Violations of Educational Activities and Strengthen Guarantees of Teachers' Rights

Conflicts between school violence and the infringement of teachers’ authority are prevalent in educational system. At the core of education lies the need to uphold and guarantee both students’ rights to learn and their human rights, as well as the educational rights and human rights of teachers. According to Article 10 of the CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, “All citizens shall be assured of human dignity and worth and have the right to pursuit of happiness. It shall be the duty of the State to confirm and guarantee the fundamental and inviolable human rights of individuals.” Further, Article 31 stipulates: “All citizens shall have an equal right to receive an education corresponding to their abilities (Paragraph 1); All citizens who have children to support shall be responsible at least for their elementary education and other education as provided by Act (Paragraph 2); Compulsory education shall be free of charge (Paragraph 3); Independence, professionalism and political impartiality of education and the autonomy of institutions of higher learning shall be guaranteed under the conditions as prescribed by Act (Paragraph 4); The State shall promote lifelong education (Paragraph 5); and Fundamental matters pertaining to the educational system, including in-school and lifelong education, administration, finance, and the status of teachers shall be determined by Act (Paragraph 6)”. In this way, the Constitution affirms the dignity and value of all individuals and their right to pursue happiness, while ensuring the right to education based on individual ability. To improve the treatment and status of teachers, and to strengthen the guarantee of their professional activities and job security, the Special Act on the Improvement of Teachers’ Status and the Protection of Their Educational Activities was enacted, stating in Article 1 that its purpose is “to enhance the status of teachers and promote educational development by improving the treatment of and respect for teachers, ensuring job security, and reinforcing the guarantee of educational activities.” This study is structured into the following sections: I. Introduction, II. Infringement of Educational Activities and Teachers, III. Case Analysis of Infringement Types, IV. Current Situation of Educational Activity Infringement and Protection of Teachers’ Authority, and V. Conclusion. Section II examines the types of infringements of educational activities, responsible parties, and their impact on teachers. Section III analyses representative cases of educational activity infringements occurring in schools. Section IV provides a statistical analysis of current issues such as deliberation of infringement cases, decisions on measures to be taken against students and guardians involved in infringements, and protection measures for affected teachers. In Section V, the study explores legislative improvement proposals to protect educational activities and teachers’ authority, reviewing the current legal basis in the Special Act on the Improvement of Teachers’ Status and the Protection of Their Educational Activities, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the civil law, and criminal law. It also identifies problems in existing frameworks and offers administrative and institutional reform measures. The infringement of teachers’ authority is not an individual issue but a serious problem affecting the entire educational system. A protected and respected teaching environment fosters a safe educational space where both teachers and students are respected. This study primarily aims to promote broader social cooperation by: actively responding to classroom disruption, strengthening guarantees for affected teachers, enhancing accountability measures for infringing students and their guardians, advancing support systems, and creating a society-wide atmosphere of respect for teachers’ authority and educational activities.