As the problem of student decline caused by the sudden population decline has intensified, South Korean mainstream ** such as "South Korea**" and "** at the end of February to early March, which should be the lively opening of Korean elementary schools in the spring, have reported that primary schools in many parts of the country may face the severe inflection point of "zero new students". These reports warn that South Korea's primary education system will undergo an unprecedented transformation challenge this year.
According to an in-depth analysis by Korea**, the majority of children who are about to enter primary school were born in 2017, a year that is symbolic for South Korean society, as it marks the beginning of a "cliff-like" shift in the country's demographics. This was previously stable at about 400,000 newborns per year for 15 consecutive years, but in 2017 there was a sharp decline, with the number of newborns falling sharply to 350,000 for the first time.
The consequences of this demographic upheaval will be particularly acute in 2024. Based on a survey of 17 municipal and provincial education administrations in South Korea, as of February 13, as of February 13, as many as 176 elementary schools failed to admit even one new student this year, a significant increase from last year's 145, showing that the impact of declining fertility rates on school enrollment is becoming more and more serious.