South Korea pulls plug on AI textbooks

South Korea’s National Assembly passed a bill on Monday stripping artificial intelligence-powered digital textbooks of their legal status as official teaching materials, dealing a heavy blow to the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s flagship education reform project. The amendment narrows the legal definition of textbooks to printed books and e-books, excluding “learning support software using intelligent information technology." This reclassifies AI-powered textbooks as just another type o

Aug. 4, 2025

Enjoy the silence while you can: Experts warn mosquitoes could still surge

If you live in South Korea, this year's summer might have felt strangely quiet. The familiar high-pitched buzz of mosquitoes, long considered a seasonal nuisance, has been noticeably absent. But experts say the reprieve may not last, with a possible resurgence of mosquitoes looming as the season transitions into autumn. This year’s extreme weather, marked by an unusually early and prolonged heat wave, a shortened monsoon season, and bursts of torrential rain, has disrupted the mosquito life cycl

Aug. 2, 2025

Is using a sun umbrella linked to racial bias?

Parasols, or sun umbrellas, have long been a summer necessity in several Asian countries. It is easy to spot both men and women holding them over their heads in the streets of South Korea and Japan, to shield against the sunlight and strong UV rays. However, a viral TikTok video claiming that the widespread use of such sunshades in Asia stems from underlying "white supremacy" has stirred controversy and sparked heated debates over whether the issue is about racism or health. In the video, titled

Aug. 1, 2025

Yoon strongly resists special counsel's attempt to arrest him for questioning

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol has once again evaded efforts by prosecutors to enforce an arrest warrant, prompting the special counsel team to warn that physical force may be used next time. On Friday, the team investigating former First Lady Kim Keon Hee and led by prosecutor Min Joong-ki attempted to detain Yoon at Seoul Detention Center at around 8:30 a.m. They left empty-handed after more than two hours of confrontation. Yoon, who is already in custody following his arrest by a separate spe

Aug. 1, 2025

Multicultural families in Korea show signs of deeper integration, but disparities remain

Families with multicultural backgrounds in South Korea are experiencing greater integration into Korean society, with notable progress in children's education, household income and social inclusion, according to the latest government survey. On Thursday, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family released the 2024 National Survey on Multicultural Families, conducted on a sample of 16,014 households nationwide. Under Korean law, a multicultural family refers to a family comprising an immigrant by

July 31, 2025

South Koreans live longer, but suicide rate remains highest

South Korea’s life expectancy reached 83.5 years as of 2023, surpassing by 2.4 years the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's average of 81.1 years, a report released by the Paris-based organization showed Wednesday. The same OECD Health Statistics 2025 report released via South Korea's Ministry of Health and Welfare showed that the country continues to report the highest suicide rate among OECD member nations, despite progress in life expectancy and health outcomes. Life expe

July 30, 2025

South Korea aims to make preschool free for all children by 2027

South Korea will begin offering free education and child care to all 5-year-olds by subsidizing preschool institutions from July, as a step toward the government's plan to make preschool education universally accessible by 2027. The Ministry of Education announced Tuesday that the Cabinet had approved a 128.9 billion won ($92.6 million) allocation for the second half of the year. It aims to support approximately 278,000 children aged 5 who are enrolled in either kindergartens or day care centers

July 29, 2025

Summer travel alert: How to stay safe from measles while abroad

As international travel surges this summer, so does the risk of measles infection. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, 65 measles cases have been reported domestically as of July 5, a 40 percent increase from last year. A striking 70.8 percent of these cases were imported, most commonly from Vietnam, followed by Thailand, Italy, Uzbekistan and Mongolia. Another 19 cases were linked to domestic transmission from imported infections. Measles, an extremely contagious virus

July 28, 2025

South Korea moves to end 'baby exports,' state to take full responsibility

In just a few days, South Korea will officially end its decadeslong practice of allowing private agencies to handle adoptions and begin a new era in which the state takes primary responsibility for the process, grounded in public oversight and the protection of children’s rights. The shift is more than a bureaucratic change. It is a historical reckoning. For over 70 years, beginning in the aftermath of the Korean War, South Korea sent more than 170,000 children overseas for adoption, a number so

July 16, 2025

Sejong University tops Korea's tech transfer earnings in 2024

Sejong University announced that its technology transfer income for 2024 was the highest among South Korean universities, posting 17.37 billion won ($12.5 million) that year. It outpaced other top Korean universities, including Kyung Hee University at 9.7 billion won, KAIST at 8.1 billion won, Seoul National University at 6.4 billion won and Sungkyunkwan University at 4.3 billion won. This figure is the second-highest in Korean history, following Hanyang University’s 27.9 billion won in 2022, an

July 15, 2025