The Ministry of Education is teaming up with the National Election Commission to carry out tailored "election education" for elementary, middle, and high school students.
In response to fake news and "confirmation bias," digital literacy education will also be expanded so students can critically understand and use information.
The Ministry of Education on the 30th announced the "2026 civic education promotion plan." Civic education is a state agenda of the Lee Jae-myung administration, aiming to foster citizenship based on inclusion and respect in schools.
First, the Ministry of Education will collaborate with the National Election Commission to provide election education tailored to each school level. Notably, it plans to run a "new voter education" program for 400,000 12th-graders and a "democracy election classroom" program for 20,000 elementary and middle school students.
The Ministry of Education will also prepare for the local elections to be held on Jun. 3 by guiding schools on Q&A regarding political relations laws related to students' election and party activities, and by producing and distributing various educational materials.
A basic plan for digital media literacy education will be established so students can understand digital and media content selectively and critically and use it with discernment. "Visiting media education," in which regional viewer media specialists visit schools for crime prevention and media ethics education, will also be conducted.
Constitutional education will also be strengthened. The Ministry of Education will sign business agreements with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Government Legislation, and the Constitutional Court Research Institute to provide specialized constitutional education for students and teachers.
The program that supported specialized constitutional education instructors, which until last year was conducted only in elementary and middle schools, will be expanded to high schools this year. The number of target classes will also increase from 913 to 2,000.
The Ministry of Education plans to build indicators to measure the effects of revitalizing civic education and use the results to improve policy.
Minister Choi Kyo-jin of the Ministry of Education said, "We will continuously strengthen civic education so that all students can grow into democratic citizens equipped with critical thinking and collaborative communication capabilities through constitutional values."