Museums will run special program for CSAT takers

By Baek Byung-yeul

The state-run National Museum of Korea (NMK) said Monday it will run a special program called “Museum Research Class” for students who will take the college entrance exam Thursday.

It is not unusual to see an almost empty high school classroom on a regular school day after the students take the college entrance examination.

Though the school year still remains, many students simply don’t attend the classes as they think there is nothing left to do after taking the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT).

This year’s CSAT will be held at 1,212 venues nationwide, and some 630,000 students are expected to take the test.

The program runs from Nov. 17 through Dec. 11, every Tuesday to Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Participating students will see traditional Korean seals displayed in the museum and take classes to make their own.

They can decorate their seals with their names or favorite patterns. After creating the seals, the students will write letters to their friends or parents on “hanji,” traditional Korean mulberry paper, and stamp their seals on the envelopes.

The museum explained the program is designed not only to provide students with a place to relax from the stress and pressure of the CSAT, but also a chance to enjoy the museum as a cultural place.

The special educational programs will be run by 12 national museums throughout the country, including the NMK. The Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, will run a special program called “A Museum Through the Eyes of the Young,” in which students can draw, write and take photographs of the museum and share their creative works.

The Korea Manhwa Museum in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province — a cartoon-specialized museum — will offers 60 percent discounts November 13 to the end of the year to high school students who take the CSAT.