A week ago, James Heckman, a Nobel Prize–winning scholar known for his work on human capital and education, addressed the issue of excessive private education in South Korea.

Professor Heckman pointed out that academic competition in Korea begins at an extremely young age and has become unsustainably intense. As competition starts earlier, parents grow increasingly anxious about their children’s academic performance. Many children are exposed to academic content even before entering formal schooling, leading parents to fear that their children may fall behind their peers from the very beginning. This anxiety often pushes parents to enroll their children in hagwons (private academic institutions) at a very young age. As a result, families expend significant time, money, and emotional energy on education—a system that Heckman noted places a heavy burden on both children and parents.

He further linked this issue to South Korea’s record-low birth rate, suggesting that the financial and emotional pressures associated with raising and educating children may discourage families from having more children. According to Professor Heckman, education-related stress has become a broad social problem rather than a purely individual choice.

South Korea has faced criticism for such competition before. On December 9, 2025, the National Assembly passed a law banning English entrance exams for four-year-old kindergarten applicants. The legislation aimed to prevent young children from being exposed to excessive academic pressure at an early age. Prior to the ban, some private English kindergartens required children under the age of five to demonstrate advanced English skills for admission. Many education experts questioned the effectiveness of such practices, arguing that early academic pressure may cause more harm than benefit during critical stages of development and negatively impact children's self-esteem.

Professor Heckman explained that these problems stem from a narrow societal view of education in Korea. He argued that the education system focuses almost entirely on grades and exam results while neglecting other important aspects of child development. “Exam-focused education is a ‘kiss of death,’” he warned, emphasizing the long-term risks of an overly competitive system.

김예주 강남포스트 학생기자  webmaster@ignnews.kr

<저작권자 © 강남포스트, 무단 전재 및 재배포 금지>