Back in the 1950s, the Korean War was just beginning to rage. North Korea would not only use propaganda against South Korea but also use weapons and airplanes to bomb South Korea. Most of these planes were bought and flown by high school students who were there to earn extra credits. These students did not just go there; they stayed in the dorms and did their school work.
Many of the students returned to their families and didn’t return for the next semester. Most of those who stayed behind formed the “gangs” that typify contemporary Korean society. These groups would prey on other students around the dorm. They would taunt the other students and if they didn’t do as they were told, they were beaten up. They even had threats made against them. Some of the stories are true.
The authorities soon caught on to this and started to do arrests and punishment for these students. Many were sent to labor camps. Others were sent away to their own homes. The mothers of these students were even told that if they didn’t go back to the dorms at least one time during the semester – their daughters would be forced to.
These young women had no choice. If they didn’t, they’d be raped and killed. The authorities soon learned how dangerous these students were. So, they started sending home more parents who wanted to send their children to school abroad. This way, they could ensure that their children would go to school and get an education and there was less risk that they would be separated from their families.
However, this still isn’t the whole story. The South Korean government is actually quite strict about this. Parents are not to send their children to home school. They aren’t to get their children with their homework over the internet or any way.
The authorities still allow some home-based learning and some teachers are allowed to home school their students. However, many of these teachers are monitored by the government and their jobs are closely monitored. In fact, some schools are now being monitored by CCTV cameras. If anything goes wrong, the authorities can then find out and prosecute the teacher guilty of negligence.
What does the result of this all mean to you? It means that, if your child wants to go home and does not get their homework done, you may want to talk to their parents. You may even decide to move home – as long as it is far away from their home and they do not have access to their home-based teacher.
You may be tempted to let them off the hook and hope that they get caught in the act, but it just isn’t so. Yes, they may not be doing anything illegal. But that does not mean they are not still getting behind and wasting time. The punishment for this kind of behavior can result in a large fine or even a year of detention. And most students will go into more debt than they were before they were caught.
If you are going to send your children to a home-based private or public school, there are a few things you can do to avoid the problems of homework distractions. Try to schedule your children’s homework around their school work. That way, they will learn their lessons together, and their work will help them practice what they have learned. This way, they will get the most out of their lessons.
Another solution is to go along with your children to their homework sessions. We all know how tempting it can be to stay up all night studying for tests, particularly if you have some extra free time. If you are the teacher, go along with your student and let them skip class if necessary. Of course, you should warn your students ahead of time about this. Some instructors will even do this on your behalf if you let them know ahead of time.
Finally, encourage your students to set up their own home-based homework schedule. This can be as involved or as simple as just getting a calendar for the week and marking off assignments when they arrive. Either way, make sure the schedule is followed. Doing so can help your children to learn on their own at home and give them a sense of independence that is very important.
