half of South Korean teachers surveyed suffered malicious complaints from parents in late 2025, leading schools to cancel sports days, field trips, and public awards ceremonies
- Approximately 100 public school teachers died by suicide between 2018 and 2023, sparking national protests and the 2023 Teacher Rights Restoration Bills
- Nearly 4 percent of elementary schools outside Seoul have banned all sports activities, while 60 percent of Seoul schools avoid honoring winners at sports events
- Current laws prevent automatic suspension for accused teachers but do not penalize parents who file false child abuse reports
- Experts attribute the crisis to hypercompetitive societal pressures causing parents to view teachers as service providers and shield children from failure
- Teachers face simultaneous violence from students, with 48.6 percent reporting physical assaults, yet remain silent due to fear of parental retaliation
