[Anchor]

Gyeonggi Province Superintendent-elect Ahn Min-suk is unveiling various education reform plans ahead of his official inauguration tomorrow, July 1. He is considering policies to restrict students' smartphone use and is exploring the establishment of a 'Teacher Authority Protection Bureau,' a concept that has recently gained attention through a television drama.

Reporter Choi Ho-won has the story.

[Reporter]

During recent visits to local schools, Gyeonggi Province Superintendent-elect Ahn Min-suk announced that he would pursue a so-called 'Phone-Free' policy to restrict smartphone use in schools after taking office.

[Ahn Min-suk/Gyeonggi Province Superintendent-elect (June 23): Silicon Valley is at the forefront of AI and semiconductors, isn't it? Children there are legally prohibited from using smartphones in schools through high school. I plan to launch 'Phone-Free Schools' upon taking office as superintendent.]

He is considering a plan to implement this policy in elementary and middle schools starting in the 2027 academic year, following a period of gathering various opinions during the upcoming second semester.

The restrictions could apply broadly throughout the school day, covering not only class time but also break times and lunch hours.

[Ahn Min-suk/Gyeonggi Province Superintendent-elect: The moment you buy a smartphone for an elementary school student, you are leading them down a path to failure. Teachers sending school notices to elementary students via KakaoTalk is something unimaginable in major developed countries.]

The superintendent-elect added via social media that the policy would not be imposed unconditionally by force, but would instead follow a democratic process involving sufficient prior explanation and autonomous decision-making by student councils.

He also plans to push for the creation of an organization within the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education similar to the 'Teacher Authority Protection Bureau' featured in the drama 'True Education.'

While it would not involve the physical disciplinary methods seen in the drama, the plan is to establish an 'Education Activity Protection Bureau' that would dispatch experts to schools, similar to the supervisors depicted in the show.

[Lee Kyung-ah/Research Fellow at the Institute for Democracy: Teachers will only be able to tangibly feel improvements in the system if a field support team visits schools to verify initial facts regarding the infringement of teacher authority, separates the parties involved, secures evidence, and provides consultations with parents and school principals when necessary.]

It is reported that the Ministry of Education is also considering plans to establish a department tentatively named the 'Teacher Authority Protection Division' to support provincial offices of education if they decide to create dedicated organizations for protecting teacher authority.

(Video coverage: Jang Woon-seok, Footage courtesy of the Gyeonggi Province Superintendent Transition Committee)