March Mock Exam Difficulty Similar to Last Year's CSAT... "High Uncertainty in Score Calculation"

Korean Easier Than Last Year's CSAT
Math Geometry Most Difficult
English Slightly Harder Than Last Year's CSAT
Remote Test Takers Experience Connection Issues

On the 24th, the 2022 academic year March National Joint Academic Achievement Test was conducted for 950,000 high school students from grades 1 to 3 nationwide. Third-year students at Jamsin High School in Songpa-gu, Seoul, are taking the exam. This academic achievement test is being held simultaneously nationwide for the first time in three years since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo by Joint Press Corps

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The first nationwide joint academic assessment (Hakpyeong) of this year, preparing for the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), was held on the 24th.

The admissions industry evaluated that the difficulty level of Korean language was easier than last year's CSAT, mathematics was similar to last year's CSAT, and English was somewhat more difficult than last year's CSAT.

However, since this was the first exam for high school seniors (Grade 3) under the new 'common + elective subjects' CSAT system, the perceived difficulty was likely higher than the actual difficulty of the questions.

As with last year, among the Korean language elective subjects, Language and Media was more difficult than Speech and Writing. In the Korean common subject, the reading part was evaluated as somewhat difficult.

In mathematics, the exam was similar to or slightly easier than last year's CSAT. Among the elective subjects, Geometry was the most difficult, and Probability and Statistics was the easiest. The killer questions were numbers 21 and 22.

Kim Byungjin, director of the Etoos Education Evaluation Research Institute, said, "Unlike Korean, which covers the entire syllabus, mathematics is tested within a limited scope, so more students likely found difficulties in the elective subjects. Although the scope is narrow, the number of questions is the same at nine, so problems requiring lengthy calculations or involving concepts perceived as less important can also appear."

On the 24th, when the 2022 academic year March National Joint Academic Achievement Test was conducted for 950,000 high school students from grades 1 to 3 nationwide, three students at Yongsan High School in Seoul were preparing for the exam. This academic achievement test is being held simultaneously nationwide on the same day for the first time in three years since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo by Joint Press Corps

As with last year's CSAT, it is expected that advantages and disadvantages will occur depending on the elective subjects. The difference in the highest standard scores among elective subjects is expected to slightly decrease to between 4 and 6 points, compared to 7 points in last year's March mock exam.

Lim Seongho, CEO of Jongro Academy, explained, "The difference in standard scores among elective subjects is still expected due to the skill gap between students in the math humanities and science tracks."

English, which is graded on an absolute scale, had a high vocabulary level and long sentences, so many students likely felt time was insufficient. Question 29 on grammar was an unfamiliar type, different from recent trends.

On the day of the assessment, students confirmed or quarantined due to COVID-19 downloaded the test papers through an online system and took the exam at home, but the site crashed for about two hours due to a surge in users.

The admissions industry believes that since many at-home test takers are not included in the score tally, it will be difficult to use the assessment results as an indicator to understand one's standing.

CEO Lim said, "Because a significant portion of the actual scoring sample is excluded, it may be difficult to accurately grasp academic levels, and it has become harder to understand the situation regarding differences in the ratio of test takers among elective subjects compared to last year."

Director Kim said, "Due to the large number of at-home test takers, there is uncertainty in score calculation. Considering that the CSAT uses a relative evaluation system, the size and nature of the test-taking group can be very different from the actual CSAT, so its importance in terms of evaluation appropriateness is low."

Kim added, "Rather than focusing on the results of the March academic assessment, it is important to use it as a tool to analyze questions, organize evaluation items or units, check one's learning completeness, and plan future study."

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