▲ Wreaths of condolence flowers are laid in front of an elementary school in the central city of Daejeon in this file photo taken Sept. 8, 2023, after a teacher there died by an apparent suicide. (Yonhap)

teacher suicides-data

Data show 144 teachers died by suicide over last decade

SEOUL, Oct. 18 (Yonhap) -- The number of elementary, middle and high school teachers who took their own life over the past decade amounted to 144, a ruling party lawmaker said Wednesday, citing data from the Ministry of Education.

The suicides occurred between 2014 and August this year, Rep. Lee Tae-kyu of the ruling People Power Party said, noting the annual number spiked from six in 2014 to 20 in 2018 and 25 in 2021.

The number decreased to 20 last year but as many as 14 teachers died by suicide in the first eight months of this year, Lee added.

By region, Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul, reported 31 deaths, followed by 22 in Seoul, 13 in Busan and 12 in South Chungcheong Province.

Elementary school teachers accounted for 78, or 54.2 percent, of the total, while middle and high school teachers accounted for 27 and 39, respectively. By age group, those in their 20s and 30s accounted for 60, or 41.7 percent.

Teachers across the nation have recently demanded better treatment and guarantees of their authority in classrooms in the wake of a series of suicides by teachers who apparently suffered from unruly students and malicious complaints from parents.

"The fact that many elementary school teachers and young teachers in their 20s and 30s have taken their own life appears to be related to the mounting violations of teachers' rights," Lee said, calling for efforts to accurately find the causes and backgrounds of their extreme choices.

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