Let’s move toward creative education
One of the main goals modern countries have sought is to provide education for all people equally and, at the same time, improve every person’s own talent to the maximum. That is, equality and excellence are twin axes that modern countries have pursued in the education system.
Excellence is the value of maximizing people’s international competitiveness by developing their abilities to the full. Equality is the value of removing discrimination in social competition by providing equal education to all people according to their capabilities.
Even in the United States, while recognizing the severity of problems like high wastage rates and low school performance, U.S. education has always demanded introspection and amendment. It was such an atmosphere that led to innovation of schools.
The Reagan government placed priority on educational innovation in 1982. In 1983, the National Commission on Excellence in Education issued a report called “A Nation at Risk,” and America made every effort to determine the major role of public education and to improve the deteriorated education system.
Later, the mood became one of addressing standards and obligations, as well as of fostering competition between public and private schools to improve the efficiency of education in the U.S.
Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon, who used the expression “Righteous Difference” in 2016 as part of his policy for excellence and equality in education in Korea, suggested Eton School, an aristocratic school, as a model. He said education welfare must be realized for students from low income families.
Seoul International High School took up an idea of “innovative operation” in its standards of recruiting new students. This means the expansion of social integration in entrance selection. In this program, the percentage of students drawn from lower income groups expanded from 20 percent to 30 percent, and as such these underprivileged students’ chances of entering the high school increased.
Currently, the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement is in effect. An FTA is a kind of bilateral trade agreement dealing with advanced technology of developed countries and non-advanced technology of developing countries. Thus, Korea, which still lacks advanced technology, absolutely needs quality education. However, to beat developed countries, we should find a way to move beyond quality education. The way to do this is through creative education or diverse education.
Korea’s Ministry of Education is eager to develop the 2021 university admissions policy. Regardless of how this is done, the absolute valuation of more than four subjects in the Korea Scholastic Aptitude Test is expected. Absolute valuation means that students will be able to reduce the amount they study and do research for various fundamental subjects to promote their creativity.
An environment for creative education should be created from elementary school to university. And, in time, this creative education will sprout and grow.