Korea Institute of Child Care and Education

What Korea Institute of Child Care and Education does

Korea Institute of Child Care and Education (KICCE) is a government-affiliated national research institute established in 2005 in Seoul, South Korea, and dedicated exclusively to early childhood education and care (ECEC) policy research. It conducts commissioned research for the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and other government agencies, producing over 714 research reports, 435 periodical publications, and 207 issue papers. Its core proprietary asset is K-SIED (Korean Screening Index for Early Development), a standardized developmental screening tool for children aged 12 months to 5 years, available in teacher (K-SIED:T) and parent (K-SIED:P) versions, standardized on 4,213 children and launched as a web platform in January 2026. KICCE also operates two major longitudinal panel studies — the Korean Child Panel and the Korean ECEC Panel Study — and publishes a KCI-registered domestic journal and the International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy in partnership with Rutgers University's NIEER via SpringerOpen.

KICCE's business model is government-funded research delivery supplemented by minor publication sales. Revenue flows primarily through commissioned research contracts awarded via government bidding, with additional income from physical publications distributed through Korean bookstores (Kyobo, Yes24, Aladin) and the Samsung Welfare Foundation grant (2025) supporting K-SIED platform commercialization. Most research outputs and digital resources are distributed free of charge through the kicce.re.kr website. The go-to-market motion is policy-and-event-driven rather than sales-led, centered on commissioned research delivery, policy symposiums, and academic publishing rather than commercial customer acquisition. Key customer segments are Korean central government ministries, 17 provincial/municipal offices of education, and the Kindergarten-Childcare Integration Pilot cohort of 61 kindergartens and 85 childcare centers. End-user tools (K-SIED for parents and teachers) function as public-good deliverables rather than monetized products, though the 2025 Samsung funding suggests nascent commercialization intent.

The institute's strategic positioning is anchored by an exclusive regulatory mandate as Korea's national ECEC research body, two decades of accumulated longitudinal data, and expanding international linkages (OECD, Rutgers NIEER, UAE Ministry of Education) that elevate its policy-research authority beyond the domestic market.

Name

Korea Institute of Child Care and Education

Legal name

Korea Institute of Child Care and Education

Website

https://kicce.re.kr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Korea Institute of Child Care and Education (KICCE) is a government-affiliated national research institute in Seoul, South Korea, conducting commissioned ECEC policy research for Korean government ministries and operating the K-SIED developmental screening platform and longitudinal child development panel studies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research & Early Childhood Education Services

NAICS

Educational Services (61), Educational Support Services (611710), Child Care Services (624410)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Child Day Care Services (8351)

akta.pro primary industry

Developmental Screening & Assessment (0–5) (EDACAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

In-Service Professional Development (Workshops/Institutes/Short Courses) (EDACAIAB), Comprehensive ECE Curriculum Frameworks (Birth–5) (EDACAJAA)

Keywords

• Early childhood policy research
• Childcare policy analysis
• Developmental screening tools
• Education research services
• Longitudinal panel studies

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Commissioned Research: KICCE conducts commissioned research projects (수탁연구과제) for government ministries including the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and other government agencies. Research contracts are awarded through bidding processes for policy research, evaluation studies, and program development.
2. Publication Sales: Research reports, academic journals, policy briefs, and other publications are distributed through major bookstores (Kyobo, Yes24, Aladin) and government publication centers. The institute also publishes the International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy through Springer Open.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

KICCE conducts government-commissioned policy research on early childhood education and care (ECEC) for South Korean ministries, develops and maintains the proprietary K-SIED developmental screening platform for children aged 12 months to 5 years, and manages longitudinal panel studies (Korean Child Panel, Korean ECEC Panel). It publishes academic journals, policy briefs, and statistical reports, and runs the Postpartum Care Center Evaluation program and Kindergarten-Childcare Integration Pilot program in partnership with 17 provincial education offices.

Product overview

KICCE operates as a government research institute specializing in early childhood education and childcare policy research. Its primary product is the K-SIED (Korean Screening Index for Early Development) platform—a standardized development screening tool for children aged 12 months to 5 years, available in both teacher (K-SIED:T) and parent (K-SIED:P) versions. The organization produces a comprehensive portfolio of research publications including the Korean Journal of Child Care and Education Policy (KCI-registered), the International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy (published with Rutgers NIEER via SpringerOpen), the 육아정책포럼 quarterly periodical, 육아정책Brief and KICCE Policy Brief series, and issue papers. KICCE maintains two major longitudinal panel studies—the Korean Child Panel and the Korean ECEC Panel Study—which generate statistical data, infographics, and video reports. Additional offerings include postpartum care center evaluation services, the kindergarten-childcare integration pilot program, parent support materials, overseas childcare policy reports, and world childcare policy trend series. The organization does not offer a public API but provides research data through its website and panel study portals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• K-SIED (케이씨드): Korean Screening Index for Early Development - an early childhood development screening tool for children aged 12 months to 5 years, developed jointly with the Korean Society of Child Science.
• Korean Child Panel (한국아동패널)
• Korean Early Childhood Education and Care Panel Study (한국영유아교육·보육패널)
• 육아정책연구 (Korean Journal of Child Care and Education Policy)
• International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy

Products and services

• K-SIED (Korean Screening Index for Early Development) A standardized developmental screening tool for children aged 12 months to 5 years, available in teacher (K-SIED:T) and parent (K-SIED:P) versions. Assesses five developmental domains: cognitive, language (receptive and expressive), motor (fine and gross), social/emotional, and self-care. Classifies children into satisfactory, monitoring, and concern groups. Standardized on 4,213 children nationwide with reliability and validity established through correlation analysis with K-DST and K-Bayley-III.
• K-SIED Platform Digital platform providing convenient access to the K-SIED developmental screening tools for both teachers (K-SIED:T) and parents (K-SIED:P). Standardized with nationwide norms developed through research involving 4,213 children.
• Korean Journal of Child Care and Education Policy (육아정책연구) KCI-registered domestic academic journal published three times annually covering early childhood education, childcare, and low birth rate policies. ISSN 1976-6793, eISSN 2713-6094.
• International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy (ICCEP) English-language international journal published in collaboration with Rutgers University's NIEER, available through SpringerOpen with open access. Co-edited by Sanghee Park (KICCE) and W Steven Barnett (NIEER).
• Korean Child Panel (한국아동패널) Longitudinal panel study tracking the growth and development of Korean children, providing foundational data for childcare policy research.
• Korean ECEC Panel Study (한국영유아교육·보육패널) Longitudinal panel study on early childhood education and care in Korea, generating data on children's daily lives, development, and care experiences.
• Postpartum Care Center Evaluation (산후조리원 평가 사업) Government-commissioned evaluation program for postpartum care centers, including evaluation standards, regulations, and promotional materials.
• Kindergarten-Childcare Integration Pilot (유보통합 시범사업) Pilot program for integrating kindergarten and childcare services, with support teams providing evaluation research and budget execution support for selected institutions (61 kindergartens and 85 childcare centers across 17 cities and provinces).
• Childcare Policy Forum (육아정책포럼) Quarterly periodical published four times per year covering comprehensive childcare and education policy research, ISSN 3140-1570.
• KICCE Policy Brief English-language policy brief series presenting timely analysis of Korean childcare policy issues.

Quantifiable outcome

• K-SIED standardized on 4,213 children nationwide with reliability and validity established
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• UAE Ministry of EducationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 June 2026International seminar held to share Korea's excellent early childhood education and care (ECEC) system and research achievements, and to discuss early childhood education promotion directions and policy issues between the two countries. Facilitated by Director Mohammed Al Qasem and KICCE President Hwang Ok-kyung.
• Ministry of Education (Korea)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2026KICCE signed an MoU with the Ministry of Education and four academic societies for improving perceptions about private education in early childhood and supporting healthy child development. The agreement was witnessed by Minister of Education Choi Gyo-jin and KICCE President Hwang Ok-kyung.
• Korean Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (대한소아청소년과학회)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2026Partnership for improving perceptions about early childhood private education, signed during the Ministry of Education MoU ceremony.
• Korean Child and Adolescent Health Association (한국영유아아동정신건강학회)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2026Partnership for improving perceptions about early childhood private education and supporting healthy child development.
• Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent PsychiatrycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2026Academic society partnership for early childhood education policy research and awareness campaigns.
• Samsung Welfare Foundation (삼성복지재단)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Funding support for research on strengthening the developmental support platform for infants and toddlers including functional enhancements and commercialization planning.
• Korean Society of Child Science (한국아동학회)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration for development of K-SIED developmental screening tool, conducted jointly from 2022-2024 for tool development and standardization.
• OECDmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organization of KICCE-OECD Seminar on Empowering Young Children in the Digital Age, and participation in International Early Learning and Child Well-being Study (IELS).
• 17 Provincial and Municipal Offices of EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerContract partnerships for kindergarten-childcare integration (유보통합) pilot program evaluation research and budget execution support across 17 cities and provinces.
• Rutgers University NIEERmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing partnership for International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy with Rutgers University's National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER), co-edited by Sanghee Park (KICCE) and W Steven Barnett (NIEER).

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Korea Women's Development Institute (KWDI): Korean government-affiliated research institute focused on women's and family policy, including work-family balance, postpartum care, and childbearing. Operates under the same government-mandate, commissioned-research model as KICCE and frequently overlaps on family/childcare policy research.
• Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA): Korean government-affiliated research institute covering health and social welfare policy, including child welfare, family policy, and postpartum care. Operates under a similar government-mandate model and is a frequent collaborator with KICCE on overlapping social-policy topics.
• Child Trends: U.S. non-profit research organization focused on child and youth well-being policy research, producing data-driven evaluations and reports for government and foundations. Directly comparable to KICCE in operating model, mission, and output type (research reports, policy briefs, longitudinal data).
• Korean Society of Child Science: Korean academic society and KICCE's joint development partner for the K-SIED screening tool (2022–2024 collaboration). Comparable as a Korean ECEC-focused research organization, though it operates as an academic society rather than a policy institute.
• National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER), Rutgers University: U.S.-based ECEC policy research institute and KICCE's direct co-publishing partner on the International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy via SpringerOpen. NIEER is structurally analogous to KICCE in mission (ECEC policy research), scope (national-level data and evaluation), and academic positioning.
• Korea Educational Development Institute (KEDI): Korean government-affiliated educational policy research institute covering K–12 and higher education. Closest structural domestic analog to KICCE in terms of government mandate, research-portfolio model, and commissioned-research revenue model, though KEDI's scope is broader than ECEC.

Broad incumbents

• OECD Directorate for Education and Skills (Early Childhood Education team): International policy body that co-organizes seminars with KICCE (e.g., Empowering Young Children in the Digital Age) and runs the IELS study. OECD functions as a peer in ECEC benchmarking and policy research methodology, but operates at a multinational rather than national level.
• UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE): UNESCO's specialized center for curriculum, teacher training, and education policy research. Comparable to KICCE in mission (ECEC policy research and standards-setting) and outputs (policy briefs, international comparisons), but operates globally rather than nationally.

Emerging players

• Bernard van Leer Foundation: International foundation focused on early childhood development, funding research, advocacy, and program design in early childhood globally. Comparable in thematic focus on ECD policy and program evaluation, but operates as a funder/advocate rather than a national research institute.

Regional players

• Korea Human Resource Development Institute for Education (KRIVET): Korean government-affiliated research institute covering vocational education, workforce development, and lifelong learning. Structurally analogous to KICCE in operating model (government-mandate research institute) and partially overlapping in ECEC teacher training and workforce research.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC33G4GX9rLe53_X25tpeSvg
• Facebookfacebook.com/KICCE2
• Instagraminstagram.com/kicce.re.kr
• Xx.com/kicce2

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Korea Institute of Child Care and Education