By Kim Hyun-bin
Education officials are on high alert as more students are committing suicide due to excessive stress from study and strained relations with family or friends, among other reasons. Some students as young as elementary school first grade have attempted suicide.
The Ministry of Education conducted a psychoanalysis of suicidal students and formed a situation report to better counter the issue.
According to the report, 37 grade school students attempted suicide in 2011 and that number jumped drastically to 258 in 2015 and last year reached a record high of 451.
The statistics were based on students' reports to their schools, so many experts believe the number of unreported cases will far exceed the disclosed number.
Along with the rising number of suicide attempts, that of students actually killing themselves has been also on the rise in recent years, from 93 in 2015 to 108 in 2016 and 114 in 2017.
Experts say many children in the country are suffering from a psychological crisis.
Elementary students attempt suicide
Since 2014, Hallym University, on the request of the education ministry, has been conducting psychoanalysis of people who commit suicide through gathering testimonies from people close to them and their suicide notes.
To better grasp the sharply rising suicide rate of grade school students, the university made a comprehensive analysis report on students by using the testimonies of family members, teachers and friends.
The most notable in the recent suicide rate is that the age group has become younger. Out of the 451 students who attempted suicide last year, 47 percent, or 213 students, were in high school. However, there has been a rise in the number of elementary students.
In 2011, there were no attempted suicides among elementary students. However, there were 19 in 2015 and 36 last year. Out of the 36, four students were between the first and third grades. Out of the total 114 students who actually committed suicide last year, five were in elementary school.
Experts have concluded that students begin to feel pressure at school from a very young age, but had no one to consult as most of them are from dual-income families with their parents spending most of their time at work.
Among the students who attempted suicide last year, 277 said they did so over depression and anxiety, and 125 said because of anger.
Experts also point out easy access to content on smartphones also contributed to the increase in suicide rates.
Earlier this year, a suicidal song called "Smash your head and commit suicide" became a YouTube hit among elementary students. Uploading selfies of self-inflicting pain has also become a common practice among teens.
The National Police Agency and the Ministry of Health and Welfare monitored online and mobile suicidal content for two weeks in July and found over 8,000 cases, which was a 38-fold increase from the same period last year. Eighty-four percent of the pictures were acts of self-injury.
"Children are too exposed to suicidal pictures and videos through internet broadcast and social media and are getting used to the idea, and some follow suit," said Hong Hyun-ju, a psychology professor at Hallym University Medical School.
Last month, lawmakers submitted a bill to categorize suicidal content as harmful to young people and ban children's access to them.
Secret to Jeju's no suicides
Experts point out that to prevent student suicide, students need to reduce their stress and anxiety through consultations with professionals.
Since 2015, the Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Office of Education has employed suicide consultants. They give immediately treatment to students who attempt suicide or self-injury. The consultant and the homeroom teacher continuously communicate and give the latest updates after observing the student. Through the effort, Jeju has not had a single student commit suicide in the last three years.
More young adults feel suicidal
One out of seven college graduates searching for a job has had suicidal thoughts due to extreme stress.
According to a survey conducted by the Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center in May, which conducted a study on 124 college graduates searching for jobs, 40 percent replied they had experienced symptoms similar to depression, while 15.3 percent reported feeling suicidal.
Those majored in liberal arts or social science had more stress than respondents with natural science and engineering degrees. People with student loans were the most depressed.