Student suicides are rising, while schools struggle to provide adequate counseling support. Korea Times file

The number of elementary, middle and high school students who took their own lives in Korea reached 214 last year, the highest number ever recorded and more than double the figure from eight years ago.

Nearly 40 percent of these suicides were among middle school students, highlighting the need for tailored mental health support in educational settings, according to data obtained by Rep. Cho Jung-hun of the ruling People Power Party and released Thursday.

This figure surpasses the previous peak of 202 in 2009. The number of student suicides has been steadily rising since hitting a low of 93 in 2015, with 148 suicides in 2020, 197 in 2021, and 194 in 2022.

The student suicide rate, measured as the number of suicides per 100,000 students, has also seen a sharp increase, rising from 1.5 in 2015 to 4.1 in 2023. In contrast, the overall national suicide rate has remained relatively stable, with 26.7 suicides per 100,000 people in 2023, compared to 26.5 in 2015.

This indicates that while the overall suicide rate has not changed significantly, the suicide rate among students has risen rapidly.

The age at which students are at the highest risk of suicide is also decreasing. In 2022, high school students accounted for the majority of suicides, with 118 out of 194 cases, or 60.8 percent, followed by middle school students, with 64 cases, or 33 percent and elementary school students, with 12 cases, or 6.2 percent.

However, in 2023, the distribution shifted, with high school students making up 49.5 percent with 106 cases, middle school students 43.5 percent with 93 cases and elementary school students 7 percent with 15 cases.

The primary factors contributing to student suicides are mental health issues and interpersonal relationship issues. Gettyimagebank

Preventive efforts lag far behind

The leading factors contributing to student suicides last year included mental health issues (68 cases), family problems (58 cases), interpersonal relationship issues (57 cases) and academic or career pressures (35 cases).

Notably, the number of suicides attributed to mental health issues has increased more than eightfold since 2015, and cases related to interpersonal relationships have more than doubled since 2022.

Despite the rising need for support, there are concerns that schools are not adequately equipped to provide the necessary counseling services.

As of last year, 8,863 schools nationwide had counseling rooms, known as "Wee Class," covering only about three-quarters of all schools. Meanwhile, the number of student counseling cases has surged by approximately 40 percent, from 2.6 million in 2015 to 3.7 million in 2023.

Mental health counseling sessions, in particular, have increased from 127,348 cases, or 18.1 percent, in 2015 to 146,333 cases, or 28.3 percent, in 2023.

Experts stress the need for targeted interventions. Professor Lim Myung-ho of Dankook University said, "The environment for teenagers has become more dangerous due to exposure to harmful information through social media, yet suicide prevention and education efforts lag behind compared to previous generations."

Professor Hong Jin-pyo of Samsung Medical Center's Department of Psychiatry said, "Educators must remain vigilant and pay closer attention to high-risk students."

Cho emphasized the urgency of the situation, saying, "The Ministry of Education, local communities, and families must work together to strengthen suicide prevention policies. Expanding school-family collaboration programs and mental health support infrastructure is particularly critical."

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.