Amid rapid aging and an increasing number of young people choosing to hold off on marriage, the proportion of one-person households in South Korea increased last year to 33.4 percent, data from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family showed Wednesday. According to the ministry's factual survey of families based on 12,044 households in the country, the number of single-person households nearly doubled in 10 years. The group which accounted for 15.8 percent in 2010 grew to 30.4 percent i

Social Affairs April 17, 2024

Foreigners who are ordered to leave South Korea because they have been in the country illegally or have committed a crime will have to be deported within 36 months starting next year. The Justice Ministry has proposed an amendment to the Immigration Act that would limit the maximum period of accommodating foreigners ordered with compulsory evacuation to 36 months. This follows the Constitutional Court's decision in March of last year that the indefinite detention of foreigners subject to de

Social Affairs April 16, 2024

With a thick blanket of yellow dust over South Korea on Tuesday, fine dust concentrations are expected to spike to "very bad" levels across the country, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. The national weather agency had forecast the yellow dust from the Inner Mongolia region and Gobi Desert to flow into the country early Tuesday, leading to murky skies. Fine dust levels will rise to "bad" across Greater Seoul, Gangwon, the Chungcheong Provinces and North Gyeongsang

Social Affairs April 16, 2024

The Ministry of Education announced plans Monday to digitally transform traditional public education. Dubbed the "classroom revolution," the initiative focuses on strengthening the capabilities of teachers who would take on pivotal roles in turning classrooms digital. The ministry has allocated some 381.8 billion won ($276 million) to support teachers. As traditional teaching and learning methods were top-down or one-way, the new plan aims to cultivate creative and active learners, enc

Social Affairs April 15, 2024

Amid administrative efforts to increase the annual enrollment quota for medical schools that sparked the mass walk-out of doctors across the country, the government said it would reduce the number of school teachers going forward, citing a decline in student numbers. The enrollment quota for teachers' colleges, which has remained unchanged for 13 years, will be reduced by 12 percent, the Education Ministry said. Currently, 13 universities that train aspiring elementary school teachers take

Social Affairs April 12, 2024

진행자: 최정윤, Ali Abbot No shirt, no shoes or dressed for mourning: Candidates' campaign gimmicks 기사 요약: 바디프로필, 댄스 챌린지, 혈서에 소복까지 이색 운동 이따르던 22대 총선 이모저모 [1] As South Koreans go to the polls to elect the 300 members of the National Assembly on Wednesday, political candidates have fully ramped up efforts to court voters. *ramp up: ~을 늘리다, 증가시키다 *court: ~의 환심을 사려고 하다(cultivate), 얻으려 하다/ 법원 [2] Walking down practically any main street at the moment, one will easily spot rallies of candidates an

Podcast April 11, 2024

The atmosphere of election camps of the candidates vying for the 300-member seats in the National Assembly shifted minute by minute as the votes were counted throughout Wednesday night and into Thursday morning. Ferocious election battlefields, especially, where the results were hard to predict ended with major cliffhangers, as the victories predicted from the exit polls sponsored by South Korea’s major TV stations were disproven at the last minute. Lee Jun-seok, leader of the New Reform P

Politics April 11, 2024

South Korea saw the longest ballot in history in voting for the general election held across the country Wednesday, at 51.6 centimeters. The length of this year's ballot surpassed that of the previous general election in 2020, which also broke records then, at 48.1 centimeters. The ballot's record-breaking length came after 38 parties registered to compete for the 46 proportional representation seats in the National Assembly, which will be allocated to parties based on the total number

Politics April 10, 2024

Former South Korean presidents have traditionally maintained a reserved stance regarding elections held after their tenure, but some have been making rather different moves in this general election. Showing active support for his party, the Democratic Party of Korea, Moon Jae-in, the predecessor of incumbent President Yoon Suk Yeol, has been the most vigorous among the past three presidents, directly joining rallies of individual candidates from the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. Dre

Politics April 9, 2024

진행자: 최정윤, Ali Abbot Assembly race heats up as early voters turn out in historic numbers 기사 요약: 22대 총선 사전투표의 최종 투표율이 31.28%로 집계되면서 역대 '최다' 사전 투표율 기록 [1] More registered voters than ever turned out for early voting on Friday and Saturday, further heating up the election race, with the Democratic Party of Korea claiming that it points to a possible advantage. *turn out: 모습을 드러내다/ (결과가 특정 방식으로) 되다/ 바깥쪽으로 향하다 *claim: 주장하다(assert, declare) / 갖다 [2] According to the National Election Commi

Podcast April 8, 2024

As South Koreans go to the polls to elect the 300 members of the National Assembly on Wednesday, political candidates have fully ramped up efforts to court voters. Walking down practically any main street at the moment, one will easily spot rallies of candidates and supporters singing theme songs with politically tweaked lyrics and flamboyant dance routines. Others have taken more unconventional turns in the outreach. One candidate was seen barefoot greeting visitors at the red clay road in Gumi

Politics April 7, 2024

Starting in late April, students from schools that operate morning exercise classes will be provided with free breakfast, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on Thursday. Launched in October last year, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education has initiated morning physical education activities to revitalize student exercise. Some 573 schools currently holding morning workout sessions that apply for the breakfast plan will benefit from the project. Elementary schools will be

Social Affairs April 4, 2024

Students and schools' participation in before- and after-school care programs, a new state-backed child care initiative, has increased over a month into the launch, the Ministry of Education reported Wednesday. Dubbed "Neulbom" which directly translates to "always caring," a total of 2,838 out of 6,175 elementary schools have joined the government-run child care education, accounting for 46 percent of the total number of elementary schools nationwide, Education Minister

Social Affairs April 3, 2024

Prosecutors arrested Hur Young-in, chair of South Korean bakery giant SPC Group, after he repeatedly failed to comply with being summoned for an investigation. The 74-year-old is under investigation for his suspected involvement in forcing bakers at PB Partners to quit their membership in the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions umbrella labor group, between 2019 and 2022. PB Partners is SPC's subsidiary in charge of recruiting and training bakers for bakery chain Paris Baguette. Prosecut

Social Affairs April 2, 2024

Seoul plans to boost fiscal support to encourage single-sex schools in the city to transition to coeducational schools, which refers to schools where male and female students are taught together, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on Monday. Same-sex schools that register to change to coed will receive 600 million won ($445,000) for six years. Schools can use the funds for educational programs and activities suitable for each school. Schools will also receive 90 million won

Social Affairs April 1, 2024