by JAMES S. KIM | @james_s_kim
editor@charactermedia.com
South Korean students are ranked among the brightest in the world, but they are definitely not among the happiest. A young student, who identifies himself as Jason, took to YouTube a few days ago to voice his dissent, and his video has drawn thousands of views in just a few days.
The middle school freshman (7th grade), who, according to his videos, lived in Texas for a few years before moving back to South Korea, holds nothing back in his biting criticism.
“Dear Korea, you’re pretty impressive,” he says. “You’ve come a long way in such a short time, but you suck, to be honest. The kids here are having a competitive, harsh childhood. You pretend it isn’t a problem, or you’re just too dense to figure out that it is.”
Korean students are expected to study up to 12-16 hours a day until they attend college, but even then, if the college isn’t prestigious, Jason warns, “do not expect your parents to love you.”
Although he rambles at some parts of the vlog, Jason offers an interesting and refreshing Korean American perspective on the country’s high-pressure educational system. Make sure to watch the last minute of the video to catch his final biting comment.
You can also watch Jason’s follow-up video below, in which he talks about what he loves and hates about Korea (apart from its education system).
