By Oh Young-jin, Kang Shin-who
Staff Reporters
Vice Education Minister Lee Ju-ho says that "hagwon" - after-hours cram schools - will be subject to a stringent set of regulations until the last day of the current administration's term of office.
"This is a pivotal part of our reform," said Lee during an interview with The Korea Times, Sunday. Lee is regarded as one of the architects of the Lee Myung-bak administration's education policy and now leads its day-to-day operations.
The reform measures are being implemented in three steps. In the first step, colleges and universities are being given greater discretion in selecting new students, allowing them to determine how to weigh college scholastic ability test (CSAT) scores and high school academic records. This is to be followed by the reduction of the number of subjects tested by the CSAT, while the third and final step allows schools full authority in student selection through admissions officers.
"Simply put, our goals are to enable students to be at home by 10 p.m. rather than in cram schools, and to help them become rational thinkers rather than receptacles of rote knowledge," Lee said.
By and large, Lee, a holder of a Ph.D. in economics from Cornell University, sees this three-step reform as a remedy for the "education fever" that some think will negatively affect the country's future.
Furthermore, the measures will prepare Korea for its transformation from a developing country to an advanced nation, he believes.
He says that the current model has been effective in helping Korea become a developed country but needs an upgrade to help spur Korea's maturity as a global leader.
This is why he is so intent on regulating hagwon. Currently, those in Seoul are barred from offering classes after 10 p.m. This ban is set to spread to the rest of the nation, following the Constitutional Court's recent rejection of a petition against the ban.
Plus, the cram schools are being closely monitored to determine whether they are sticking to the guidelines regarding fees. Rewards are offered to those who report irregularities.
These regulatory measures are already showing an initial effect, sending many cram schools out of business, according to ministry officials.
Korea spends an unofficially estimated 30 trillion won (about $30 billion) in private lessons per year, a huge amount when compared to 2008's nominal gross domestic product of $930 billion.
Besides the hefty burden on households, the spending also helps widen the education divide by creating a situation where a good education is far more accessible to the wealthy, while underprivileged families are being left behind.
"I am an avid supporter of the market economy," Lee said. "But when it comes to providing an equal opportunity to students to learn, there should be no room for ideology."
The strength of Lee's reform lies not just in depth but also in its breadth, as it is also aiming to fix the high school system entrance system.
Lee announced a plan Wednesday to have foreign-language high schools introduce admissions officers and select new students on the basis of their middle school academic records in English.
He believes that it will dampen the fierce competition among middle school seniors to enter these special purpose schools in hopes of gaining better footing to be accepted by reputable colleges.
"In the end, I believe that Korea will have college education that is comparable in quality to those of other advanced countries," he said. "Then, the exodus of students going out of the country in search of a better education will subside."
He said that U.S. President Obama only saw the better side of Korea's education system - the eagerness of students and parents for learning - when he praised it. "But we know of our failings and it is important to remove them and improve our system.