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CSAT demands fundamental reform

Published: 26 Jun. 2023, 20:35

The Ministry of Education on Monday presented measures to correct our overreliance on private education. They include setting questions for the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) by focusing on what was taught at school, cracking down on “education cartels” and controlling overhypes about cram schools. But the core of the measures is to eliminate so-called “killer questions.” A study by the education ministry found 22 extremely hard questions among 480 questions in mock tests in July over the past three years. The ministry has decided to exclude “killer questions” in CSAT to normalize public education after President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered it.

A killer question for the Korean language test in last year’s CSAT even demanded a combined application of common logarithms, algebra method of least squares, and Kleiber’s law from students. For such questions, background knowledge plays a bigger part than the reading comprehension. A math question, a function problem, also could be easily solved by students who chose differential and integral calculus at school than otherwise.

Killer questions can be solved by students who learned solving skills at cram schools more easily than students who could not afford private education. The education ministry’s direction is right. With less than five months left before the CSAT in November, however, the ministry must maintain an appropriate level of difficulty which can distinguish students’ scholastic ability.

Over the long haul, Korea need a fundamental reform in its college admission system. Punishing private academies and well-paid instructors alone cannot solve the problem. If the high school credit system is introduced in 2025, more confusion is expected from the widened scope of subjects a student can choose from and the absolute evaluation method. Under such circumstances, CSAT scores will affect students’ college admission more than before.

But the education ministry fell short of presenting substantial measures to fix the problem. For instance, it could not show the big frame of reform. The abrupt remarks from the president only helped deepen the confusion. The education ministry’s presentation of samples of “killer questions” was just a quick fix rather than a fundamental solution.

The government must ensure credibility and feasibility of the CSAT. The relative objectivity of the test allowed education authorities and students to trust it. But if a slight difference in scores of the easy test can determine students’ college admissions, that’s a problem. We hope the government comes up with a trustworthy college entrance system through thorough discussions with education experts.