ID :
76739
Mon, 08/24/2009 - 17:25
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Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/76739
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Schools to enhance student protection with parent text message service
By Lee Haye-Ah
SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) -- Select elementary schools will begin a text messaging service for parents next month to help them track students coming to and from school, the education ministry said Monday, a pilot program aimed at preventing crime against children.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said it picked 40 elementary
schools across the country to launch the 'safeway project,' that includes the
text messaging service (SMS) for parents with children in grades one to three.
The designated schools, selected by municipal and provincial education offices,
are mostly in neighborhoods with a high concentration of working parents and
low-income families, officials said.
Under the program, children will register their arrival and departure from school
using a fingerprint or electronic card reader at the school gates. The reader
will then automatically send a text message to the parents' mobile phones.
"We prepared this SMS service to help relieve parents' concerns for their
children's safety and to reduce school violence and crime. If all goes well, we
will extend the service to all schools across the country at the end of the test
period next June," a ministry official said.
The program also includes recruiting parents and retired teachers to act as
volunteers accompanying school children to and from school, as well as to other
after-school activities.
The pilot program is part of government measures launched in response to a series
of high-profile child abduction cases. In December 2007, two young girls were
kidnapped and murdered by a neighbor who attempted to sexually assault the
victims.
Earlier this month, the government approved putting electronic tracking anklets
on repeat child kidnappers. The devices were previously ordered only for sex
criminals.
The number of child abduction cases reached 299 last year, a sharp increase from
223 in 2006 and 232 in 2007, according to data from the Ministry of Justice.
SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) -- Select elementary schools will begin a text messaging service for parents next month to help them track students coming to and from school, the education ministry said Monday, a pilot program aimed at preventing crime against children.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said it picked 40 elementary
schools across the country to launch the 'safeway project,' that includes the
text messaging service (SMS) for parents with children in grades one to three.
The designated schools, selected by municipal and provincial education offices,
are mostly in neighborhoods with a high concentration of working parents and
low-income families, officials said.
Under the program, children will register their arrival and departure from school
using a fingerprint or electronic card reader at the school gates. The reader
will then automatically send a text message to the parents' mobile phones.
"We prepared this SMS service to help relieve parents' concerns for their
children's safety and to reduce school violence and crime. If all goes well, we
will extend the service to all schools across the country at the end of the test
period next June," a ministry official said.
The program also includes recruiting parents and retired teachers to act as
volunteers accompanying school children to and from school, as well as to other
after-school activities.
The pilot program is part of government measures launched in response to a series
of high-profile child abduction cases. In December 2007, two young girls were
kidnapped and murdered by a neighbor who attempted to sexually assault the
victims.
Earlier this month, the government approved putting electronic tracking anklets
on repeat child kidnappers. The devices were previously ordered only for sex
criminals.
The number of child abduction cases reached 299 last year, a sharp increase from
223 in 2006 and 232 in 2007, according to data from the Ministry of Justice.
