![[Yonhap]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/11/news-p.v1.20260611.3b52d1f82d3a4167bc4214c7c5650429_P1.png)
People Power Party lawmaker Na Kyung-won said the global success of the Netflix drama series "Teach You a Lesson" left her feeling sad, and called for the government to restore the balance between teacher authority and students' rights.
Na wrote on her social media account Wednesday that the series had topped the charts in 27 countries worldwide. "It's fun and satisfying to watch, but it's honestly a little sad that 'K-collapse of teacher authority' has become a global hit," she said.
She said that while teachers in the drama have a dedicated "Teacher Rights Protection Agency" backing them up, their real-life counterparts face only "sole liability and phone calls from complaining parents." "But this collapse is no accident," she added.
Na traced the problems plaguing the classroom to policy failures.
"It was left-wing education authorities who drew up the lopsided blueprint — student rights ordinances that inflated rights in the name of 'human rights' while hollowing out responsibility and teacher authority," she said. "The price of that reckless education experiment has ultimately come back as the collapse of teacher authority."
She also directed criticism at President Lee Jae Myung.
Na said that in April, President Lee drew backlash from teachers' organizations after criticizing the reduction of field trips, saying schools were "depriving students of good opportunities just to avoid responsibility." "What is actually driving teachers toward criminal liability is the government's complacent attitude and inadequate legal protections — yet the arrow of blame was pointed at teachers," she said.
"Isn't a classroom where teachers are respected and a classroom where students are respected ultimately the same classroom?" she said. "What we need is a balance between teacher authority and student rights."
She said the government and the political establishment must take active steps to improve the system protecting teacher authority. "The time to restore that balance is now," she said.
![[Netflix · Herald POP (now Herald Muse)]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/11/news-p.v1.20260611.781ea71c17364e78b07f1fede1d21d26_P1.png)
Earlier in April, President Lee raised the issue of suspended field trips at a Cabinet meeting that doubled as an emergency economic review session, calling on officials to look into staffing reinforcements and to "pay special attention" to the matter.
He also called for stronger measures to protect teacher authority.
"Incidents seriously violating the human rights and educational activities of teachers have been occurring one after another," Lee said, directing the government to "swiftly draw up substantive measures to strengthen teacher protection and solutions to stabilize the educational environment."
"Normalizing public education starts from protecting the human rights and authority of teachers — the other key actors in education alongside students," he said. "To that end, reducing excessive administrative burdens and creating an environment where teachers can focus on instruction and student guidance must come first."
Meanwhile, Netflix's official Top 10 data published on its Tudum website Wednesday showed "Teach You a Lesson" recorded 6.4 million views — measured as total watch time divided by runtime — for the week of June 1 to 7, topping the non-English shows chart. The series ranked in the top 10 in 48 countries, including South Korea, the Philippines, Singapore, Turkey, Argentina and Egypt.
Released June 5, "Teach You a Lesson" follows a fictional agency called the Teacher Rights Protection Agency, set up to defend South Korea's crumbling educational environment against students, teachers and parents who cross the line.
ygmoon@heraldcorp.com
