EBS blamed for errors in student workbooks

By Kim Tae-jong

The state-sponsored education-oriented broadcaster, EBS, said Friday that they have published a free replacement supplementary booklet for televised lectures due to many typos and mistakes in the original workbook.

According to the firm, the workbook for the English Section in the College Scholastic Aptitude Test (CSAT), released last May, contains over 60 typos and mistakes in the answer sheets and in the answer explanation part.

The incorrect information in the workbook has confused students and teachers as over 70 percent of the college entrance exam must reflect the contents of the EBS lectures in a bid to curb private education fees.

It is the latest controversy surrounding the broadcaster. Last week, conservative groups claimed that it has aired lectures by those with an ideological bias on Korean modern history, negatively influencing students.

EBS said it will be more scrupulous in vetting lecturers.

Upon releasing the supplementary book, the firm expressed regret.

“We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience we have caused due to the typing errors and mistakes in the workbook,” the broadcaster said on its official website.

The company started to release the free supplementary book at bookstores from Aug. 1 and students can also download it from www.ebs.co.kr.

It is the second time workbooks published by the EBS this year needed corrections.

In April, about 30 typos and mistakes were found in the workbook for the Korean language and literature section, and the firm printed a 20-page supplementary book to rectify the problem.

The supplementary book contains corrections of the minor typos such as “stydy” instead of “study,” mistranslations of English into Korean and ungrammatical answers, an EBS official said.

The annual college entrance exam is slated for Nov. 10 this year, consisting of four main parts including Korean language and literature, mathematics and English.

e3dward@koreatimes.co.kr