Summer vacation season is in full swing, which means it is prime time for swimming. Unfortunately, it is also the time when most drownings occur. That is where water survival classes come in.Teachers practice survival floating techniques at Daecheon Beach on the west coast on July 19. (Park Ju-young/The Korea Herald)“Basic floating techniques can prevent many deaths,” said Ryou Sun-mi, a qualified aquatic instructor and vice principal of Myeongsin Elementary School.“But without training, childre

The Seoul Central District Court on Thursday gave prison sentences of one to three years to seven former presidential aides and ministers for their roles in creating a blacklist of artists critical of former President Park Geun-hye. Former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon and former Culture Minister Cho Yoon-sun are escorted to the courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court to attend their sentencing hearing Thursday. (Yonhap)The court found former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-c

Education Minister Kim Sang-kon (Yonhap)진행자: 박세환, Paul Kerry1. 교육부, 검정 역사교과서 적용시기 2020년 3월 확정교육부가 국정 역사교과서 폐지 후속조치의 일환으로 검정 역사교과서 적용시기를 2020년 3월로 정했다. 교육부는 그동안 학계와 학교 현장 등 다양한 목소리를 반영해 이 같은 내용을 담은 ‘국정 역사교과서 폐지 후속조치’를 26일 발표했다.아이튠즈(아이폰): https://itunes.apple.com/kr/podcast/koliaheleoldeu-paskaeseuteu/id686406253?mt=2팟빵 (안드로이드): http://www.podbbang.com/ch/6638[1] The Ministry of Education said it would introduce a range of new history textbooks written by private publishers in 2020 in a complete t

The Ministry of Education said it would introduce a range of new history textbooks written by private publishers in 2020 in a complete turnaround from the former conservative administration’s decision to offer state-authored books. Publishers now have until March 2020 to offer new history books for the market, according to the ministry, which would be verified by the government. Education Minister Kim Sang-kon (Yonhap)“The decision is intended to end controversy surrounding state-authored histor

South Korea retained the top spot in the global students’ competition in physics on Monday, following a clean sweep of gold medals in mathematics a day earlier. All five members of the Korean team – high school seniors and sophomores – bagged gold medals at the 48th International Physics Olympiad held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on July 16-24, handling South Korea the year’s championship. Five members of the Korean team pose for a photo after winning gold medals at the 48th International Physics O

An active judge was caught secretly snapping photos of a woman at a Seoul subway station on Tuesday, police said Friday. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, the judge whose name is being withheld, allegedly approached a woman from behind and secretly photographed her with his mobile phone. He was caught by nearby passengers and forcibly handed over to police.  Passengers waiting and entering a Seoul subway train (Yonhap)The man claims innocence, saying the camera application insta

GANGNEUNG/SOKCHO, Gangwon Province – Gangwon Province and its coastal towns used to be the less developed and less populated in South Korea. But that seems to be changing fast. With accessibility from the metropolitan area greatly enhanced and expected to improve yet more in the coming months, the once laid-back coastal towns and cities are seeing a property development boom, with a number of luxury hotels, resorts and apartment complexes being erected. The Seamarq Hotel in GangneungThe upcoming

Kim Sang-jo, the new chief of South Korea’s antirust watchdog, testified Friday at the bribery trial of Samsung Electronics heir Lee Jae-yong.The outspoken critic of family-run chaebol establishments, who now heads the Fair Trade Commission, appeared at the Seoul Central District Court in the afternoon to take the witness stand to testify on issues including the controversial merger of two Samsung affiliates in 2015.  Chief of the Fair Trade Commission Kim Sang-jo (left) and Samsung Electronics

A rainbow banner hung on the facade of the US Embassy building in downtown Seoul on Thursday, in a show of support for the upcoming parade of gender and sexual minorities.According to the US Embassy, the banner, whose multicolor stripes symbolize gay pride, is to “support and participate in this year’s Queer Culture Festival” for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender people, or LGBT.   The US Embassy in Seoul‘s Jongno District. (Yonhap)“The US Department of State affirms its solidarity with the hu

The nominee to lead South Korea’s Justice Ministry vowed to protect human rights of minorities and sternly deal with unfair practices and wrongdoings involving conglomerates and the privileged, the nominee said during a parliamentary confirmation hearing Thursday.Justice Minister nominee Park Sang-ki takes the oath during a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday. YonhapPark Sang-ki, 64, a professor at Yonsei University’s law school, said to a panel of lawmakers that he

The Korea Meteorological Administration on Wednesday issued heat wave warnings and advisories in most parts of the country, with the temperature rising to 37.9 degrees Celsius in Gyeongju. Seoul saw the mercury reaching as high as 33 C, while many other cities reported temperatures above 35 C.  Heat shimmers from the surface of a road in Yeouido, Seoul. (Yonhap)The heat wave is likely to continue Thursday, the weather agency said. Over the weekend, however, monsoon rains will hit the Korean Peni

Seated in front of bright screens, teenage boys deftly maneuver chunky joysticks, surrounded by others who eagerly watch them. Inside the windowless, video screen-lit arcade, there is only one rule: Crush as many enemies as you can.  A “Tekken” arcade machine at a Game Land arcade in Seoul (Bak Se-hwan/The Korea Herald) This may be a typical childhood scene, but in an era when even coins may soon become r

A new body tasked with shaping the nation’s long-term education vision will be formed by August at the latest, Education Minister Kim Sang-kon said Wednesday. 　“The ministry is in works with Cheong Wa Dae to prepare for its launch around early August. Details are still to come, but we have around 25 candidates under consideration to join the envisioned panel,” Kim said at a press conference.  Education Minister Kim Sang-kon speaks in front of reporters. (photo credit: The Ministry of Education)I

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan agreed on Tuesday to "sternly" respond to North Korea's latest missile provocation but affirmed that the door for talks with Pyongyang remains open, the foreign ministry here said. Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, met with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts, Joseph Yun and Kenji Kanasugi, on the sidelines of a regional security conference in

The South Korean prosecution formed an investigative team of at least three prosecutors to look into a food poisoning scandal after a complaint was filed against McDonald’s Korea, an undercooked patty of which allegedly sickened a 4-year-old.  A photo showing a 4-year-old who was hospitalized after she ate McDonald’s burger in September 2016.According to the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office, the investigators are soon to summon officials from the country’s biggest fast food chain to lo

The minor opposition Justice Party on Tuesday picked first-term lawmaker Lee Jeong-mi as its new leader tasked with bolstering its legislative presence to support its core progressive supporters.In the leadership election, Lee garnered 56.05 percent of the vote, beating former lawmaker Park Won-suk who received 43.95 percent. Lee Jeong-mi of the progressive Justice Party (Yonhap)Lee will succeed Sim Sang-jeung, the party's former presidential candidate whose two-year term ended this week.In her

As former President Park Geun-hye’s trial continues into its eighth week and the public attention fades, more die-hard supporters of the fallen politician are attending the hearings.It is now almost expected that the moment Park enters the courtroom, somebody in the audience shouts out “Let her go!” or rises to their feet in an apparent show of respect despite security officers’ gestures not to.But recently, some have become more emboldened. Park Geun-hye is escorted into the southern Seoul Cent

Verbal assault is the most common form of school violence in South Korea, according to the Education Ministry’s recently published survey. At least 37,000 elementary, middle and high school students are exposed to various forms of violence and verbal attacks during their school life, the survey showed Tuesday, which was conducted from last October to April this year by the ministry amongst 4.19 million, or 94.9 percent of students nationwide.  (123rf)Of the victims, 34.1 percent said they were s

Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a lower risk of osteoporosis for women, South Korean medical research showed Friday. A research team of orthopedists from Soon Chun Hyang University Hospital Seoul and Korea University Ansan Hospital found that women who drink lightly two to three times a week had higher bone density than those who drink heavily or not at all, the team said in the latest issue of the medical journal Plos One.  (123rf)To analyze the effect of drinking alcohol on ost

South Korean prosecutors said Thursday they started looking into a complaint filed against McDonald’s Korea, whose undercooked patties allegedly sickened a 4-year-old. 　The investigation came a day after the child’s parents filed the complaint against the Korean unit of the global fast-food giant for violating food safety rules, claiming that their daughter developed a hemolytic-uremic syndrome and had lost 90 percent of her kidney function after eating a burger from a McDonald’s outlet.  A phot