- Title: SOUTH KOREA-ECONOMY/GRANDPARENTS South Korean grandparents take childcare classes
- Date: 11th September 2015
- Summary: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (SEPTEMBER 8, 2015) (REUTERS) ELDERLY PEOPLE GATHERED AT CHILDCARE CLASS WHILE LECTURER STAND AND EXPLAINS IN FRONT LECTURER SIMULATING WASHING FACE OF BABY DOLL LECTURER SHOWING WAY TO BATHE BABY ELDERLY MAN WATCHING LECTURER SHOWING WAY OF CHANGING DIAPER LECTURER PUTTING A DIAPER ON BABY DOLL ELDERLY WOMAN LISTENING AND PRACTICING WITH DOLL WHILE OTHERS LISTEN WOMAN'S HANDS BEING PUT ON BOOK (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) 62-YEAR-OLD STUDENT AT CHILDCARE CLASS FOR ELDERLY, KIM JONG-GAB, SAYING: "I want to raise my granddaughter because both my daughter and son-in-law go to work. Therefore, I started to take a childcare class two weeks ago, and there is a lot of useful information. And, it is good for me to be able to share information with people my age. The class provides new information and it is quite helpful in bringing up my grandchild." LECTURER TAPPING BELLY OF BABY DOLL TO EXPLAIN HOW TO MASSAGE BABY ELDERLY WOMEN TAPPING THEIR BELLIES LECTURER MASSAGING LEGS OF BABY DOLL ELDERLY WOMEN WATCHING AND LISTENING CHILDCARE CLASS IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) 58-YEAR-OLD STUDENT AT CHILDCARE CLASS FOR ELDERLY, CHOI JUNG-SOOK, SAYING: "I get financial help from my son and daughter-in-law in return for looking after my grandchildren. I also really like that I can see my son, daughter-in-law and daughter more often." SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (SEPTEMBER 9, 2015) (REUTERS) GRANDFATHER PLAYING WITH CHILDREN IN FRONT OF APARTMENT GIRL DRINKING JUICE GRANDFATHER AND GRANDDAUGHTER STANDING TOGETHER WHILE CHILDREN PLAY GRANDPARENTS WATCHING CHILDREN PLAYING AT PLAYGROUND GRANDMOTHER WATCHING HER GRANDDAUGHTER PLAYING WITH JUMP ROPE AT PLAYGROUND SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (SEPTEMBER 10, 2015) (REUTERS) PROFESSOR OF CHILD WELFARE AND STUDIES AT SOOKMYUNG WOMEN'S UNIVERSITY, CHUNG SHUNAH, WORKING AT OFFICE (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) PROFESSOR OF CHILD WELFARE AND STUDIES AT SOOKMYUNG WOMEN'S UNIVERSITY, CHUNG SHUNAH, SAYING: "If grandparents get paid for taking care of their grandchildren, they feel an obligation and responsible for paying more attention to grandchildren. The other thing is they may feel a generation gap with young parents about raising children." SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (SEPTEMBER 8, 2015) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF APARTMENT BUILDING 59-YEAR-OLD GRANDMOTHER, JUNG YOUNG-SOON, WITH HER GRANDDAUGHTER JUNG AT HOUSE GRANDDAUGHTER PLAYING ON BABY WALKER (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) 59-YEAR-OLD GRANDMOTHER, JUNG YOUNG-SOON, SAYING: "In the past, there were no childcare classes and we had raised children without any clear plan. However, we are living in the competitive society now, so I think my granddaughter could be bullied at kindergarten or elementary school if I raise her in a wrong way. I want to raise her very well and hope she becomes a well-rounded and educated person." VARIOUS OF JUNG WITH HER GRANDDAUGHTER
- Embargoed: 26th September 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA5MTPY2SNY1QWNV3SUJ9OFEJ7J
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: South Korean grandparents are taking modern-day childcare classes to become more professional caretakers of their grandchildren as more young parents are returning work after having children.
Childcare classes for the elderly, rare before 2013, have cropped up at public health centres. They typically teach the resuscitation technique CPR, infant massage, feeding and playing with children.
"I want to raise my granddaughter because both my daughter and son-in-law go to work. Therefore, I started to take a childcare class two weeks ago, and there is a lot of useful information. And, it is good for me to be able to share information with people my age. The class provides new information and it is quite helpful in bringing up my grandchild," said 62-year-old, Kim Jong-gab, who takes a childcare class at Dongjak Public Health Centre in Seoul and whose daughter will have a baby in November.
It is not unusual for South Koreans to pay their parents to take care of their children. But the number doing so is on the rise and the arrangement has become more professional-like as parents increasingly pay the equivalent of full babysitting rates.
"I get financial help from my son and daughter-in-law in return for looking after my grandchildren. I also really like that I can see my son, daughter-in-law and daughter more often," said 58-year-old Choi Jung-sook, who has been taking care of her grandson since he was born two years ago.
The trend is being driven by changes in South Korea's population - the fastest-ageing in the world. A record share of women work and a high rate of poverty among the elderly means many older people need the income.
A survey by the Gyeonggido Family and Women's Research Institute in 2011 showed nearly 80 percent of 300 grandparents who regularly took care of their grandchildren were paid.
"If grandparents get paid for taking care of their grandchildren, they feel an obligation and responsible for paying more attention to grandchildren. The other thing is they may feel a generation gap with young parents about raising children," said Chung Shunah, a professor of Child Welfare and Studies at Sookmyung Women's University.
Grandparents facing the responsibility of caring for their grandchildren say they are eager to learn modern-day childcare as much has changed from when their were raising their own children.
"In the past, there were no childcare classes and we had raised children without any clear plan. However, we are living in the competitive society now, so I think my granddaughter could be bullied at kindergarten or elementary school if I raise her wrong. I want to raise her very well and hope she becomes a well-rounded and educated person," said 59-year-old Jung Yong-soon, who has been taking care of her eight month old granddaughter since her daughter returned to work five months ago.
The share of families whose children were looked after by grandparents rose to 35.1 percent in 2012, the last year for which government data is available, from 31.9 percent in 2009.
As of April 2014, 22.4 percent of all married women aged 15 to 54 in South Korea had quit their jobs due to marriage, childbirth or childcare, government data shows.
New mothers are often deterred from returning to work by a lack of day care, where demand far outstrips available places. A ruling party lawmaker said last year there were 11 children for every day care spot available and in the more sought-after government facilities the ratio was 47 to one.
Compensation for childcare can be a key source of income for elderly people in South Korea, where government data shows that 49 percent of those aged 66 and above live in poverty. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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