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Our information on Korean schoolwear is very limited. Some Korean primary students wear uniforms. We are unsure, however, just how common this was. There does not appear to be a national school uniform, but rather one chosen by individual schools. I think many of the uniformed schools are private schools. There may also be public schools with uniforms, but we are not sure about this. Some have short pants uniforms, but this may change seasonally. We believe that most primary school chilkdren do not wear uniforns. Here there may be differences between city and rural schools. We do note some boys wearing the cadet style caps. Rather we see the children wearing their own clothes to primary school. Students in secondary schools more commonly wore school uniforms. Boys in the 1970s wore military cadet uniforms as in Japan. I only notice this at secondary schools. They look to b the same style cadet uniforms worn in Japan. This shows the very significant Japanese influence in Korean education. This seems to have been very cimmon. I'm bir sure if it was a national mandate. I'm not sure if this is still the case today. Hopefully Korean readers will provide us more information.
Our information on Korean schoolwear is very limited. Some Korean primary students wear uniforms. We are unsure, however, just how common this was. There does not appear to be a national school uniform, but rather one chosen by individual schools. I think many of the uniformed schools are private schools. Primary schools vary. There may also be public schools with uniforms, but we are not sure about this. Some have uniforms, but did not during the 1970s when I was in Korea. I'm not sure about the current situation. most do not. Students do wear uniforms in secondary schools. Almost all secondary schools require school uniforms. This begins in middle school. The uniform is called a Gyobok. Schools authorities tend to be strictly enforce the uniform rules. Secondary schools were founded during the Japanese colonial period and for years had cadet uniforms for the boys. This was the same uniforms used in Japan. This continued even after liberation at the end of World War II (1945). Gradually theu have been replaced with British style uniforms. The secondarubuniform now usually includes a white shirt, blazer and striped tie, with skirts for girls and long grey trousers for boys. Blazer colors vary from school to school.
Korea has a temperate climate with seasonal changes. There are hot summers and cold winters. The weather gets very cold in Korea during the Winter. Thus many schools have seasonal uniforms. And of course the children at primary schools without uniforms wear seasonal clothes. Many primary school children wears short pants, both their own clothesat non-uniform schools and uniform shorts at the uniform schools. Many boys wore short pants during the winter as well, but often with tights for warmth. We noted all kinds of bright colored tights. In recent years, short pants have become increasingly seasonal wear. Long pants have become more common for winter wear even at primary schools. We even note some primary schools with long pants uniforms. There are also seasonal uniforms at secondary schools.
We know nothing about Korean schools before the 20th century. We suspect tht there were schools along the lines of traditional schools in China. Korea even mote than Japan was heavily influenced by China. We have no information on these schools. The students would have been boys. And they would have irn traditiinal clothes. Western clothes were were not worn to any extent in Korea until after the Japanese seized control. Korean officials did their best to ward off foreign influences, although Christian missionaries were active and founded a few schools. As a result of the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95), Japan replaced Chima as the dominat power on the Korean Peninsula. Jspan formally seized the country and converted it to a colony (1909). Japanese rule was brutal, but the Japanese began the process of turning a very traditional agricultural sociery into a modern industrial powerhouse. Curiously most of the industrial development launched by the Japanese was in the north. As part of the moderization process, the Japanese began building a new school system. Instruction was in the Japanese language, but large numbers of Korean children, including girls began to attend school for the first time. The children wore Japanese-style uniforms. Thus when Korea was liberated at the end of World War II, a modern school system was functioning. Japan was a very poor country, in part because the economy was exploited by the Japanese, but it was not an uneducated country. We have relatively little information about what transpired in the North, but in the South, the children seem to have continued to wear Japanese style uniforms. We see both Japanese army styles as well as cadet unforms. The Japanese army uniforms disappeared in the 1950s, but the cadet uniforms continue to be worn in Korea. This is kinteresting given the animosity toward Japan resulting from the colonial experience.
We believe that most primary school children do not wear uniforns. This needs to be confirmed. We do note some boys wearing the cadet style caps even though the school did not have a uniform.
Here there may be differences between city and rural schools. Rather we see the children wearing their own clothes to primary school.
We are not sure how common uniforms are in primary schools, but a number of schools do have them. We see primary scholdren wearing a range of fashionable styles. Korean primary schools are notable for the variation in these uniforms. Japanese school uniforms in contrast are much less varied. We see styles at Korean schools that we have not noted in other countries. Several schools had vest-like garments. Boys in the 1970s wore military cadet uniforms as in Japan. I only notice this at secondary schools. They look to be the same style cadet uniforms worn in Japan. This shows the very significant Japanese influence in Korean education. This seems to have been very common. I'm not sure if it was a national mandate. I'm not sure if this is still the case today. Hopefully Korean readers will provide us more information.
Japanese school children wore both their regular clothes as well as actual uniform garments. The same appears to be the case in Kore. Korean primary uniforms can be quite destinctive. We do not see British-style blazers, but we dont note vest-like jackets. Secondary schools cmmonly use the cadet caps and jackets inherited from the Japanese colonia era. Here there was some bluring of non-uniform and uniform garments, especially with hosiery and footwear. Some schools with uniforms did not have required hosiery and footwear or did not strctly enforce the regulations. A reader writes, " I noted the hosiery the children are wearing at a Korean school. One of the girls is wearing striped knee socks, which I don't think we have
seen before as part of a school uniform. The boys seem to be wearing white tights with shorts, but notice that, in at least one case, the white tights are patterned. I don't believe we have seen patterened tights in Korea or Japan before. Is this an innovation?" We have noted in both Korea and Japan that younger children wore a variety of tights and socks done in both stripes as well as with designs, often catoon characters on them.
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