During my three years at “Todak Todak Volunteer Center” (TTVC), I have come to meet many students with various mental disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder, Down Syndrome, and Rett Syndrome. Through my involvement in this volunteer activity, the importance of providing these children with adequate accommodations that extend beyond the doors of the volunteer center became ever apparent. By talking to their parents, I have heard extensive accounts of bullying and discrimination throughout the students’ academic life and this made me wonder if there was any sort of program in their schools that help with the disabled and address those issues. 

My volunteer experience at TTVC has expanded my awareness of the necessity of providing individualized support to patients with mental illnesses. According to OECD data published in 2017, South Korea has developed world’s second highest suicide rate and the highest among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and development countries. However, when we look at the government statistics released that year, 1 in 4 Koreans experienced a mental health disorder at least once in their life but only 1 in 10 seeked professional help. Of the people surveyed, a quarter said they suffered from depression, schizophrenia and 12% said they suffer from psychiatric illness. The extremely stressful environment of Korean high school life and the recent outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic requires extensive emotional support but most schools and the government seem to ignore it.

From interviewing local schools in Songpa district, I have observed that not many schools provide professional assistance nor counseling to high school students. They do hand out educational newsletters monthly but I strongly believe that this is not enough. We must raise awareness for the lack of proper accommodation for high school students in South Korean and properly address it.