The Neighborhood School Everyone Goes to... My Child Cannot Go

Seven-year-old Jun-seo lives in a dense apartment complex area in the Seoul metropolitan area. This is one of the premier residential districts in the capital region, developed as a large-scale new town. Right in front of Jun-seo's apartment main gate, there is an elementary school with an enrollment capacity of around 1,000 students. This elementary school also has an affiliated kindergarten. However, Jun-seo was unable to attend this kindergarten. Jun-seo, who has autism spectrum disorder and qualifies for special education, wanted to attend a kindergarten with a special education class, but there were no openings in this school kindergarten's special class.

A few years have passed, and Jun-seo is preparing to enter elementary school next year. Once again, he is knocking on the doors of this school. This elementary school has one special education class. The statutory class size limit for elementary special education classes is six students per class. However, this school currently has seven students enrolled. This means it is an "overcrowded class" exceeding the legal limit. Despite this, Jun-seo's parents listed this school as their first choice when submitting the admission application in June. For working parents of a child with a disability, a "neighborhood school with a special class" was a hope they could not give up.


"Whether it's a special class or a general class, a school right in front of the house is so great from a parent's perspective. If anything happens, you can run over immediately. It also relieves worries about the commute to and from school. Any parent would want to send their child to a nearby school. I knew (the neighborhood school) was at full capacity. But this school accommodates activity assistant teachers even inside the classroom. Not all schools allow that. Many schools dislike it. Because that was such a huge advantage, I put this school as our first choice, hoping for a miracle." (Jun-seo's mother)

However, a "miracle" is unlikely to happen. Beyond being an overcrowded class that exceeds the statutory limit, there are no sixth graders graduating from this school's special class this year. In other words, unless a student in another grade transfers out or the school adds another special class, it is practically impossible to accept new special education students for next year. Jun-seo's parents are also well aware of this situation.

"For our second choice, we wrote down the school where the kindergarten he currently attends is located, but it takes 20 to 30 minutes by car. Right now, my husband is on parental leave so he can drive him, but that won't be possible starting next year. For us, the second, third, and fourth choices were practically meaningless. I never imagined that sending my child to the school in front of our house would be this difficult."

We previously reported on how parents of children eligible for special education wander across the country searching for schools due to the shortage of special schools. When unable to attend special schools, children eligible for special education, such as students with disabilities, can apply to special classes in regular schools. As of last year, 57.2% of all special education recipients were being educated in special classes at regular schools. So is getting into a special class any easier? Can families choose an educational environment that suits each child's needs? Unfortunately, that is not the case.

SBS filed information disclosure requests with 10 local education support offices under the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education regarding the status of elementary school special classes in their jurisdictions (as of July 1). There are a total of 609 elementary schools in Seoul. Among them, 448 schools—about 70%—have special classes established. The total number of classes is 815, with 3,982 students assigned to these classes. The average number of students per class is about 4.9, falling below the statutory limit of six. Was the concern that special classes are overcrowded an unnecessary worry?

There is always a trap in "averages." A regional analysis clearly reveals the reality. The area with the highest overcrowding rate among special classes in Seoul is the Seongdong-Gwangjin district. Out of 36 schools, special classes in 15 schools had more students than their capacity. The overcrowding rate exceeding capacity stood at 41.7%. Elementary School A has two special classes with 19 students, far exceeding the capacity of 12, while Elementary School B also had 10 students in a single class (capacity of 6). (For reference, there is only one special school in the Seongdong-Gwangjin district.)


The next most congested area is the Gangnam-Seocho district. Out of 43 schools with special classes, 16 schools are overcrowded, representing a rate of 37.2%. Elementary School C has nine students in one class (capacity of 6), and Elementary School D has 14 students across two classes (capacity of 12). In the case of Elementary School D, discussions about consolidation and merger with nearby Elementary School E have been ongoing for years due to declining student enrollment. An ironic situation is unfolding in the heart of Gangnam, where the total student population is shrinking to the point of considering school closures, yet special classes remain "overcrowded."

Parents say that special classes are also subject to "word of mouth." A parent sending a child to a special class at an elementary school in Seocho said they moved from Yangcheon District after learning that this school, unlike other nearby schools, divides lower and upper grades into two separate special classes. "Even for special classes, popular places draw even more students. I've even seen cases where families move around following a specific teacher's transfer."
  The reporter filed information disclosure requests with the education offices in Seoul and Incheon. In Gyeonggi Province, as data on special classes is relatively well disclosed by local education offices, reporting was conducted over the phone based on that data. Overcrowding was most severe in Seoul, which has the largest population, but the situation in Gyeonggi and Incheon was similar. However, education office officials consistently shared a common perspective during coverage: "While overcrowding remains a reality, looking at trends, the demand for special education is gradually decreasing."

An official from an education support office in Incheon stated: "Currently, the total number of students eligible for special education is increasing, but looking specifically at elementary schools, it has started to decrease gradually. We believe an overall downward trend has begun. In five to six years, it will likely drop significantly. As birth rates decline, the incidence of children with disabilities also drops. If elementary students decrease, middle school students will follow, right? Although overcrowding is widespread right now, we expect overcrowded locations to gradually decrease." According to the Ministry of Education, the proportion of overcrowded special classes exceeding capacity dropped from 10.1% (1,882 classes) in 2024 to 3.8% (742 classes) in 2025. As noted by the education office official, the decrease in overcrowded classes is partly due to population decline and partly due to a gradual increase in the supply of special classes. In addition, when expanding the number of classes is difficult, assigning two homeroom teachers to a single class is also being used as a method to relieve "immediate overcrowding."

However, there is something being overlooked. Professor Kim Ki-ryong of Joongbu University, who attended a seminar titled <Special Education Lost Its Way, Finding the Path on the Ground> hosted by the Special Teachers' Union at the National Assembly on August 11, pointed out that attention must be paid to the rising "unplaced rate." According to Professor Kim, special education applicants increased from 40,203 in 2021 to 51,896 in 2025, but the placement rate to requested schools dropped from 93.8% to 87.5% over the past five years. In particular, the placement rate for elementary schools was the lowest at 84%. Even in 2025, when overcrowding decreased significantly, as many as 6,605 students failed to attend their desired schools.

"While these students did not miss out on special education entirely, it means they had to accept placements away from where they lived or the schools they desired. From the perspective that inclusive education should take place within local communities, this is a separate failure. (Omitted) Just because overcrowding indicators have improved does not mean conditions have improved to the same degree. Overcrowding metrics (used by education authorities) only show student concentration; they do not measure how heavy a workload teachers bear or whether students received education where they wanted." (Professor Kim Ki-ryong, Joongbu University)

At this seminar, Professor Kim also proposed mandating by law that education authorities disclose not only student counts per class in overcrowding indicators, but also placement rates relative to applications and student-to-teacher ratios.

Another common frustration voiced by parents met during reporting was the "opaque admissions process." Whether for special schools or special classes, parents submit applications in June of the year prior to enrollment and only receive results in November, yet no one knows why their child was rejected while another was accepted. Aside from the basic criterion of "proximity-based placement," they appealed that they cannot know what else needs to be done to secure placement in a desired school, nor do they clearly understand the reasons behind acceptance or rejection even after receiving the results.

The selection of special education recipients and their placement in special schools and special classes up to middle school are decided through screening by the Special Education Steering Committee under each Special Education Support Center. (For high schools, this is handled by each municipal/provincial education office.) However, significant disparities in operation methods and screening criteria across regions have long been pointed out as a problem. Parents argued that it is unreasonable for admissions outcomes to differ for children with the same level of disability depending on where they live or when they apply.

During the reporting process, it was confirmed that the National Institute of Special Education recognized these issues, commissioned a research project last year to create a manual for selecting and placing special education recipients, distributed it to Special Education Support Centers nationwide, and conducted training sessions for officials. It was also discovered that portions of the manual are publicly available on the National Institute of Special Education website. The reporter also obtained and read the entire manual, which spans 110 pages. How binding is this manual? An official from the National Institute of Special Education stated: "Although we distributed the manual, it is difficult to require that it be strictly followed unconditionally because circumstances differ across regions. Ultimately, decisions rest with each local education office."
  Even if Jun-seo cannot attend the neighborhood school next year, his parents do not plan to defer his school enrollment. This is because they believe they cannot defer entry every time Jun-seo faces difficulties in the world ahead. Still, having to send their child to a school 20 to 30 minutes away by car, finding an activity assistant for this, and worrying about whether the child will adjust well to school life weighs heavily on their hearts. "I don't want to avoid challenges, but it's upsetting because it feels like the world keeps telling me to avoid them."

Watching Jun-seo's parents force a smile brought an ache to my heart.

References: Ministry of Education Special Education Statistics (2025)
"Special Education Lost Its Way, Finding the Path on the Ground" Seminar Sourcebook (August 11, 2026)

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※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.