Teach You a Lesson Filming Locations Guide: Real Schools, Government Buildings, and Studio Sets

The Teach You a Lesson filming locations spread across three Korean regions, four real high schools, one government complex, and three Paju soundstages. Almost none of that information made it into English-language coverage. Although the Education Protection Bureau is fictional, the show built its world from real Korean addresses. This Teach You a Lesson filming locations guide maps every major shoot site by episode. It also explains why the production anchored itself in Daegu rather than Seoul. Finally, it tells you which places you can realistically visit and which you absolutely shouldn’t try.

Where Teach You a Lesson Was Filmed — The Three-Region Map

Although the Education Protection Bureau is fictional, the show constructed its world from real Korean schools and government buildings. These spread across Daegu, Jeonju, and the Seoul metropolitan area.

Daegu, Jeonju, and the Seoul Metropolitan Area

Most viewers assume a Netflix Korean original films primarily around Seoul. Teach You a Lesson breaks that assumption. The production split its work across three distinct regions. Daegu in the southeast supplied three of the four fictional schools. Meanwhile, Jeonju in the southwest provided the chaotic vocational school of episode 2. Seoul and Paju handled urban scenes, government buildings, and constructed studio sets. The total location count across all ten episodes runs to roughly 95 mapped points. As a result, this stands as one of the wider geographic footprints among recent Netflix Korean productions.

Why the Production Spread So Wide

The geographic spread reflects three production decisions. First, Daegu has architectural variety that Seoul-area schools lack. Second, Jeonju Industrial High offered an authentic vocational atmosphere that no Seoul school could replicate. Third, Paju’s standing sets handle the bureau interiors. This freed up location budgets for the school exteriors. The episode 4 elite school used two different cities entirely. A real specialized vocational campus had the exact spatial layout the Guun Hi-Tech script needed. Once you understand the geographic logic, the Teach You a Lesson filming locations stop looking scattered. They start looking like a deliberate production design choice.

Episode 1 — Daehan High Was Filmed at Daegu Sangwon High School

The Real School Address and Background

For the fictional Daehan High School, production chose Daegu Sangwon High School in Sangin-dong, Dalseo District. This is where bullying victim Park Dae-seok takes his own life and where Na Hwa-jin makes his bureau debut. Notably, the school operates as a working boys’ high school. It features a red-brick exterior and the arched main entrance visible in the establishing shots. Meanwhile, the cafeteria scenes were captured separately at Daejin Design High School. Both sites are real operating educational institutions in the Daegu area.

What’s Different from the Fictional Version

To make Sangwon read as the bigger, more institutional Daehan High, the production added signage, props, and crowd staging. For the rooftop confrontation scene, the crew combined practical roof access with additional camera platforms. The actual school courtyard is smaller than the show suggests. Wide-angle lenses and careful framing handled the visual scale.

Episode 2 — Guun Hi-Tech High Was Filmed at Jeonju Industrial High School

For Episode 2’s chaotic Guun Hi-Tech High School, production moved to Jeonju Industrial High School. This is the real specialized vocational school in North Jeolla Province. It served as the bureau’s first undercover infiltration site.

Why Jeonju Was the Right Fit

Among the Teach You a Lesson filming locations, Jeonju Industrial High School has drawn the most attention. Specifically, this real vocational school played Guun Hi-Tech in episode 2. For reference, the address is 548-2 Yeoui-dong, Deokjin District, Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. The school runs actual automotive and electrical engineering departments. These gave the production real workshop interiors that no Seoul school could match. A Seoul stand-in would have required complete art-department fabrication.

The Real School’s Reaction

The Jeonju city tourism account quietly leaned into the attention. For an active vocational high school, this kind of cultural moment is rare. The staff seem to have welcomed it without disrupting classes.

Episode 3 — Soyeon Girls’ High Was Filmed at Wonhwa Girls’ High School

A Daegu Girls’ School Standing in for the Influencer Case

For the fictional Soyeon Girls’ High School in episode 3, production chose Wonhwa Girls’ High School in Seongdang-dong, Dalseo District, Daegu. This site hosted Han Ye-ri’s SNS manipulation case and Im Han-rim’s field debut. The school’s modern white-and-blue exterior matches the sleek, almost corporate atmosphere the script needed. The story called for an elite girls’ school where social hierarchy runs through smartphones rather than fists.

Furthermore, the classroom interiors and rooftop scenes were captured on-site at Wonhwa. However, the courtroom verdict sequence at the end of episode 3 used a different location entirely. The constructed Joymadang Studio set in Paju handled that scene. We cover it in a later section.

Episode 4 — Chukmyeong Foreign Language High Combined Two Locations

Remarkably, three of the show’s four fictional schools were filmed in Daegu. These include Sangwon Boys’ High (Daehan High, ep 1), Wonhwa Girls’ High (Soyeon Girls’ High, ep 3), and Keimyung University Daemyeong Campus (Chukmyeong Foreign Language High, ep 4).

Keimyung University Daemyeong Campus for the Main Building

The most architecturally striking school in the series is the fictional Chukmyeong Foreign Language High School from episode 4. It serves as the elite institution running the organized grade fraud operation. For the main building exteriors and interior corridor scenes, the crew turned to Keimyung University’s Daemyeong Campus in Daemyeong-dong, Nam District, Daegu. Specifically, the campus offers classical stone architecture and wide entrance steps. These details read as “elite school” in Korean visual grammar.

Daejin High in Seoul for the Athletic Field

Here’s the detail no English-language source mentions. Surprisingly, the athletic field and outdoor courtyard scenes for Chukmyeong were filmed not in Daegu but in Seoul. Specifically, the crew used Daejin High School in Hagye-dong, Nowon District. The production combined the two locations to build a single fictional school. Watch the episode again and you can spot the architectural discontinuity. The elegant Daegu interiors give way to a more standard Seoul athletic field. Most viewers never noticed the cut.

Episode 9 — Jinwon High Was Filmed at Joongang High School in Seoul

For Episode 9’s Jinwon High School, production used Joongang High School in Gye-dong, Jongno District, Seoul. This is where the released convict Cho Gyu-cheol returns to school and the “human Wi-Fi” bullying case unfolds. Notably, Joongang ranks among Seoul’s most historically photographed school campuses. It has appeared in dramas including the original Winter Sonata. The classical Japanese-colonial-era architecture gives Jinwon a heavier, older atmosphere than the contemporary Daegu schools. This fits a story about old grudges and returning trauma.

The Government Buildings That Are Real

Importantly, the bureau’s authority comes from a real address. The crew captured Choi Gang-seok’s ministerial office scenes at the actual Ministry of Education inside the Sejong Government Complex.

Sejong Government Complex — The Actual Ministry of Education

Here’s the most important fact in this entire Teach You a Lesson filming locations guide. Minister Choi Gang-seok’s office and the Ministry of Education exteriors were filmed at the real Sejong Government Complex in Eojin-dong, Sejong City. Remarkably, the actual Korean Ministry of Education operates from this exact address. Because the production chose to film at the real seat of power, the bureau’s fictional legitimacy gains visual weight. Ultimately, that choice is why the show’s politics feel weighted rather than cartoonish.

The National Assembly’s Gate 5

For scenes involving opposition leader Hwang Gi-tae and broader political maneuvering against the bureau, production filmed at the National Assembly’s Gate 5. This sits in Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul. The Korean National Assembly allows limited exterior filming under permit. The production used Gate 5 because it gives the visual scale of national-level politics without requiring interior access.

Suwon Convention Center as the Superintendent’s Fundraiser

For Episode 4’s education superintendent fundraising gala, the crew used the Suwon Convention Center. The venue sits in Hadong, Yeongtong District, Suwon. This is the event where Cheon Sang-yeol receives his bribes. The venue’s modern banquet hall architecture matches the upscale event the script needed. Additionally, the scale of the space allowed for the production’s full extras count without studio reconstruction.

The Paju Studio Sets Behind the Bureau

For the bureau’s interrogation rooms, courtrooms, and hospital scenes, production built standing sets at Paju’s Dodamteo and Joymadang studios. These facilities form the Korean drama production backbone north of Seoul.

Dodamteo Studio — Police and Hospital Interiors

The bureau’s interrogation rooms and the police station interiors were built as standing sets at Dodamteo Studio. The facility sits in Tanhyeon-myeon, Paju. Dodamteo is one of the major Korean drama production facilities north of Seoul. Many recent Korean police procedurals share the same standing sets. Interestingly, the hospital corridor where Bong Je-sun’s identity question gets explored is the same physical set Dodamteo rents to multiple productions.

Joymadang Studio — The Courtroom

For the courtroom scenes, production turned to Joymadang Studio in Bongam-ri, Paju-eup, Paju. These include Han Ye-ri’s juvenile detention verdict in episode 3 and later legal sequences. Joymadang specializes in courtroom and government-building interior sets. The facility supplies the legal scenes for a significant share of Korean dramas. If you’ve watched a Korean courtroom drama in the past five years, there’s a real chance you’ve already seen this exact set.

Venezia Studio — The Academy Sets

Meanwhile, the academy and educational facility interiors were constructed at Venezia Studio. The facility sits in Deogi-dong, Ilsanseo District, Goyang. These include the cram school where episode 8’s Daechi-dong storyline unfolds and the academy rooms appearing in multiple episodes. Venezia handles constructed indoor academy spaces that the real Daechi-dong locations couldn’t accommodate during active business hours.

Seoul Street Scenes — Gangnam, Daechi-dong, and Beyond

Daechi-dong Academy Row for Episode 8

For Episode 8’s Gangnam medical-prep academy storyline, production filmed across multiple real Daechi-dong locations. Migang Academy at 1021-2 Daechi-dong and Cheongdam Language Academy at 1021-12 Daechi-dong both appear as exterior establishing shots. The actual academy buildings on Daechi’s “education row” supplied the visual context for the show’s most pointed critique of Korean education culture.

Magok and Sangam Background Plates

In addition, city driving scenes, bureau vehicle exteriors, and broader urban background plates were captured across the Magok area in Gangseo District and around the MBC complex in Sangam. The Nuriggumsquare and MBC bus stop on Sangam-dong appears in multiple transit shots. These aren’t destinations. They serve as production geography — the connective tissue that makes the show feel like it’s moving through a real city.

Can You Visit? Practical Notes for Travelers

Active Schools — Don’t Walk In

The four main school filming locations are all active institutions: Daegu Sangwon, Jeonju Industrial, Wonhwa Girls’, and Joongang High. Drama fans should not wander onto campus during school hours. The schools have classes, students, and security. Furthermore, none of them runs an official tour program. The Korean school system treats unannounced visitors as a security concern. If you want a photo, stand outside the gate, take it from the street, and move on.

Sejong Government Complex — Limited Public Access

The Sejong Government Complex offers some public access through guided tour programs. You won’t be able to walk into the Ministry of Education’s working offices. However, the exterior plaza and official tour route cover the spaces the show used for establishing shots. The Korean Ministry of the Interior and Safety website handles tour reservations.

Paju Studios — Not Open to Tourists

Dodamteo, Joymadang, and Venezia operate as working production facilities. Unfortunately, they don’t run tourist programs, and the standing sets get reset between productions. Even if you could access them, the police station you saw in Teach You a Lesson may already be a hospital ward by the time you arrive. These aren’t destinations for casual visits.

Choco Papa’s Take

What’s Working — Daegu as the Production Anchor

After fifty-nine years and a career that took me to most regions of this country, watching a Netflix global hit anchor itself in Daegu feels significant. For years, Daegu schools have been undervisited by Korean drama productions. By contrast, Seoul’s school filming locations are oversaturated — the same handful of campuses appear in everything. Daegu’s red-brick boys’ schools and modernized girls’ schools gave Teach You a Lesson a visual identity that a Seoul-only shoot couldn’t have delivered. As a result, the Teach You a Lesson filming locations strategy pays off in every school scene. The buildings themselves feel like places the show discovered, rather than places the show borrowed.

What’s Not Yet Working — Where’s the Set Tour?

However, the one missed opportunity is the lack of any official set tour or visitor program. After all, the show is a global hit. Jeonju Industrial High is already attracting curious visitors. Moreover, Daegu has tourism infrastructure that could easily absorb a “Teach You a Lesson location route” promotion. Netflix and the local tourism boards haven’t moved on it yet. If the series gets a second season, this will be a missed revenue stream worth fixing.

Final Thoughts on Teach You a Lesson Filming Locations

A ten-episode global Netflix hit filmed across three regions, four real schools, one real government building, and three Paju studio sets. That geographic footprint is unusual, deliberate, and almost completely invisible to international audiences. The Education Protection Bureau is fictional. However, the buildings it walks through are not. That decision gives the show its visual weight. Moreover, it makes the Teach You a Lesson filming locations worth knowing about even if you’ll never visit them yourself.

For everything else about the production, see our complete guide, the fashion guide, the OST guide, and the episodes 3-4 recap. An exhaustive location-by-location map with 95 marked points appears in the Korean travel blog Haechi Travel’s mapped guide, which covers ground this article doesn’t. Official information on the real Ministry of Education is available at the Korean Ministry of the Interior and Safety site. Meanwhile, Jeonju Industrial High School maintains a publicly accessible official school site.