The bitter reality of South Korean schools in 2026, now facing a crisis of collapse, is being brought to light.

SBS's Unanswered Questions, airing this Saturday, July 11, at 11:10 p.m., will feature an episode titled "True Education and the Ticking Time Bomb - Our Schools Today." The program will conduct an in-depth investigation into the state of educational environments that have become ticking time bombs ready to explode at any moment.

In April of this year, Jung So-yoon (pseudonym), a teacher at an elementary school in Jeju, was horrified to discover an unidentified substance in her tumbler, which she had washed clean the previous day. The substance was a sticky, foul-smelling liquid, and forensic analysis shockingly revealed it to be human semen.

"I couldn't believe it. Who would do such a thing? I don't even remember how I taught my classes after that; I was just terrified," said Jung, who eventually took sick leave after suffering from severe anxiety.

The ordeal did not end there. Two months later, while a substitute teacher was conducting class in the empty classroom, someone broke in again—this time to urinate on the teacher's chair before fleeing. Police investigations revealed that the perpetrator was, unexpectedly, a 16-year-old student in his first year at a nearby high school.

While the perpetrator denies the act, claiming he only entered the school because he needed to use the restroom, his identity remains hidden due to his status as a minor. Meanwhile, the victimized teachers are left to suffer from severe trauma.

This is not the only crisis shaking schools. With threats of explosives, weapon-related disturbances, and physical assaults on teachers, classrooms have already lost their status as safe zones. Furthermore, the indiscriminate filing of child abuse reports by parents is trapping teachers in an endless cycle of litigation. Regarding the approximately 700 child abuse complaints filed by parents annually, teachers on the front lines are crying out that even basic, legitimate disciplinary guidance has become impossible.

On the other hand, the parents who filed the complaints against teachers remain firm. One parent in South Gyeongsang Province who sued a middle school teacher for child abuse last year claimed that the teacher had forced their child to stand in a disciplinary posture during a heatwave and dragged the child to the faculty office by the ear, citing witnesses and CCTV footage as evidence. In April of this year, the parent filed a second complaint against the teacher for assault and insult.

Parents of students who have caused trouble through sexual harassment or assault are also expressing their grievances, arguing that the teachers' disciplinary methods and responses were the greater issue. Is the constant stream of child abuse reports from parents a response to hidden, cruel acts by teachers, or is it a result of excessive emotional conflicts between parents and educators?

Unanswered Questions will air on Saturday, July 11, at 11:10 p.m., posing the question of who is truly in need of "true education" on these precarious school grounds.

Reported by Kang Sun-ae

(SBS Entertainment News, Reporter Kang Sun-ae)