SEOUL– Schools will retain records of serious school bullies for two years after their graduation starting this year to help better prevent school violence, the education ministry said Wednesday.
Currently, records of school violence perpetrators can be removed when they graduate, making it hard to track and cope with school bullies.
Starting in March, all schools will be required to keep such records for two years after school violence perpetrators graduate, the education ministry said, as part of a comprehensive plan to ramp up safety across classrooms.
Those subject to the new measure are students who get transferred to a new school for inflicting Grade 8 school violence and students who get replaced to a different class for perpetrating Grade 7 violence.
School violence is classified into nine levels depending on its seriousness.
The most serious Grade 9 violence leads to expulsion from school while students in the middle school level, a compulsory education course in South Korea, can be accused of Grade 8 violence at maximum.
As part of the safety enhancement plan, the education ministry will also launch a joint consultative body with other related ministries and organization, dedicated to preventing and dealing with violence against students in cyberspace.
Education on drug prevention will also be expanded across all levels of schools, the ministry also said.
Source: Yonhap News Agency