Recently, while considering my child’s education, I learned that my family is looking into an international middle and high school located in Gapyeong. Upon researching, I discovered it is a school operated by the World Peace and Unification Family Federation (Unification Church) foundation. The Unification Church is known as South Korea’s largest cult. Even after the death of its founder, Sun Myung Moon, it continues to wield immense religious power through his sons and successors. I was aware of its enormous membership and the vast scale of its business operations, but this was the first time I learned it was involved in education. Of course, there is no reason to discriminate against a school run by the Unification Church Foundation compared to schools run by Christian or Buddhist foundations. I believe the passion and dedication of the teachers and students towards education would be excellent compared to public schools. Especially with the collapse of trust in public schools among parents and news of school violence or other instances of damaged school authority, the demand for good schools is likely higher than ever.

In this context, international schools were seen as a fairly decent alternative for parents. Families typically choose schools based on their educational priorities, but realistically, ‘admission to top-tier universities’ often remains the ultimate goal. Some families even knock on the doors of international elementary, middle, and high schools with the goal of admission to prestigious overseas universities. However, looking at the reality, the quality of the teaching staff is often unverified compared to the excessively high tuition fees, meaning parents are essentially paying ‘overpriced fees’ to entrust their children. If parents knew beforehand that “the teacher educating my child might be from an English-speaking Southeast Asian country or a graduate of an obscure American university,” and that “to prepare for the SAT, they’d have to stay in Daechi-dong motel villages every weekend for Spartan-style classes,” would they really choose international schools so readily? Faced with this shocking reality hidden behind the glamorous name, one can’t help but wonder who would actually send their child there.

I lived in Los Angeles, USA for three years before moving to Cupertino, home to Apple’s headquarters. Before relocating, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to run an offline promotion at Apple’s main campus. At the time, they held mini-game events on the main campus and gave out iTunes gift cards as prizes to employees. One employee I connected with then became such a close friend that even after I moved to Cupertino, we would meet up with our spouses. They were a Taiwanese-American 1.5 generation couple—the husband was a team lead in a core department at Apple HQ, and the wife was a teacher at a Cupertino public school. But a few years later, I heard unexpected news. Not only had the wife quit her job, but she had also withdrawn their children from school and started homeschooling them herself. As devout Christians, they cited the primary reason as “the core educational values they pursued no longer aligned with those of the American public school system.”

At the time, I hadn’t lived in the U.S. long, and my children weren’t yet of school age, so I didn’t fully grasp the significance of their decision. However, as I learned that the Cupertino school district is one of the most prestigious in the U.S. and a place where educational fervor runs highest, and as I sent my own children to public school, I gradually came to grasp its meaning. Seeing mixed-gender restrooms installed in elementary schools and same-sex wedding attendance conducted as part of experiential learning made me uneasy. The fundamental values taught in Christian homes were colliding head-on with the American public education system.

Only then did I understand her decision to leave her job as a public school teacher and homeschool her children. Her courage to boldly give up her established position to protect the value of education seemed truly remarkable. Of course, her husband’s employment at the global tech giant Apple provided financial stability, but their homeschooling approach was remarkably flexible and systematic. They traveled together as a family, aligning with Dad’s overseas business trips, while simultaneously conducting online classes. For subjects difficult for parents to teach directly, they enlisted the help of specialized homeschooling teachers to create customized curricula tailored to each child.

The reality I faced upon returning to Korea was truly bitter. I felt deep skepticism about what this spectacle was truly for: pouring astronomical tuition fees into English kindergartens or international schools packed only with Korean children, then shuttling kids to Gangnam on weekends—lined with expensive SAT prep academies—doubling down on private education costs. If the sole goals of education we pursue are merely ‘grades’ and ‘prestigious academic background,’ what kind of adults will children raised through such bizarre processes become? I worried that our children’s futures might resemble these: office workers who feel satisfied only by stepping on colleagues to climb the ladder, self-employed individuals who prioritize their own survival over mutual prosperity with neighboring businesses, or market operators who stop at nothing to make money.

That’s why I’ve decided, even now, to place the core of education on ‘sound values’. I aim to create an environment where they grow together, interacting with friends grounded in Christian values. First, as emphasized by John Lee, former CEO of Meritz Asset Management, I boldly cut meaningless private tutoring expenses and started investing in the children’s names. It’s not just about growing money; we practice living economics education by reading news about the invested companies together and studying how the world works. Furthermore, we’ve moved away from rote memorization of predetermined model answers and adopted the traditional Jewish educational method of ‘Havruta’. Every morning on the way to school, we exchange thoughts with our children and spend time together pondering how to ask more creative questions to ChatGPT.

I firmly believe that in an era where artificial intelligence (AI) has become commonplace, we must nurture children into more human-centered individuals. Cultivating them into global leaders who grasp the essence of truth amidst chaotic values and practice it in their lives. I resolve that this is the true education I must undertake as a parent, waking before dawn each day to read audiobooks and leave records on my blog.