Police take aim at cram schools after president criticizes university entrance exam test

Yoon Seung-young, center, head of the Investigation Bureau under the Korean National Police Agency, speaks during a press conference at Sejong Government Complex, Monday. Yonhap

By Ko Dong-hwan

Police began investigating a cram school teacher and possible accomplices, Tuesday, for allegedly leaking questions that were to be kept confidential until this year's College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT).

The Korean National Police Agency (KNPA) assigned two related cases to the Special Investigation Division, which specializes in major crimes committed by high-ranking officials or involve large sums of money.

The cases were originally filed by the Ministry of Education, which said a certain cram school instructor leaked confidential questions to students after telling them he had met insiders linked to this year's CSAT. The police did not reveal the instructor's identity.

The police said they will look into whether the instructor actually leaked the questions and, if so, whether money was received in exchange. The instructor could face charges of meddling in the affairs of the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation and violating Korea's Improper Solicitation and Graft Act.

The CSAT and cram schools that teach students how pass the notoriously difficult test became a national issue after President Yoon Suk Yeol criticized previous exams for containing extremely difficult questions most test-sitters could not solve on their own. Yoon said last month that the exams from now on should eliminate the so-called “killer questions” to be fairer for students who cannot attend expensive cram schools.

The remarks generated shockwaves through the National Assembly as well as schools across the country, raising speculation over the difficulty level of this year's CSAT.

Yoon's remarks dealt a blow to the country's huge, lucrative private education market, where some A-list instructors earn tens of billions of won a year by teaching students how to solve killer questions.

The ruling People Power Party lawmakers welcomed the president's remarks. Rep. Lee Tae-kyu from the National Assembly's Education Committee said omitting killer questions from future CSATs can increase the role of public education and encourage parents to spend less money on cram schools. Together with soaring home prices, the president singled out private crammers as the biggest causes of the exorbitant costs of raising children in Korea, deterring young people from having kids.

Rep. Kim Young-ho from the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and from the same committee, however, criticized Yoon for making the remarks that must have confounded this year's CSAT takers. With just less than five months left until the exam, changes in the questions might confuse the students who have been preparing for this year's test, he said.