First of all, I am convinced that children are people who deserve to be respected and served, and not used in order to achieve goals we would set for them. Should you try to change a rose into a lily, you would destroy it.

In spite of statistics and forecasts, who knows what challenges new generations will have to cope with? We should therefore not provide them with ready-made recipes or answers. In a totally new context, these may well prove to be useless. Our most important task is to teach them to think for themselves, to analyze and understand reality as it presents itself to them.

And, following Socrates’ example, a teacher’s role is to guide her students towards the quest for the Truth, the Good and the Beautiful. Let me emphasize the word “quest” for it is humanity’s greatness to open themselves to what lies beyond them.

Finally, I would quote a maxim, famous in the history of French education. It was uttered by Rabelais, a late Middle Ages writer well-known for his work’s comical strength: “Science without conscience is but the ruin of the soul”.

Say a student dedicates all her efforts to accumulate knowledge, pursuing the sole purpose of her own personal success; I believe that, in reality, she is narrowing her personality. Is it not an important aspect of Korean education, that you should produce a man keen on serving the greater good?

The new generation will face many challenges to keep the world a peaceful place and guarantee justice and truth. May we become the guides who will help them achieve the best of their dreams.