[KS] Re: Editorial: A Paradise Lost

[goodwin]

The following unsigned Editorial appears in today's Korea Herald. Any


 11-07-98 : Editorial: A Paradise Lost

    Recent statistics show Korean professors published the least number of research
papers in
    international academic journals among the 29 member countries of the
Organization for
    Economic Cooperation and Development. Considering the fair size of Korea's
population
    and the large number of people in the teaching profession, in particular, this
statistic
    indicates relative academic inactivity in this country.

    Korea has been long dubbed as a paradise for professors. This reputation has
been
    recognized by professors themselves, who enjoy perhaps the highest degree of job
security
    among all professionals. Retirement age is fixed at 65 by the Education Law,
tenure is
    guaranteed when one is promoted to associate professor, and the performance
appraisal,
    introduced at some institutions, is just a formality in most cases. It is
increasingly difficult
    to find a position at Korea's universities, but once employed, you are in for a
good life
    enhanced with social esteem.

    This privileged status is being threatened as the Education Ministry, under the
    reform-minded Minister Lee Hai-chan, has drafted revision bills for a set of
education laws
    to introduce the contract system for professors. If the amendments are approved
by the
    National Assembly during the current regular session, professors will be
employed on
    three- to five-year contracts. The pay scale and various conditions of the
contracts will be
    determined on a case-by-case basis. To prevent any possible academic
instability, the new
    system will be implemented in 2002.

    But immediate changes are also proposed, such as committees that would be
established at
    all universities to evaluate the performance of each professor. The panel would
check the
    number of research papers produced by each professor and evaluate their quality.
As of
    next year, universities will be required to admit nonalumni scholars for more
than half of
    the positions offered for new recruitment. Thus, the Education Ministry is
trying to break up
    the atmosphere of languor and tradition of parochialism prevalent at Korean
universities.

    Nepotism has prevailed in Korea's academic society, particularly at the more
prestigious
    institutions. Professors have been recruited largely through personal
connections and the
    unanimous opinion of the professors in a department is essential in making a
decision. The
    unique tradition has produced the extremely high rate of alumni professors in
Korea's
    leading universities. At Seoul National University (SNU), only 0.4 percent of
its professors
    are recruits from outside, and there can be no parallel in the world of such
extreme
    exclusiveness.

    Furthermore, it is simply unthinkable for a well known institution in Korea to
invite a
    non-alumni as its chief administrator. It is an unwritten law at SNU to have its
own
    graduates named as president and all other key academic positions. This
situation is the
    same at Korea, Yonsei and Ewha. Only provincial universities and some private
    institutions have opened their doors to nonalumni scholars, but this opening is
narrowing as
    more universities turn to direct election of the president by professors. Under
these
    circumstances, it is easy to understand the absence of acceptable levels of
progress at
    Korean universities.

    Universities will develop and academic activities prosper only when new ideas
are freely
    exchanged among institutions of higher learning and among professors. Government

    initiatives may create momentum for change, but without self-renovation by
professors and
    the boards of school foundations, no reform measures will gain expected results
and
    Korean universities will remain in their present lowly status in the academic
community of
    the world forever.

    The state is going to deprive university professors of some of their vested
rights.
    Repercussions are naturally expected from the members of the ivory tower who are
not
    accustomed to rigorous competition and the norm of survival of the fittest that
prevails in
    other sectors. But universities alone cannot be left behind in this age of
reform and
    restructuring. If professors initiate efforts for renovation, they will face
fewer changes
    imposed from the outside.





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