탈북여성을 통해 본 북한 여성의 교육경험 분석

이 연구는 탈북여성 23명을 대상으로 실시한 설문조사와 면담조사 결과를 바탕으로 북한교육이 공식적으로 표명하고 있는 평등의 목표가 교육의 전 과정에서어느 정도 구현되고 있는지를 분석하는 것을 목적으로 하고 있다. 분석결과 북한교육은 교육의 기회, 교육의 과정 그리고 교육의 결과 면에서 성역할 이데올로기에 따른 역할 구분이 분명히 나타나고 있었다. 이러한 성역할 이데올로기는 북한사회에서는 남녀의 생물학적 특성을 고려한 여성에 대한 배려로 나타나고 있다. 하지만 여성에게 남성과 다른 삶의 경험과 진로, 책임과 과제, 기회를 본인의 의사와는 상관없이 선험적으로 부과한다는 점에서 북한교육은 성별에 따른 차별의 또 다른 연장선상에 위치한다.

This paper is to analyze gender equality represented by official education object of North Korea, then to discuss how women of North Korea accept it. For this study, we interviewed 23 North Korea women that have lived in South Korea since 1995. The results show that the women education of North Korea was constituted by the male-oriented social structure and consciousness. The major findings were discussed in three parts. First, even though gender segregation didn't appear during the compulsory education period, the equality of education opportunity was not realized completely in the higher education and the social education stages. The higher education opportunity was divided partially by class, gender and region. Therefore, women who lived in rural and were a low social class had a difficulty in entering the university. Also, most of the women were hard to take the social education because of the male-oriented curriculum and time table. Second, gender stereotyped metaphor appeared in the curriculum, the textbook and the school activity. The official knowledge and the teachers strongly encouraged women to be the traditional female that devoted herself for her son and husband as well as the aggressive socialist fighter. Student activity was divided by sex too. For example, boy students acted in the important position in school life, on the other side, girl students did the subsidiary position. Third, we don't definitely state that the social labor participation of women results in gender equality as North Korea education asserts. Even if women got the same education process and college diploma as men did, their ability was underestimated by the patriarchy and the contradictory femininity. So they were hard to get the upper and important social position. Namely, this sex roles division manifested in women education of North Korea affected strongly women's social position and role. The interesting point in this study is that this gender stereotyped ideology appeared as a deep care for women in the North Korea education. However, it is another gender discrimination to impose the gender stereotyped social role and consciousness to women irrespective of their will. So we need to inquire into the gender equality of North Korea education not only in the quantitative aspects but also in the qualitative aspects.