South Korean Teachers, Parents Speak Out Against Government’s Plan to Send 5-Year-Olds to School

South Korean elementary school students wear masks as a precaution against the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome virus as they sanitize their hands in Busan, South Korea, on June 9, 2015. Cha Geun-ho/Yonhap via AP

The South Korean government has proposed lowering the entry age for elementary school to 5 years old in an effort to tackle workforce shortages, but the move has raised concerns among teachers and civic groups.

Education Minister Park Soon-ae said on Friday that her ministry aims to lower the school entry age by one year, with implementation beginning as early as 2025 upon social consensus, Yonhap News Agency reported.