The problem with an easy CSAT prep test
Published: 01 Jul. 2011, 21:25
Such was the case on June 21 when the Korea Institute for Curriculum Evaluation (KICE) released the grades of its College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) prep exam that was administered on June 2.
The prep exam was so easy that 733 teenagers walked out with a perfect score for its three mandatory sections - Korean language, mathematics and English. It didn’t take long before KICE came under heavy criticism from parents. Last year, only 11 brought home a score of 100 percent for those sections. The prep test is intended to be used a barometer for students to determine their readiness for November’s CSAT.
Seong Tae-je, head of KICE, responded to criticism that the test was easy. The CSAT is “not an exam solely to tell good students from bad,” he said. “We will try to fill in the blanks on our abilities to distinguish the best students.”
KICE said it will take the criticism into account when it prepares September’s prep test - the last one before the real deal in November.
This isn’t the first time KICE has come under fire for the CSAT’s difficulty level, which was introduced in 2008. Every year, parents complain that it is either too difficult or too easy. Korean students often compare it to water or fire.
It’s an important issue because CSAT scores are weighed heavily by universities in their admissions criteria. “If the official CSAT this year is this easy, getting just one problem wrong will place you in the second level,” said Park Su-jin of Seoul Foreign Language High School. Park is in charge of helping students at the school with their university admissions.
“Because of this [exam], it will be harder on the students.”
Students’ CSAT scores are divided into nine levels, with the first being the highest. To score in the first level, students’ scores must rank within the top 4 percent of all test takers. Students that fail to get a top-level score can kiss good-bye to any dreams they had of making it into a top-flight school.
Because of the uncertainty of November’s CSAT, more students are expected to rely on early entrance university admission in August. Come summer, high school seniors and their parents set out on a strategic decision: “Do I have a better chance getting into a particular university on early entrance admission or via the CSAT route?”
For some, it’s not an easy decision. About one-third of all first-year university students are accepted via early admission. (Not all students are eligible to apply - only the best of the best - usually the top students in their year, or those who excel in a particular subject, such as English.) There is expected to be a bump in the number of early admission applicants because it’s thought the CSAT route will be exceptionally competitive this year.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology is only making things worse. Education Minister Lee Ju-ho had announced in February that the CSAT would be designed so that at least 1 percent of takers would receive a full score.
“We have offered this new 1 percent policy so students will be able to truly feel a connection between EBS (Educational Broadcasting System) and the CSAT,” Lee said in February. EBS provides television as well as online courses that are meant to help students with the CSAT at a lower price compared to private hagwon and tutors.
The ministry’s decision has been met with bewilderment.
“After questioning the government on how it concocted this decision, I found that they had no objective information whatsoever on how to adjust the difficulty level of the CSAT,” Rep. Kim Young-sun of the ruling Grand National Party told the JoongAng Ilbo.
“No one will take responsibility after the actual test results come out. And the only victims will be the students.”
By Park Su-ryon, Kim Min-sang [christine.kim@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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