Improvement of women's Education in Korea and their Employment

한국여성의 교육향상과 직장참여 - 학교교육과 직장생활의 성별차별

Before the modern education was introduced in Korea men had the opportunity to be educated. Women's education was limited to a small number of girls belonging to ruling class. It was the men who got a job to earn the money for the family. The customary law prohibited women from being employed. They were to stay at home engaged in household affairs. This phenomenon has undergone a change when modern education was adopted which gave women the equal opportunity in education. The modernization of the country required a lot of educated and skilled labour. Since 1945 when Korea was liberated from the Japanese colonial administration the modernization programme has been worked out in every field such as industry, education, culture and politics, etc. The traditional grand family was transformed to nuclear family. The migration took place from country to town. With the adoption of compulsory education in the primary school the schoolgirls are increased in great number. The number of girls has been increased every year in Middle Schools, High schools and Universities. Even if boys still outnumber girls in all education institutions, the rate of increase of girl students are higher than that of boy students. Accordingly women are given more opportunity than ever for the employment vis-a-vis men. The number of employed women has been increasing greatly in recent years inproportion to the acceleration of industrialization. The type of their job is also various and colorful ranging from factory worker to doctor and lawyer. There are some problems to be solved with respect to the improvement of women's education. The improved women's education should be reviewed light of the fact that inequality still exists between men and women in occupation and wages, and that women is required of good education contributable to the better Korean society.