広島朝鮮初中高級学校の生徒たちに充実した教育環境を！！

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• Introduction　

  〇 Improve the learning environment at the Hiroshima’s Korean School!

We are a committee of alumnae and friends campaigning to make school life more comfortable at Hiroshima’s Korean School.

Our goal is to celebrate the 75^th anniversary of the Hiroshima Korean Elementary, Junior and High Schools by equipping all classrooms with air conditioners. We are promoting this project conjunction with the Hiroshima Korean School Memorial Event Committee.

 

• Why are we doing this?

Most people have no idea why and where Korean Schools are located in Japan, and the kind of education they provide. It may surprise you to know that there are actually 64 Korean Schools in Japan. Of these, only the Hiroshima School offers a complete program from kindergarten through high school.

 

Our students are Korean children residing in Japan. Although their roots are in Korea, some are South Korean, North Korean, Chinese or Japanese by nationality. At school, they study Korean language, songs and culture, learning about their roots and gaining ethnic pride. Our ultimate goal is to nurture young people willing and able to live comfortably in Japanese society while serving as effective bridges between Japan and Korea.

 

This year, the Hiroshima Korean School will mark 75 years since its foundation. At one point, we had more than 400 students. Today, we have only 113. The school has raised tuition to keep the school solvent, but COVID-19 has inflicted an even greater burden on guardians. Even with increased support from alumnae and the community, the school is faced with difficult challenges.

In the past, Korean schools received a subsidy from the local government. In 2010, the Japanese government introduced its “tuition-free high school system” to ensure that all children are able to receive a high school education. In February 2013, Korean High Schools were excluded from the tuition-free system for political reasons having nothing to do with education. As a result, we lost the local government subsidy of 20 million yen.

 

Without this subsidy, our school is finding it extremely difficult to maintain basic equipment and facilities. The buildings are 25 years old and gradually deteriorating. Some equipment can no longer be used without expensive repairs.

 

In this dire situation, one of the most serious problems is the lack of cooling in classrooms. Summers in Hiroshima are increasingly hot and humid, but the students are only cooled by fans.

 

(Picture: Fans used last summer)

 

Last summer, because of COVID-19, students had to attend classes in August. The windows were all open, but the air coming in was hot. Students had great difficulty concentrating on their lessons.

 

Teachers prepared water coolers, made ice, and froze cold gels collected from parents. Students studied with ice or gel on their necks. Some students fell ill due to the heat, so the school had to rent rooms with air conditioners for end-of-term tests.

 

Eating ice during a break (from the school’s Facebook page)

 

Teachers from a private kindergarten who visited our school were shocked to learn that the school is being forced to manage without the subsidy. They were unanimous in declaring the subsidy “indispensable!” to their own schools.

 

 

The right for Korean children to receive Korean education is guaranteed under international humanitarian law. We want to offer students at the Hiroshima Korean School the opportunity to learn and take pride in their own ethnicity in a pleasant environment.

 

High School field trip on April 23, 2021 (from school’s Facebook page)

 

• Project summary

We initiated this project to improve student life at Hiroshima Korean School. We plan to install air conditioning in all classrooms.

 

The total cost will be seven million yen. We hope to collect three million yen through crowdfunding. We will carry out a variety of activities to raise the remainder of the funds required. If we were to raise more than seven million yen, we would use the extra funds to repair or replace broken equipment.

 

• Project vision

Another goal of this project is to tell people in Japan about the Korean Schools here and convey the crucial importance of teaching Korean children living in Japan to understand and value their Korean heritage. We believe such education will promote diversity and understanding that will benefit Japanese and Korean residents alike.

 

 

The timeliness of some returns will depend on the COVID-19 situation.