[Jeong Gyu-young's Gongseon Unhak⑤] To Produce Top Athletes, Painters, and Musicians... "Universities Should Have the Right to Select Students"
Jung Kyu-young, President of the Studying Athletes Exercising Students Association.
Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@
☞Reference
[Jung Kyu-young's Gongseonunhak①] 'The Essence of Sports is Education'... This Comes First
The biggest obstacle blocking changes in Korean university sports is that universities cannot freely exercise their student selection rights. The 'student-athlete' sports system, a pride of American elite universities, was able to take root thanks to the autonomy in student selection. American universities give additional points to applicants who excel not only in sports but also in music, art, and other arts and physical education fields, and apply differentiated academic standards during the admission process according to the degree of excellence. For example, a student with a perfect score of 100 on the entrance exam can be admitted, but a student with a score of 90 can also be admitted if they have outstanding achievements in any arts or physical education field. This is because universities have the inherent authority to select students.
Despite universities exercising this significant authority, corruption or fraud related to student selection rarely occurs and is not problematic, primarily because there is mature public consent that 'student selection is the university's inherent right.' Secondly, the selected students actually attend the university, live with peers, study, and train without any hindrance to completing their university education. Therefore, there is no suspicion or doubt such as 'How did that student get admitted?'
Every year when American universities announce their admissions, it is common to see students known for excellent academic performance rejected while students with relatively lower academic achievements are admitted. Even if parents or students raise issues about the university's decisions or claim 'the rejected students are superior to the admitted ones,' the universities do not accept such claims.
American universities thoroughly aim to compose each incoming class with individuals possessing diverse 'colors.' In other words, they do not want mostly students who excel only academically but want students who are good at both academics and sports, outstanding painters, excellent musicians, skilled animal trainers, or passionate human rights activists.
Consider this: if universities were filled only with students who excel academically, in other words, strictly by academic ranking, and only students who excel in arts and physical education were admitted to arts and physical education departments of the same school, how boring and unfair would that be? This is the current state of Korean universities. Places that should be composed of specialists are not general universities but specialized graduate schools or technical colleges. Universities should have the autonomy to compose a diverse academic community with students of various colors.
Tasks for Normalizing University Sports Centered on Student-Athletes
"Universities Must Be Granted Autonomy in Student Selection..."
Members with Diverse Talents Equipped with Knowledge Needed, Not Just by Academic Ranking
Students-athletes admitted under university autonomy attend classes with other students, live in dormitories, participate in extracurricular activities on campus, and represent their school sports teams in intercollegiate leagues. These student-athletes lead busier university lives because they balance sports and studies. Nevertheless, they do not give up sports and take pride in it, not only because of the popularity they gain during university life but also due to the positive social perception of balancing academics and sports and the many additional points they receive when applying for graduate school or employment after graduation.
It is desirable that various sports teams composed of such student-athletes replace the existing Korean university sports teams made up of physical education colleges or special talent students. If a student is an athlete performing at a world-class level, they should enter a university that matches their academic and admission scores. American universities also select student-athletes who meet academic and admission standards to operate their sports teams.
As mentioned in previous articles, each university's sports teams composed of student-athletes should regularly compete in university sports leagues. Through these leagues, the skills of university sports teams should be enhanced, and the function of physical education as an important educational subject should be strengthened. Through physical education, students should learn character, health, strong mental fortitude, and sportsmanship.
Currently, Korea lacks nationwide intercollegiate leagues, and competitions are limited to some elite sports special talent students, leading to public indifference. If university sports leagues participated in by 'our' students, not 'them,' become active like in the United States, physical education in elementary, middle, and high schools will expand, and as a result, many sports clubs will be created nationwide, bringing significant economic benefits to local communities. (To be continued)
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Jung Kyu-young, President of the Incorporated Association Gongbuhaneun Seonsu Undonghaneun Haksaeng and CEO of Lorus Enterprise
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