For Success of Admissions Reform
Dear editor,
I agree with the March 9 editorial, ``Admission Without SAT,'' which insists that the college admissions system should put less weight on test scores and put more on recommendations by principals from high schools and in-depth interviews.
The current admissions system that highly relies on the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) is responsible for the excessive boom in private tutoring.
Korea spends over $20 billion annually on this, mainly due to severe competition among parents in raising the test scores of their children for admission to prestigious universities.
Mostly, the test skills are taught from special purpose high schools and cram institutes. These facilities, in big cities, rarely open their doors to students from underprivileged families or those in rural areas with fewer educational opportunities.
Only the rich can pay for the private lessons necessary to get high scores on the CSAT required for university. That discriminates against children who can't afford private tutoring.
Our current society doesn't need students who can only solve test questions, but those who have creativity. The admission systems should introduce a diversified admissions procedure to select a wide range of students.
When assessing academic promise and achievement, the student's entire portfolio should be considered, including challenges that have been overcome in school life, academic achievements such as high school study awards, letters of recommendation and in-depth interviews.
Therefore, universities should instruct admissions professionals to select students who may not have very good grades, but excel in specific fields or have great potential for future growth. All the processes should definitely be fair and transparent.
No wonder this new approach adopted by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) will help reduce cut-throat competition as well as private tutoring costs stemming from the current college admissions process.
Choi Yun-ha
Seoul