June Mock Exam Korean Language Difficulty Similar to Last Year's CSAT... 'Eoneowa Maeche' More Difficult

Evaluation Institute: "Utilized Various Material Passages... Covered a Wide Range of Valuable Topics"
Etus: "Similar or Easier than Last Year, Perceived Difficulty Varies Due to Unfamiliar Structure"
Language and Media: High Difficulty and Standard Scores May Change Selection Ratios

On the morning of the 3rd, high school seniors preparing for the 2022 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) are getting ready for the June mock exam at Yeouido Girls' High School in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. A total of 482,899 students registered for the first mock exam of the 2022 CSAT, which has been reorganized into an integrated liberal arts and science format. Among them, 415,794 (86.1%) are current students, and 67,105 (13.9%) are graduates and others.

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The Korean language section of the June mock exam was analyzed to be similar to or slightly easier than last year's CSAT. Admission agencies evaluated that among the elective subjects, 'Eoneowa Maeche' (Language and Media) was relatively difficult.

On the 3rd, the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation explained the direction of the Korean language section for the 2022 academic year June mock exam, stating, "Questions were created based on the goals and content presented in the curriculum for each subject, but to evaluate a broad and diverse range of Korean language skills, various materials and passages were utilized," and added, "The topics of the passages were not limited to specific fields, and educationally valuable topics were broadly included."

In the common Korean language subject, literature and reading were each composed of 4 passages, 17 questions, and 38 points. The elective subjects had 11 questions worth 24 points.

The representative question types in the common Korean language subject identified by the institute were ▲ Reading questions 4 to 9: 'Thematic integrative reading (intertextuality)' ▲ Literature questions 22 to 27: 'Reception and production of literature,' one of the important learning units in the literature textbook. In the elective subjects, ▲ Speech and Writing questions 38 to 42 focused on conversation and writing ▲ Eoneowa Maeche questions 40 to 42 dealt with the exploration and utilization of media language.

The institute stated that questions 4 to 9 were designed to measure the ability to critically and creatively reconstruct reading results by contrasting texts with different perspectives on similar topics. Questions 22 to 27, which combined Kim Si-seup's Yugaek, Kim Kwang-wook's Yullyugok, and Kim Yong-jun's Joeosammae, presented classical poetry, yeonsijo (Korean lyrical poetry), and essays together to assess whether students could comprehensively appreciate various genres of works with thematic relevance.

In the common Korean language reading section, the humanities topic included a problem combining two articles about 'Salmon's process theory' and 'Re-theory.' The social topic included four questions based on a passage about 'punishment,' and the science topic included four questions based on a passage about 'Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR).'

In literature, modern poetry questions included three questions combining Kim Ki-rim's Yeollyun and Kim Kwang-gyu's The Blacksmith's Temptation. The classical novel was the anonymous Chaebong Gambyeolgok, and the modern novel was Hong Seong-won's The Warrior and the Musician, each with four questions. In Eoneowa Maeche, a 'Hangul Orthography' question, which had not appeared for some time, was included, along with six questions utilizing newspaper web pages, television news broadcasts, and magazine print advertisements.

Kim Byung-jin, director of the Etoos Education Evaluation Research Institute, evaluated, "This exam's difficulty is similar to or slightly easier than the 2021 CSAT. The unfamiliar structure compared to the preliminary test and academic achievement evaluation means adaptation is key, and the perceived difficulty may vary widely."

About 26% of test-takers chose 'Eoneowa Maeche' in the March and April mock exams, and admission agencies commonly agree that it was more difficult than Speech and Writing. There is also analysis that if the standard score for Eoneowa Maeche is higher than that for Speech and Writing, the selection rate may increase.

Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongro Academy Haneul Education, said, "Although students who chose Eoneowa Maeche scored higher standard scores in the March and April mock exams, it remains to be seen whether this score gap will adjust with the addition of repeat test-takers this time," and analyzed, "The selection rate for Eoneowa Maeche could increase significantly in September and the CSAT. For top-tier students, choosing Eoneowa Maeche would be the most rational decision."

There was also a change in the reading section, which now consists of four passages. This change in passage composition likely made it feel more difficult for students. The scoring is 76 points for the common subject and 24 points for the elective subject, and it is analyzed that the key to differentiation lies in the common subject, particularly in the 'reading' part.

Lee Young-deok, director of Daesung Academic Development Research Institute, explained, "In reading, the burden in terms of passage length and difficulty has decreased, but since tricky answer choices tend to appear in questions that check detailed information, it is important to calmly read the passages and accurately solve the problems," and added, "In literature, the perceived linkage rate was similar to last year's CSAT, but since the EBS linkage rate is expected to decrease, students should learn key concepts and develop problem-solving skills for unfamiliar works."

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