South Korea has one of the world's fastest-aging populations. And with birthrates falling, schools across the country are struggling to keep their doors open. Some are welcoming unlikely students - elderly women. And, as Joseph Kim reports, it's bringing new hope to communities.

Backpack strapped over her shoulder, Park Go-in gets on a bus. She's much older than the rest of the passengers, but all of that doesn't matter. Because she's surrounded by peers, happily going to school.

PARK GO-IN 72-YEAR-OLD STUDENT "I couldn't even write my own name before coming to school. I didn't even know what a school looked like."

Last year, Park Go-in entered school for the first time in her life, starting first grade.

Having grown up after the Korean War, Park never had the opportunity to get an education.

In a mostly patriarchal society, she was tasked to support the family while her older brother went to school.

Now, after almost 70 years, she's finally being given back some humanity.

PARK GO-IN 72-YEAR-OLD STUDENT "What dream could I have? Just being able to truly know my name and being able to go somewhere, anywhere, and read the street and shop signs or knowing what kind of mail has come from me. Being able to know that. That's all I dream of."

But it's not just South Korea's attempt at redemption, but a growing trend in South Korea, which faces a demographic crisis.

JOSEPH KIM PYEONGCHANG "Over a hundred primary schools in South Korea did not welcome any new first graders this year. That's because there aren't many new children. Birthrates are plummeting in South Korea and schools across the country are slowly disappearing, especially in rural areas. So to save education in the countryside and fill classrooms, schools like Bangrim Elementary have opened its doors to an older generation of women who were forced to sacrifice their education for their family and country."

Falling birthrates and an aging population spells trouble for South Korea as its workforces grows older.

And with an aged society, South Korea boasts the highest elderly suicide and poverty rates among advanced economies.

LEE SAM-SIK PROFESSOR, HANYANG UNIVERSITY "As more of South Korea's population ages, the national pension does little to help support the elderly. With many forced to fend for themselves, South Korea's older generation have to continue to work and so their living conditions are very poor."

After morning classes, Park Go-in and her classmates leave school early.

She, like most of the villages' older population, live alone and have to work to stay alive.

But she says school makes her want to wake up every morning, telling me "School "gives me ambition, it gives me hope because learning how to read and write is my biggest goal."

JK, CGTN, PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA.