This Year's CSAT to Be Held on November 18... EBS Linkage Rate Reduced to 50%

Announcement of the 2022 College Scholastic Ability Test Basic Implementation Plan
Lower EBS Question Ratio... English Indirectly Linked
Korean and Math Introduce Common + Elective Subjects
Two Subjects for Social Studies and Science Inquiry Without Separation

On the morning of December 3, 2020, students at Gyeongbok High School in Jongno-gu, Seoul, the test site for the 2021 College Scholastic Ability Test, received exam papers and marked their answer sheets.

Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), this year's test was postponed by two weeks and was taken simultaneously at 1,383 test centers across 86 test districts nationwide, with a record low of 493,433 examinees.

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The 2022 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) will be held on November 18. This year, common and elective subjects will be mixed in Korean, Mathematics, and Inquiry sections, and the EBS linkage ratio will be reduced to 50%.

On the 16th, the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation announced the basic plan for the 2022 CSAT. This year, the EBS question ratio will decrease from 70% to 50%. Depending on the subject characteristics, it will be converted to indirect linkage, and especially in the English section, all linked questions will be presented in an indirect linkage format.

The Institute explained, "Since the application of the 2015 revised curriculum was postponed by one year, we reflected opinions to lower the ratio to 50% to avoid questions focused on memorization," adding, "In the case of English, questions will not be made by directly copying passages from EBS textbooks."

This year's CSAT is characterized by a wider range of elective subjects. In Korean and Mathematics, students can choose one elective subject from each area in addition to the common subject. The Korean elective subjects are Speech and Writing, and Language and Media. The Mathematics elective subjects are Probability and Statistics, Calculus, and Geometry. For Inquiry subjects, students can select two subjects from 17 options regardless of social or science categories. In the Vocational Inquiry area, two subjects can be chosen from six options. To be eligible, students must have completed at least 86 credits in the Industry Demand Customized and Specialized High School Professional Subject II curriculum.

Korean History is a mandatory subject, and separate answer sheets are provided for Korean History and the Inquiry section. Korean, Mathematics, and Inquiry subjects are graded on a relative evaluation basis, while English, Korean History, Classical Chinese, and Second Foreign Languages are graded on an absolute evaluation basis. From this year, Classical Chinese and Second Foreign Languages, which adopt absolute evaluation, will be graded in intervals of 5 points.

For examinees with disabilities, visually impaired students who require Braille test papers and wish to do so will be provided with computers installed with screen reading programs and test files or audio tapes for the program. In the second period Mathematics section, Braille information terminals that allow the use of calculation functions will be provided.

For subjects graded on a relative evaluation basis?Korean, Mathematics, and Inquiry?the score report will indicate the standard score, percentile, and grade for each subject, while English, Korean History, and Second Foreign Language sections will only show grades. If a student does not take the Korean History section, the entire test will be invalidated and no score report will be issued. The Institute plans to upload CSAT guidance materials on its CSAT website by the end of this month and distribute booklets to high schools nationwide.

The June mock test will be held on June 3, and the September mock test on September 1. CSAT applications will be accepted from August 19 to September 3, and can be submitted at the current or alma mater high school or locations designated by the local education superintendent. After the CSAT, there will be a period for objections, with final answers confirmed on November 29 and scores notified on December 10. The Ministry of Education plans to announce detailed implementation plans reflecting COVID-19 prevention measures and manuals around July.

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