North Gyeongsang education office adds 8 self-directed learning centers to provincial network

The North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education announced Thursday that eight sites in the province had been selected in the Ministry of Education's 2026 self-directed learning center grant competition.

North Gyeongsang had six centers designated last year. With eight more added this year, the province now has a foundation to operate a total of 14 self-directed learning centers.

The newly selected sites include three school-based centers — at Andong High School, Cheongdo Mogye High School and Cheongdo High School — and five community-based centers: the Gamcheon-myeon welfare hall and the Pungyang-myeon and Yonggung-myeon community centers in Yecheon, and two facilities in Chilgok, Ujeong Seoga Center and Yunseulmaru.

The additions join six existing centers — at Ocheon High School in Pohang, Dogae High School in Gumi, the Hive Center at Gyeongbuk College in Yeongju, a youth learning center in Yecheon, Baeumsup (Giljoo Middle School) in Andong and Ulleung Dream Learning Center — completing what the office described as a comprehensive self-directed learning support network for students across the province.

Self-directed learning centers are public-education-based learning platforms designed not merely to provide study space, but to help students build the capacity to plan and carry out their own learning.

Each center is equipped with individual reading rooms, group study rooms and rest areas, and offers learning management through study coordinators, EBS-linked academic support, video tutoring by university students, and career and academic counseling.

Students can develop habits of setting and following through on plans tailored to their own level and goals, while also receiving personalized support when needed.

The provincial education office has placed particular emphasis on weekend programming to maximize use of the centers.

On weekends — when students most need to manage their time independently — the centers run extended focused-study sessions, personalized Q&A, learning coaching and career-planning programs. On weekdays, after-school programs are offered to help students build consistent study habits.

"Through the self-directed learning centers, we will further strengthen a public-education-centered learning support system that reduces educational disparities between regions and helps students develop the capacity to chart their own futures," said Im Jong-sik, superintendent of the North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education.