Jung Keun-sik, the single liberal candidate, was inaugurated as the superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on October 17th. In a by election with the lowest voter turnout rate since 2008, he secured 50.24% of votes and defeated his conservative rival, Cho Jun hyuk, by 4.15%p. Jung is set to complete his predecessor Cho Hee-yeon’s remaining term till June 2026, who was dismissed last August for receiving a suspended sentence on power abuse charges. His post signals a continuation of the decade-long progressive reign on the city’s education, where he is expected to build on previously pursued policies. During the inauguration ceremony, the newly elected superintendent emphasized the importance of creating an inclusive education system for students with disabilities and multicultural backgrounds, citing plans to establish learning diagnosis and treatment centers. Jung highlighted the need to shift away from traditional assessment methods and replace them with personalized learning approaches to nurture students’ potential and critical thinking skills. He added that cultural, artistic, and physical education would also be necessary for young individuals to develop a sense of humanity and creativity amid the recent rise of artificial intelligence (AI). As a former honorary sociology professor at Seoul National University, historical education was also a key part of Jung’s campaign promises. To maintain historical integrity, he vowed to create an expert committee to fact check related educational material and establish an online historical resource center.
