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The Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU), also known as JeonGyoJo, has urged Netflix to cancel its upcoming drama True Education, arguing the series glorifies school violence and misrepresents the reality of education in South Korea.
In a statement released on May 20, the union condemned the drama, which is based on the Get Schooled webtoon, for glorifying school violence, teacher hatred, and hate speech, including racism.
They urged Netflix to halt production, while calling on the Korea Communications Standards Commission to consider banning the broadcast.
JeonGyoJo criticized the central theme of the webtoon, which portrays the collapse of teacher authority as a result of banning corporal punishment. The story follows a protagonist from the Ministry of Education’s Teacher Rights Protection Bureau who resolves school issues through the use of violence.
The union said this framing distorts teachers as incompetent and passive, glorifies school violence, and undermines the professionalism and educational responsibilities of teachers.
“True education is not violence, but education based on democracy, human rights, and equality,” they stated.
The union emphasized that adapting the webtoon into a drama, especially one distributed globally by Netflix, could have serious consequences.
JeonGyoJo argued that showing a state official using violence against students under the pretext of protecting teacher rights disguises human rights violations as legitimate discipline.
They warned the drama could weaken public belief in solving school issues through democratic means and mislead youth about the role of education in a human rights-friendly society.
Criticism of the original webtoon is not new. In 2021, youth rights organization Asunaro launched a social media campaign calling the webtoon “violence against youth” for its disregard of student human rights.
More recently, some fans of actress Jin Ki-joo, one of the drama’s cast members, have publicly urged her to withdraw from the production. They labeled True Education as a hateful work rife with sexism and violations of women’s rights.
Check out their full statement below:
Violence Is Not True Education
Halt the Production of the Drama True EducationThe drama incites the glorification of school violence, teacher hatred, and hate speech including racism.
Youth rights groups, fans of cast members, and social media users are calling for a boycott and cancellation of the drama.
True education is not violence, but education based on democracy, human rights, and equality.In March 2025, Netflix confirmed production of a drama titled True Education, based on the Naver webtoon of the same name. The webtoon has previously been criticized for glamorizing corporal punishment and school violence, misrepresenting feminist teachers, and containing racist and hateful expressions.
The webtoon’s central theme implies that the banning of corporal punishment caused the collapse of teacher authority. It depicts a protagonist, affiliated with the Ministry of Education’s Teacher Rights Protection Bureau, who solves school problems using corporal punishment and violence. The webtoon portrays conflict between students, parents, and teachers in an overly provocative way, distorting teachers as incompetent and passive. It glorifies violence in schools, incites hatred, and gravely damages the professionalism and educational responsibilities of teachers.
In 2021, the youth rights group “Asunaro” criticized the webtoon in a social media campaign, calling it “violence against youth” for openly trampling on students’ human rights. Recently, some fans of actress Jin Ki-joo, who is set to appear in the drama adaptation, demanded her withdrawal, calling True Education “a hateful work rife with sexism and violations of women’s rights.” There is growing movement on social media urging a boycott and cancellation of the drama.
Rather than addressing the structural issues causing school violence and corruption, the webtoon treats it as a problem solved by punishing individual wrongdoers, using provocative and violent depictions simply to boost viewership. The concern with adapting True Education into a drama lies in how a state-powered protagonist uses violence against students in the name of protecting teacher rights, while framing such abuse as “true education.” If aired globally on a platform like Netflix, which is accessible to youth, it may erode belief in resolving school issues through democratic means and distort our efforts to foster human rights-friendly school environments and normalize public education.
The term “True Education” originates from a public desire and struggle against the false education imposed during authoritarian regimes. Since its founding in 1989, JeonGyoJo has led efforts to realize true education by campaigning to abolish corporal punishment, reject bribes from parents, and build a culture of equality and democracy in schools. Since the tragic death of a teacher at Seoi Elementary School in 2023 and other heartbreaking incidents, JeonGyoJo has also worked to ensure a safe teaching environment and protect teachers’ rights.
Though the meaning of “true education” may have evolved over time, it still represents the values and direction our education system must pursue—and remains a source of pride for generations who experienced JeonGyoJo’s efforts.
Violence is not true education. State violence that violates students’ rights does not protect teacher rights. The freedom to create and express must be weighed with social responsibility and impact. We demand Netflix halt the production of the True Education drama.
The production team must immediately cease production of the drama True Education, which distorts violence as “true education”!
The Korea Communications Standards Commission must recognize the seriousness of this matter and take necessary measures such as banning the broadcast!
Get Schooled is written by Yongtaek Chae with art by Garam Han. It was serialized on Naver Webtoon and updated weekly on Sundays.
The English-language version was discontinued on Sep 15, 2023, following backlash over racist content in chapter 125. Webtoon later confirmed that the series would not return for U.S. readers.
Meanwhile, the Korean version went on a long hiatus but has since resumed after removing and replacing the controversial story arc.
Source: TV Daily
