Children looking at a laptop, Source / Ground Picture-shutterstock.com
A post written by a teacher about international marriage is stirring up controversy.
On the 15th, a post titled ‘From a Teacher’s Perspective, International Marriage is Too Horrifying’ was uploaded on Nate’s forum. This post has recorded 190,000 views.
The author, claiming to be a current teacher, began by saying, “Honestly, this isn’t a topic for public debate, so I’m writing this anonymously. Personally, I don’t see arranged marriages as a bad thing. A considerable number of unilateral marriages also rely on men’s economic power,” adding that they don’t view French men, American men, Chinese women, Japanese women, etc., negatively. “The union of individuals and the birth of life should be respected in and of itself.”
The teacher continued, “But international marriages with Southeast Asian women are too horrifying. Fourth-grade elementary school children can’t read Korean. The mother can’t speak Korean, and because the father is also from the lower class, they completely neglect home education, and some too many children can’t read Korean,” arguing, “It’s not that they spell incorrectly, they can’t read long sentences. If you ask senior-grade teachers from grades 5 to 6, they say these children are essentially illiterate.”
The teacher added, “When these children grow up, they will surely become slum dwellers and have antisocial tendencies, but the discussion can’t take place because the low birth rate is urgent. It’s certain to lead to a horrific result as a social cost,” and “I know it’s not something a teacher should say. But this is not a problem that can be overcome with education. I first came to a rural school from working in the city, and it’s too disheartening. I feel the limit as a teacher.”
Netizens who saw this have started a heated debate.
Some netizens left comments such as “Is a current teacher inciting hatred against children from multicultural families?”, “I can’t believe such discriminatory remarks are posted online,” “Not everyone is like that, but the generalization is severe,” “Would you come to your senses if you met parents from the upper class?” and “It’s ridiculous to say that mixed-race children from Southeast Asia can’t read Korean in senior grades.”
On the other hand, other netizens showed reactions such as “I agree,” “I read ‘arranged marriage’ as ‘international marriage,'” and “If they can’t assimilate into society, isn’t crime the only thing they can do?”, “I think these problems keep coming up because there are not many proper families,” “The government also needs to pay attention,” and “I don’t think this is entirely wrong.”
Korean written on a memo, Source / Miunmiunan-shutterstock.com
Issues related to developmental delays in children from multicultural families are ongoing.
According to data on infant health examinations submitted by the National Health Insurance Service to Kim Young-ju, a member of the Democratic Party, on the 13th, the average examination rate of infants from multicultural families over the past four years from 2019 to 2022 was found to be 60.5%.
This is significantly lower than the average examination rate of infants from domestic families (81.6%) or medical aid beneficiaries (72.6%) during the same period.
This result appears to be due to the low awareness of foreign mothers about the need for health examinations for children during infancy and the issue of accessibility to medical institutions due to language barriers.
Infant health examinations are essential indicators examining whether development is appropriate for the growth cycle. Children suspected of ‘developmental delay’ are recommended for an in-depth evaluation during the screening process. It means that accurate diagnosis by experts is needed because there is a possibility of developmental disabilities.
Last year, the infant development screening test results showed that 4,678 children from multicultural families, or 6.3% of the total, were recommended for an in-depth evaluation. This is nearly double the increase from 2021. The increase is more noticeable compared to the 1% increase in the recommendation rate for in-depth evaluation of infants from domestic families during the same period.
Representative Kim Young-ju said, “Although the proportion of multicultural families has been increasing recently, four out of ten multicultural children are unable to receive health examinations due to their home environment and parents’ economic conditions,” and “This could lead to learning gaps and maladjustment due to developmental delays of multicultural children in the future, which could act as a factor hindering social integration.”
She added, “There will be many more hidden children suspected of development in multicultural children,” and “The National Health Insurance Service needs to find ways to increase the examination rate of infants so that all multicultural children can grow into healthy members of our society through health examinations.”
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