Changgwang Kindergarten (Pyongyang)

 preschool education, children- to be replaced(see description)

Changgwang Kindergarten, P'yŏngyang, DPRK

The Changgwang Kindergarten was opened in 1982 following the reconstruction of the center of the city, part of an urban planning gift in honor of President Kim il Sung's sixtieth birthday which also included the Triumphal Arch and the Juche Tower. Several hundred children attend the institution which focuses on a combination of a fine arts and social education, in accordance with the DPRK's Law on the Nursing and Upbringing of Children. Upper level kindergarten is the first level of the DPRK's compulsory education planning. The Changgwang Kindergarten offers a two year program consisting of a basic kindergarten and upper level kindergarten. There is a lot of emphasis on learning to sing or play musical instruments. As a result many alumna of the Changgwang Kindergarten are later tracked into dance troupes and musical groups such as the KPA's choral groups and marching bands, the Mansudae Art Troupe and the State Symphony Orchestra.