Student-reported school violence more than doubles in 5 years

More than 90,000 South Korean students said they had experienced school violence, with the share reaching a record high, a government survey showed Wednesday.

The Education Ministry and 16 metropolitan and provincial education offices conducted the survey online from April 14 to May 13. The National Youth Policy Institute analyzed the findings.

The survey covered 3.9 million students from the fourth grade of elementary school through the final year of high school. About 3.19 million, or 81.7 percent, responded about their experiences as victims, perpetrators or witnesses.

The share reporting victimization reached 2.9 percent, up 0.4 percentage point from last year’s first-round survey and more than 2.5 times the 1.1 percent recorded in 2021.

Elementary school students reported the highest rate at 5.7 percent, compared with 2.3 percent among middle school students and 0.8 percent among high school students.

Of the types of victimization reported, verbal abuse accounted for 37.8 percent, followed by group bullying at 17.1 percent, physical violence at 15.7 percent and cyberbullying at 7 percent. Other forms included sexual violence, coercion, stalking and extortion.

The share of students who said they had witnessed school violence rose to 6.7 percent, nearly triple the 2021 level. By contrast, the share admitting to committing school violence fell 0.3 percentage point from last year to 0.8 percent, although it remained twice the 2021 figure.

“The results appear to reflect a combination of factors,” said Sung Yun-sook, a senior research fellow at the National Youth Policy Institute.

She said increased use of digital devices may have reduced opportunities for students to develop face-to-face relationships and empathy, allowing everyday conflicts to escalate into school violence.

“Greater sensitivity to school violence among students and parents may also be a factor,” Sung said.

Roundtable discussions with students, teachers and school violence officials found that many incidents began as jokes that escalated, while victims and perpetrators often perceived the same conduct differently.

“Preventive education and restorative programs should be strengthened so minor cases can be resolved educationally rather than through formal deliberation,” Sung said.

The Education Ministry said it would strengthen prevention and restorative programs while responding more firmly to emerging forms of violence, including sparring and so-called “yacha-rule” bare-knuckle fights, bouts without fixed rules or protective equipment.

The ministry and the National Police Agency issued an alert over yacha-rule violence in August. School police officers will conduct focused prevention education.