Jeonbuk Office of Education Proposes Lowering Difficulty Level of Absolute Evaluation Areas in CSAT

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Geon-ju] Jeonbuk Office of Education announced on the 10th that, based on the results of the June mock exam released by the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation, the difficulty level of the absolute evaluation subjects in the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) (English/Korean History) should be lowered for middle-ranking students.

According to the Office of Education, the results of the '2021 College Scholastic Ability Test June Mock Exam' conducted on the 18th of last month showed that the gap between top-tier and middle-tier students widened further in the absolute evaluation English section compared to previous years.

In the June mock exam English section, the proportion of students achieving the top grade (Grade 1, 90 points) was 8.7%, a slight increase of 0.9% compared to the June mock exam results of last year, while the proportions of students in Grades 2 to 4 all decreased. In particular, Grades 2 and 3 dropped by 0.9% and 0.8%, respectively.

These results are analyzed to mean that the June mock exam felt relatively easy for top-tier students, but was comparatively difficult for upper-middle-tier students who rely heavily on the school curriculum and for students in educationally disadvantaged rural areas, resulting in a decrease in the proportion of these grades.

Furthermore, the Office of Education stated that if repeat test-takers (N-su students) who did not participate in the June mock exam take the CSAT, the gap between current students and graduates in this year’s CSAT is expected to deepen further.

Every year, the number of test-takers in the CSAT increases to about three times the number of those who participated in the June mock exam, making the disadvantage for third-year high school students clear.

The Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation announced that the difference between current students and graduates in this year’s June mock exam is not significant compared to previous years, and that the CSAT this year will maintain the usual question-setting policy.

However, university entrance exam experts argue that the institute did not disclose specific figures such as the score gap between current students and graduates, and that the results do not take into account the number of graduates who did not participate in the June mock exam.

The reason the difficulty level of the absolute evaluation English section is important for third-year high school students is that meeting the minimum CSAT score requirement is crucial for acceptance in the early admission student record screening at regional flagship national universities, which are preferred by middle-ranking students in the region.

An official from the Office of Education said, “We are concerned that the results for students in small and rural areas with less private education influence will show a relatively wider gap compared to students in large cities or those with economic means,” and added, “It is noteworthy to see to what extent the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation will accept the Office of Education’s official proposal through the Council of Superintendents of Education to lower the difficulty level of the absolute evaluation subjects and to minimize high-difficulty questions in hierarchical subjects (Mathematics, Science II).”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.