Reports have emerged that North Korea has begun strengthening special education for disabled children by establishing a hearing-impaired class in kindergartens and developing sign language interpretation programs. This is interpreted as an effort to highlight its image as a normal state in the international community and to counter criticisms of human rights violations.
On the 4th, the Korean Central News Agency reported that the Education Information Technology Exchange Agency had developed the sign language translation support program "Sign Language 1.0." Sign Language is the North Korean expression for sign language.
North Korea regularly holds emergency sessions of the North Korean Sign Language Review Committee to refine sign language terms to fit reality. The 12th meeting was held in September last year.
From February to July last year, the Korean Association of the Deaf and the Korean Sign Language Interpreters Association conducted training sessions to foster sign language teachers. It is presumed that these discussions were reflected in the newly developed "Sign Language 1.0."
Meanwhile, Hwa Won 2 Kindergarten, located in the Hwa Sung District of Pyongyang, established a dedicated class for hearing-impaired children in April.
Classes are based on the regular kindergarten curriculum but include specialized training in sign language, speech, and articulation tailored to the characteristics of hearing-impaired children.
To facilitate this, the Education Research Institute's Multimedia Research Center produced over 40 multimedia editing materials (videos) and published new sign language teaching materials. Additionally, children reportedly can take a shuttle bus to and from school.
According to the Chosun Shinbo, this is the first time a hearing-impaired class has been established in a general kindergarten. North Korea plans to gradually establish kindergartens and classes for disabled children in each province starting next year after pilot operations of the kindergarten.