The last all-out race for Seoul Superintendent of Education... Jeong Geun-sik said, "Teacher = No product producer."

[News FM Lee Ik-seon Choi Soo-young Issue & People]
□ Broadcast Date: October 15, 2024 (Tue)
□ Host: Lee Ik-seon, Choi Soo-young
□ Cast: Candidate Jeong Geun-sik (telephone connection)

* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate information.
◇ Lee Ik-seon: The Seoul Superintendent of Education by-election is tomorrow, which determines the future of education in Seoul, and even the future of children. At this time, we will meet two candidates from both camps ahead of the election. Since superintendent candidates are not given a separate preference, we will proceed in order of name. For your information, each candidate will be interviewed accurately for 14 minutes each. Chung Geun-sik of the progressive camp is on the line. I'll count now. Hello.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Hello.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: How are you? Candidate. I heard it's your first time running for an election.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes, that's right.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: What do you think? Now that you're on the stage?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: As expected, elections are not easy. However, it is encouraging because the citizens who support me, the campaigners who work hard together, and the 10 democratic and progressive candidates I worked with are together.

◈ Choi Soo-young: I'm curious about our candidate's educational philosophy.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes. I am very worried that our students are suffering from being trapped in local competitive education for entrance exams when they have to develop their dreams. So I think creativity education, that is, customized creativity education that values individuality and aptitude, is necessary. At the same time, I want to be a superintendent who heals and recovers the hurt educational community.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: What do you see as the biggest problem with Seoul education at the moment?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Again, the educational gap among students is getting more polarized. It's a nationwide problem, not just in Seoul. By definitely bridging this educational gap, Seoul education will serve as an example for the nation. That's what I'm thinking. We will establish such a Seoul Learning Diagnosis and Healing Center to diagnose and heal problems such as poor learning and borderline intelligence of students and promote the future education of converging knowledge and capabilities.

◈ Choi Soo-young: If you could explain a little more of your major pledges.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: We will change parents' concerns about education to education safety. We will operate a history education material center to overcome degenerative conflicts through fact-based history education, overcome the crisis, support the growth of happiness through the development of the happiness index for children and adolescents, and introduce a 100,000 won voucher system for cultural, artistic, and sports activities, and use the school manager system to open school complexes after school and create a safe school without school violence.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: What is the first pledge you want to implement among them?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: The biggest thing is that citizens are the owners of education in Seoul. So, we will open a kind of Seoul Education Plus Committee where citizens participate more and take responsibility together.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: Seoul Education Plus Committee?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes, that's right. It is necessary to further advance such school autonomy with the School Steering Committee and the local community. In addition, it will be possible to support school operations considering regional characteristics and provide more participation and opportunities to educational communities.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Yes. And the candidate came up with a slogan like pro-Japanese education judge. Please explain what this is about.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: As you know, as you can see from today's Liberation Day incident, history distortion and pro-Japanese education have crossed the line. It shouldn't be like this. Some people are not proud of the independence movement. We cannot leave our children's education to them in the future. I have a lot of thoughts like this. So, we can't let our students' desks have a history-worsening pro-Japanese textbook. That's what I think a lot. I'll make sure to set the history straight.

◈ So you're saying that's why you came up with this slogan, right?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes. That's right.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: How do you see the reality these days when complaints and accusations are rampant in the classroom?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes, I'm very sorry. It's also very sad that trust seems to have disappeared in the classroom. I think it is desperately necessary for people with different views to gather and talk and communicate with each other. When I was working as chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee, I worked with people who had these different positions. It was operated by unanimous agreement by discussing different positions, persistently coordinating, and expanding the common denominator. I think this experience can probably help heal the school conflict.

◈ Choi Soo-young: What differences do you have compared to former Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: It is a little different from Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon in two ways. Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon has achieved quite a lot, but I don't think the citizens understand it enough. That's why I need to increase communication with citizens. That's what I'm thinking. Another thing is that Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon focuses on various equity, so what should I say? Should I say it's Suwolseong? I think these parts were a little weak. More boldly, we should introduce educational programs to foster such talents and foster global talents suitable for the era of globalization. That's what I think. We need to strengthen the way creative talent can be more proud of us. That's what I think.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Isn't there a rival Cho Jeon-hyuk? Then if there's anything you can tell me that I have this difference from candidate Cho Jeon-hyuk.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Candidate Cho Jeon-hyuk is CEO-type. He's talking about the managerial superintendent. But then I see our education as a product and regard you as a product producer. I don't think so, but the superintendent of education thinks that the companion model with teachers or students is more accurate. We should encourage and comfort them in the hurt educational field and go out together. That's what I think. So I think the role of the superintendent is different about the role.

◇ Interest line: I see. If there's anything that you thought was pretty good or not, can you pick one out of the other candidate's pledges?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: I agree with the basic political rights of teachers. Now, what's completely different is that it's completely different from me to say that they're going to supplement the exam system and line up to improve their grades. The voice of the scene is very important. The big difference is whether you accept the voice of the field and move on based on it or ignore it and target all teachers and things like that as the subject of education policy. I will demonstrate my delicate field-friendly leadership.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: The next superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education. . . What would you say about why I shouldn't be and why I should vote for Jung Geun-sik?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: I have been with the educational community for 40 years consistently on the road to education. Like the pro-Japanese fact-finding committee and the Truth and Reconciliation Committee, we did not hesitate to practice what our society needed. Above all, we have coordinated social conflicts, which are the biggest plaques in our society, and comforted and healed the wounds of the weak. This experience should be applied more in the educational field. It should be actively utilized. That's what I think. In that sense, I would like to argue that I am the superintendent of education suitable for this era.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Let me ask you the voice of the field about the education system. Currently, parents are very interested in special purpose high schools and autonomous private high schools. What do you think of our candidate for a special purpose high school autonomous private high school?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: The issue of special purpose high school autonomous private high school became the most important issue in the early days of Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon, and I think basically, educational schools should be an important site for educational autonomy. School autonomy and decentralization need to be further advanced to the extent that it does not harm publicity. That's how I judge it.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Yes, I see.

◇ Lee Ik-sun: It would have been nice if you came today, but I understand that you couldn't come because you're on the spot. Where are you?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: We are now near Sadang-dong in Dongjak-gu. I'm talking with the citizens and I'm on a street campaign.

◇ Interest line: I see. But now that it's not a district election, it's the whole of Seoul, so I think you'll have a lot of difficulties campaigning. What is the most difficult part?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Most of all, it is very difficult to hear the voices of various citizens in this short period of time. It's so hard to go around all 48 precincts in just two weeks. So I don't have enough time and I have to listen to the voices of the citizens more, which is a shame.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Let me ask you one more question. It dramatically achieved unification with candidate Choi By-sun. In the media, people say that the progressive camp has been unified, but since we have achieved unification, there are some things that should be accepted or realized in the other candidate's pledges and policies. If I win the election through unification with Choi, I will solve this. Please pick one or two.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes. Among candidate Choi Bo-sun's suggestions, there is a two-teacher system in the first class. These days, when you go to the educational field, many teachers are very reluctant to serve as homeroom teachers. So, isn't this more harmonized teacher system appropriate? If you feel too much pressure from a teacher like this, it will be difficult for teachers, so I think the two-teacher system in the first class is the most reasonable and appropriate among candidate Choi Bo-sun's proposals. So I'm thinking of researching it and implementing it.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: Some criticize to the extent that they use the nickname of former Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon's avatar. What would you like to explain about this criticism?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: The term avatar is too harsh. Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon and I are close, but the colors are different. Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon has done a lot of such activities related to civic participation, and I now know the advantages and disadvantages of this so-called excellent students in our country while teaching students at Seoul National University. Many students are good at studying, but they often suffer from anxiety and depression. If you think about why, the overheated competition for entrance exams is disrupting our students' power. I know that so well that I think I need to pay more attention to that problem. How to combat this anxiety and depression and how to make healthy and happy students are probably different from Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon in that area.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: Even if elected, it is a by-election. The term of office is a little short. Can you tell us your aspiration?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Most importantly, our society has a different perspective on future education. So for the rest of the year, I will do my best to have a lot of conversations between conservatives and progressives about the future goals of our education and to agree on the goals of future education that are not shaken despite the change of government is a very important historical mission for me. That's what I'm judging.

◇ Lee Ik-seon: Yes, if you can, are you going to try the next election again?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: I've been so preoccupied with the election for this short time that I don't have time to think about whether I'll go for the next election or not. So I'll think about it later. Right now, I'm focusing on how our citizens can participate in the election through many votes tomorrow and receive more meaningful support for me.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Here's the last question. The early voting rate is very low. So, ahead of tomorrow's main vote, there is a question of whether it will exceed 20%, so could you give a brief word to the citizens of Seoul?

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes citizens are the owners of Seoul education. I appeal with urgency to say that if the owner does not exercise his rights, he can go in the wrong direction if it goes wrong. I want to find dreams for students, find pride for teachers, and give trust to parents. Citizens' participation in voting is the most important weapon in realizing my hope. It gives me strength. I think so. Please participate.

◇ Profit line: Thank you. It was an interview with Chung Geun-sik, a candidate for superintendent of education. Thank you.

◈ Choi Soo-young: Thank you very much.

★ Jeong Geun-sik: Yes, thank you.