The number of female teachers in kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools rose 36 percent in the last decade that nearly seven out of every 10 teachers are now female, the latest education data showed Saturday.

As of April, female teachers numbered 330,696, a 36.2 percent rise from 242,809 in 2003, while the number of their male counterparts fell 6.8 percent from 163,095 to 151,990 during the same period, according to the data.

That made the proportion of female teachers rise to 68.5 percent from 59.8 percent a decade ago.

The total number of teachers rose 18.9 percent to 482,686 in the cited period.

Kindergartens and high schools saw the number of female teachers rise 52.7 percent and 51.8 percent, respectively, during the same period, while elementary and middle schools saw the figure rise 30.8 percent and 25.5 percent, respectively. (Yonhap News)