Teach You a Lesson
Promotional poster
Hangul
참교육
Hanja
참敎育
Lit. True Education
RR Chamgyoyuk
MR Ch'amgyoyuk
Genre
  • Action
  • School drama
Based on
Get Schooled
by
  • Chae Yong-taek
  •     Han Ga-ram
Written by
Directed by Hong Jong-chan
Starring
  • Kim Mu-yeol
  • Lee Sung-min
  • Jin Ki-joo
  • Pyo Ji-hoon
Country of origin South Korea
Original language Korean
No. of episodes 10
Production
Production companies
Original release
Network Netflix
Release June 5, 2026 (2026-06-05)

Teach You a Lesson (Korean: 참교육) is a 2026 South Korean action school drama television series written by Lee Nam-kyu [ko], and Kim Da-hee, Moon Jong-ho, directed by Hong Jong-chan, and starring Kim Mu-yeol, Lee Sung-min, Jin Ki-joo, and Pyo Ji-hoon. Based on the Naver webtoon Get Schooled by Chae Yong-taek and Han Ga-ram, the series follows an inspector from the Educational Rights Protection Bureau (ERPB) who is authorized by the government to use physical intervention and unconventional methods to discipline delinquent students and reform the educational system. It was released on Netflix on June 5, 2026.

Synopsis

In response to a rise in campus violence and the decline of faculty authority, the South Korean government establishes the Educational Rights Protection Bureau (ERPB) under the Teacher Rights Protection Act. The Bureau is granted the legal authority to use any form of measure, including physical force and psychological pressure, to discipline students and reform the school system. ERPB inspector Na Hwa-jin is dispatched to various educational institutions to dismantle hierarchies established by delinquent students and address administrative corruption. Accompanied by investigator Im Han-rim and officer Bong Geun-dae, Hwa-jin utilizes his state-sanctioned immunity to neutralize school gangs and restore order.

Cast and characters

Main

  • Kim Mu-yeol as Na Hwa-jin
A former Special Forces captain turned inspector for the Educational Rights Protection Bureau (ERPB).
  • Lee Sung-min as Choi Gang-seok
Minister of Education and founder of the ERPB.
  • Jin Ki-joo as Im Han-rim
A former Special Forces sergeant turned inspector for the ERPB.
  • Pyo Ji-hoon as Bong Geun-dae
A 5th-grade civil servant who is hired by the ERPB. He had graduated from KAIST.

Supporting

  • Kim Jong-soo as Hwang Gi-tae
A member of the National Assembly who supports the abolition of ERPB.
  • Lee Bong-jun as Cho Gyu-cheol
Ga-yoon's student whom she cared for before he killed her by stabbing her with scissors two years ago.

Daehan High School

  • Lee Seung-gyu as Ryu Jun-hyeong
A student of Class 2-5 who is a school violence perpetrator.
  • Kim Do-geon a Kim Gwang-su
A student of Class 2-5 who is Jun-young's right arm.
  • Lee Chan-yong as Kim Gyeong-min
A student of Class 2-5 who is a victim of school violence.
  • Jeong Soo-hyun as Park Dae-seok
A student of Class 2-5 who was a victim of school violence and eventually took his own life.
  • Song Young-gyu as Ryu Gwang-pil
Jun-hyeong's father who is a member of the National Assembly.

Guun Hitech High School

  • Jeon Bong-sik as Kim Hyeong-ju
A student of the school's automobile department.
  • Yoo Tae-joo as Park Seong-hwan
A student of the school's automobile department.
  • Ok Jin-uk as Cho In-beom
A student of the school's electrical department.
  • Lee Tae-hwan as Jang Kwon-hyuk
A third year student who joined a gang before graduating from the school, and has a huge influence in the school.

Soyeon Girls' High School

  • Lee Sang-hee as Jeong Sun-young
The form teacher of Class 3-4.
  • Kwon Hyuk as Go Young-soo
A former teacher who took his own life due to Ye-ri's manipulation of public opinion on social media.
  • Park Seo-yoon as Han Ye-ri
A student of Class 3-4 and an influencer.
  • Kim Se-yeon as Jung So-yeong
A student of Class 3-4 and Ye-ri's close friend.

Chukmyeong Foreign Language High School

  • Bae Jun-hyung as Park Hyeon-ung
The school's top student who is from an underprivileged family background.
  • Choi Deok-moon as Cheon Sang-yeol
A teacher of the school who is also a famous online lecturer.
  • Sim Su-bin as Jung Su-jeong
A student of the school who benefitted from her mother's connections.
  • Kim Seon-hwa as Kim Kyung-ran
Su-jeong's mother and the wife of the chairman of PH Group, a major corporation.

Hyunjung Elementary School

  • Song Si-an as Choi Ji-seon
The form teacher of Class 1-3, who faced various forms of harassment from the parents of one of her students Woo-jin.
  • Park Ji-yeon as Lee Ji-young
Woo-jin's mother who frequently harassed Ji-seon in the context of protecting her son.
  • Choi Ja-woon as Kim Woo-jin
A student of Class 1-3.
  • Kwon Dong-ho as Kim Seok-hyun
Woo-jin's hot-tempered father who works as a manager of a bank.

Hyunjin Middle School

  • Jang Yo-hoon as Min Ji-woong
A student of the school, and leads a delinquent quartet of the school who constantly caused trouble inside and outside school, but were always let go due to being under 14 at the time of committing the crimes.
  • Kim Chae-eun as Oh Yoon-jin
A student of the school who fell victim to the effects of narcotics.
  • Lim Hyun-mook as Yoon Min-su
Ji-woong's friend and one of the delinquent quartet of the school.
  • Yoon Tae-sik as Lee Do-hyeon
Ji-woong's friend and one of the delinquent quartet of the school.
  • Choi Hyun-joon as Choi U-seong
Ji-woong's friend and one of the delinquent quartet of the school.

Nakwon High School

  • Bae Jae-young as Lee Jae-yoon
A student of the school who is addicted to illegal online gambling.
  • Jo Eun-soul as Shin Ji-soo
The ringleader of an illegal online gambling operation.
  • Jo Jun-ho as Ji Sung-bin
A student of the school who is Jae-yoon's bestfriend and introduced illegal online gambling to his fellow students of the school.
  • Jo Hyun-wu as Jae-yoon's father
A company worker who resigned to pay for his son's gambling debts, while collecting a lot of material related to illegal online gambling and visited the ERPB for help.

Seungyeon High School

  • Kim Tae-young as Jung Hyun-min
The school's top student who fell victim to narcotics which were disguised as medicine.
  • Seo Young-hee as Hyun-min's mother

Jinwon High School

  • Lee Woo-je as Jang Sung-gu
  • Kim Jae-seon as Lee Chi-ho
  • Shin Dong-jun as Lee Jong-su
  • Lee Seung-noh as Jung Hyun-tae

Special appearances

  • Ha Young as Choi Ga-yoon
Gang-seok's daughter and Hwa-jin's fiancée. She was a passionate teacher, but was murdered by her student Gyu-cheol two years ago. Her death inspired her father into establishing the ERPB in her honor.
  • Lee Yeo-jin as a news anchor

Production

Development

In late 2024, it was announced that the Naver webtoon Get Schooled by Chae Yong-taek and Han Ga-ram would be adapted into a drama.[1] In early 2025 , Ylab Plex announced a content supply deal with Netflix ending in August 2026, which industry analysts identified as the production window for the series. Developed under the working title True Lessons, it is produced by Ylab Plex and GTist, directed by Hong Jong-chan, and written by Lee Nam-kyu [ko], Kim Da-hee, and Moon Jong-ho.[2][3][4]

Casting

Kim Nam-gil was reportedly in talks to lead the series in November 2024.[1] On the same month, Kim Mu-yeol was confirmed to play the lead role and he cite his trust in director Hong following their collaboration on the 2022 legal drama Juvenile Justice.[5]

Jin Ki-joo, Pyo Ji-hoon, and Lee Sung-min joined the lead cast in January 2025.[6] By March 2025, Netflix confirmed the four actors' appearances.[7] In July 2025, Ha Young joined the cast.[8]

Filming

Principal photography began in the first half of 2025.[5]

Release

Initially slated for a second-quarter 2026 release, Teach You a Lesson was released exclusively on Netflix on June 5.[4][9]

Reception

Critical response

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Midgard Times 8/10[10]
K-waves and Beyond 4/5[11]
Leisurebyte 3.5/5[12]
BingeBaaz 3.5/5[13]
iMBC StarStarStar[14]
Digital Mafia Talkies StarStarHalf star[15]
Cine21 StarStar[16]

Teach You a Lesson received mixed reviews from critics. Reviewers praised its cathartic action sequences, strong ensemble performances, and timely social commentary on school violence and collapsed teacher authority, but expressed discomfort with its premise of state-sanctioned corporal punishment and occasional lack of nuance.[16][14][17][15]

The show sparked controversy prior to release due to its webtoon source material, which had been accused of glorifying violence. While the Netflix adaptation softened some elements, critics continued to debate whether presenting corporal punishment as satisfying justice oversimplifies complex educational and moral issues.[17][15]

Korean critics offered nuanced opinions. iMBC awarded it 3 out of 4 stars, describing it as delivering an "uncomfortable cider" that attempts to balance teacher authority and student rights without fully glorifying violence.[14] Cine21 gave it 2 out of 4 stars, criticizing the unrealistic action choreography and heavy reliance on manhwa-style fantasy exaggeration rather than realism.[16] The Fact and TV Daily praised its emotional weight, realistic depiction of teacher burnout and parental negligence, and its lingering impact that prompts reflection on the education system.[18][19] Ilgan Sports and Sports Today noted the cathartic satisfaction but also the bittersweet aftertaste and ethical unease.[20][21]

International outlets were more divided. Midgard Times awarded 8/10, calling it "thrilling, controversial, uneven, thought-provoking and consistently entertaining", praising Kim Mu-yeol's commanding performance and sharp visuals.[10] K-waves and Beyond scored it 4/5, describing it as a "brutal, satisfying drama" that taps into fantasies of accountability.[11] Leisurebyte and BingeBaaz both gave 3.5/5, praising the fast-paced action and strong cast while criticizing its simplistic handling of complex issues like bullying and discipline.[12][13] Writing for Decider, Joel Keller gave the series a "Stream It" recommendation, calling it an entertaining exercise in wish-fulfillment for those frustrated by bullying and ineffective institutions.[22] Digital Mafia Talkies gave it 2.5 out of 5 stars, criticizing the show as shallow, full of double standards, and questioning whether violence is truly the answer to violence.[15] South China Morning Post was notably critical, describing the premise of government-backed corporal punishment as "alarming" and noting the series' unclear overall message.[17]

Performances received consistent acclaim, particularly Kim Mu-yeol for his charismatic and commanding presence across action, comedy, and drama. Lee Sung-min brought gravitas as Education Minister Choi Gang-seok, while Jin Ki-joo and Pyo Ji-hoon added energy and chemistry to the team.[18][10][20]

Common criticisms focused on the episodic structure causing repetition, over-the-top villain portrayals, unrealistic action scenes, and the ethical tension between cathartic violence and questions surrounding corporal punishment. Reviewers noted that while the series tones down the original webtoon's extremes, the balance still left some feeling uneasy or underdeveloped.[16][17][12][21]

Controvery and backlash

Controversy of source material

The series is based on the webtoon Get Schooled, which had previously been the subject of severe international controversy. In 2023, the release of its 125th chapter—which attempted to explore "reverse racism"—drew intense global backlash for incorporating racial slurs and utilizing harmful, exaggerated stereotypes in its character designs. Following the outcry, the English translation of the webtoon was permanently canceled and removed from the Webtoon platform in the West, though the comic returned to Naver Webtoon in South Koreas after a temporary hiatus.[23] The source material had also faced domestic criticism for satirizing real-world social movements, such as feminism, and for its depiction of marginalized groups, including women and people of color, as antagonists.[24][23]

Domestic protests and union boycotts

Following the announcement of the live-action adaptation, the project faced immediate domestic backlash. Numerous educational institutions and labor organizations in South Korea, most notably the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU), publicly called for the series to be canceled.[24][23] In an official statement titled "Violence Is Not True Education," the KTU argued that the series' premise—which features a government official utilizing physical force to discipline students—effectively glorifies corporal punishment, an act strictly banned in South Korean schools.[24] The union further alleged that the narrative normalizes classroom aggression, undermines democratic conflict resolution, and harms the educational system by reducing real-world teachers to one-dimensional, passive caricatures.[24][23]

Public pushback also targeted the show's potential and confirmed cast. Actor Kim Nam-gil's fanbase issued statements opposing his involvement, citing the original webtoon's history of promoting corporal punishment and its controversial depictions of racism and sexism. On November 8, Kim Nam-gil addressed the concerns via his Instagram, clarifying that while the project had been proposed to his agency, he had not yet personally reviewed it or accepted the role, adding that his focus was entirely on the filming of The Fiery Priest 2.[25] Furthermore, viewers and fans actively petitioned other attached actors to decline their roles, with some groups releasing public statements specifically objecting to actress Jin Ki-joo joining the production.[23]

Netflix response

Netflix addressed the pre-release backlash during the "Next on Netflix 2026 Korea" showcase in Seoul. Bae Jong-byung, a senior director for Netflix, publicly acknowledged the severe criticisms and sensitive themes surrounding specific episodes of the original webtoon. Bae stated that the production team approached the adaptation with a "strong sense of responsibility" and had actively taken the public's concerns into account during development. He asserted that the script and production had been handled through a "more considered and refined lens" to ensure the story was conveyed with appropriate sensitivity.[26][23]

References

  1. ^ a b Lee, Seung-hun (November 7, 2024). [단독] 김남길, '참교육' 주인공 될까..원작 각색이 관건 [[Exclusive] Kim Nam-gil, will he become the main character of Teach You a Lesson..the adaptation of the original work is the crucial factor]. Star News (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 8, 2025. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  2. ^ Chae, Sung-oh (March 10, 2025). [단독] 웹툰 '참교육', 넷플릭스 오리지널 시리즈로 실사화 [[Exclusive] Webtoon Teach You a Lesson to Be Adapted into a Netflix Original Series]. Digital Daily (in Korean). Archived from the original on September 14, 2025. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  3. ^ "Netflix Series True Lessons (WT) Begins Production, Introducing a Refreshing Take on Education". About Netflix (Press release). March 20, 2025. Retrieved January 21, 2026.
  4. ^ a b Brzeski, Patrick (January 20, 2026). "Netflix Unveils Stacked Korean Content Slate of 33 Series and Films for 2026 (Full List)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 21, 2026.
  5. ^ a b Hong, Se-young (November 29, 2026). ‘참교육’ 드라마 제작 확정...주인공 김무열 [공식] [Teach You a Lesson drama production confirmed...Kim Mu-yeol in the lead role [Official]]. Sports Dong-A (in Korean). Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  6. ^ Casting:
  7. ^ Kim, Ji-ye (March 20, 2025). "Netflix to unpack Korea's education system in upcoming drama True Lesson". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on April 19, 2025. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  8. ^ Kang, Hyo-jin (July 22, 2025). [단독]'중증외상센터' 하영, 김무열 약혼녀 된다...넷플릭스 '참교육' 출연 [[Exclusive] Ha Young from The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call to become Kim Mu-yeol's fiancée...Appears in Netflix's True Lessons]. SPOTV News (in Korean). Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  9. ^ Kim, Kyung-hee (May 7, 2026). '출연 거절' 김남길의 소신 재조명... 논란의 '참교육', 6월 5일 넷플릭스 공개 확정 [Kim Nam-gil's principles in 'declining the role' revisited... Controversial Teach You a Lesson confirmed for Netflix release on June 5]. iMBC (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 17, 2026. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  10. ^ a b c Sharma, Anjali (June 5, 2026). "'Teach You a Lesson' (2026) Netflix Series Review - School Bullies Meet Government-Sanctioned Vigilantes". Midgard Times. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  11. ^ a b Jahan, Shabnam (June 5, 2026). "Teach You a Lesson Review: Brutal, Satisfying Drama About Fighting Back Against a Broken Education System". K-waves and Beyond. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  12. ^ a b c Sengupta, Archi (June 5, 2026). "Teach You a Lesson Review: Netflix's Controversial K-Drama Packs a Satisfying Punch". Leisurebyte. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  13. ^ a b "Teach You a Lesson Review: Netflix K-drama Turns School Rage Into Blunt Action". BingeBaaz. June 5, 2026. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  14. ^ a b c "[리뷰M] 미지근해서 다행이야…'참교육'의 찜찜한 사이다★★★". iMBC (in Korean). 2026-06-05. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  15. ^ a b c d Bhat, Ruchika (June 7, 2026). "'Teach You A Lesson' Netflix Review: Is Violence The Sole Answer To Violence?". Digital Mafia Talkies. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  16. ^ a b c d "[OTT 리뷰] <참교육>". Cine21 (in Korean). 2026-06-05. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  17. ^ a b c d Conran, Pierce (June 5, 2026). "Netflix K-drama Teach You a Lesson: corporal punishment for bullies in alarming school show". South China Morning Post. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  18. ^ a b "[TF리뷰] '참교육', 은사 안부 묻게 만든 묵직한 여운". The Fact (in Korean). 2026-06-06. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  19. ^ "'참교육' 우려와 공감 사이, 보고 나서 판단해도 늦지 않아요 [OTT리뷰]". TV Daily (in Korean). 2026-06-06. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  20. ^ a b "[IS리뷰] 논란의 '참교육' 봤더니…통쾌함 뒤에 숨은 학교 이야기". Ilgan Sports (in Korean). 2026-06-07. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  21. ^ a b "어른에게 고하는 '참교육', 통쾌함 뒤에 밀려오는 씁쓸함 [OTT리뷰]". Sports Today (in Korean). 2026-06-06. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  22. ^ Keller, Joel (June 5, 2026). "Stream It Or Skip It: 'Teach You A Lesson' On Netflix, About A Government-Backed Squad That Fights Bullying". Decider. Retrieved June 7, 2026.
  23. ^ a b c d e f Piña, Vanessa (June 4, 2026). "Netflix's Next Big Action Thriller Is Adapting A Webtoon So Controversial, It Was Outright Canceled In America". Screen Rant. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
  24. ^ a b c d Diffey, Hannah (May 26, 2025). "Netflix's New Manhwa Adaptation Is So Controversial, 1 Group Is Already Calling For Its Cancellation". Screen Rant. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
  25. ^ Lee, Min-ji (November 8, 2026). 김남길, '참교육' 논란에 "직접 검토 못해, 실망시키지 않을 것" [전문] [Kim Nam-gil, on the True Lessons controversy "I haven't review it myself, I won't disappoint (you)" [Full Text]]. Newsen (in Korean). Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  26. ^ Kang, Sun-ae (January 22, 2026). "Netflix Addresses Teach You a Lesson Controversy: "We Hear the Concerns and Are Moving Responsibly"". SBS Star. Retrieved June 5, 2026.