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Korea is expected to see the number of children entering elementary school fall below 300,000 for the first time next year, according to data reported Sunday by Yonhap, the Korea Times, and KBS World. The first graders were born in 2020, and the drop highlights the growing impact of the country's declining birthrate. Chosun Ilbo reports that this is the first time the figure will fall below 300,000, three years after the 400,000 mark was broken in 2024, and warns that the rapid decline in students could worsen the education environment, accelerate school mergers and closures, and lower the nation's potential growth rate. The Hankyoreh also notes that labor's share of GDP has hit a record low amid Korea's chip boom, and upward income mobility for young Koreans has hit a record low, though these reports are not directly about enrollment.