Improving Korean education
I’m really hesitant to give my opinion on the Korean education system, but on the heels of my article last week about the Harvard admission policy, perhaps I can venture to offer my humble opinions in hopes of improving an already excellent educational system.
The Korean education system is unquestionably one of the finest in the world. On some scales it is No. 1 or No. 2. What improvements could possibly be necessary? If there are to be improvements, what are the problems, if any?
The first thing that jumps out at us is the suicide rate for high school students. A quick look at the Wikipedia page on suicide in South Korea shows that it is a serious problem in the country. Prominent people, actors, actresses, even a former president, have taken their own lives. And the suicide rate for the student-age population is high, and there is evidence that the pressure on high school students to perform in a highly competitive school environment is part of the reason.
Maybe the Harvard approach is part of the answer?
As I outlined last week, the Harvard admission standard includes not only tests and grades, but also other factors including, letters, leadership, accomplishments, employment and family conditions. This came to the front last week because Harvard announced that it would not be using standardized test scores as part of the process this current year affected by COVID-19. But rather, they are looking at the “whole-person” as the criterion for admission.
Would that framework — the whole-person — be useful to Korean educators? Look at Harvard’s consideration of “employment” — a high school student holding a part-time job. Such a thing is unheard of in Korea, but maybe if, instead of sending a student to the “hagwon” every night, they had a small job on one or two of those nights, that would help them to be well-rounded and out of the pressure tank? It’s a radical idea, but it might be healthier.
Another part of the Harvard education is the form of testing. In all the classes I had at Harvard over five years, I never saw a multiple-choice exam. Every exam was a set of essay questions. There are reports of students from Korea at Harvard as undergraduates that failed their first set of tests because they were not used to taking tests that were all essay questions. Writing is an important skill, more important than the skill of identifying a correct answer on a multiple choice test.
The essay question is also the heart of Advanced Placement (AP) courses and the basis for getting college credit in AP high school courses. There is an elaborate grading system used in the AP system in the U.S. The point is that essay tests can be administered for the sake of college entrance and college credit. Whereas it is easy to run a multiple choice test answer sheet through a computer and get results immediately, the essay exam takes more effort, but it is possible. Every year, for two weeks, 100 or 200 high school teachers meet in an American city to read and grade essay exams.
For example, the AP history exams have been graded in Salt Lake City, and other disciplines meet in other cities. The teachers’ grading is monitored and a teacher whose grading is out of line with other teachers is sent home without finishing the two-week assignment.
Teachers that show consistency and accuracy in evaluating essays are asked to return the next year. The point is, even the college entrance exams can be essay exams.
I understand that in recent years some Korean universities are moving partially toward a kind of Harvard-style evaluation of college applicants. But there are the old bugaboo challenges of partiality and preference.
Recent cases of alleged corruption in the admission of prominent members of society have challenged the “whole-person” concept of college admission.
It’s my opinion that even if there is some corruption, a whole-person approach that reaches out to less affluent students is worth the effort. Harvard, too, is accused of corruption from time to time, for example, the recent case of Jared Kushner who is alleged to have gained admission after his father contributed a large amount of money to the school.
There are marked social differences between the United States and Korea; among them is the emphasis on education. To Korea’s credit, they hold education highly, which makes it susceptible to corruption. People prize education. I started this article today with the idea that Korea might learn something from the Harvard approach, but I end this essay with the wish the Americans cared more about education — like Korea does.