Jeonnam Education Committee Audit 'Lack of Policy Understanding and Inadequate Responses' Competence Questioned

Demands to Regional Education Chiefs for Rescheduling CSAT Listening Test Time Cause 'Frowns'

The Education Committee of the Jeonnam Provincial Council will conduct administrative audits of the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education, its affiliated institutions, and regional education support offices from November 1 to 10.

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] Some education committee members of the Jeonnam Provincial Council are drawing frowns with questions that either fail to properly grasp policies or do not fit local circumstances during the administrative audit.

According to the Jeonnam Provincial Council Education Committee on the 8th, the administrative audit of the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education, its affiliated institutions, and regional education support offices is underway. This audit, which began on the 1st, will continue until the 10th.

Although the administrative audit is an important task to accurately understand the overall state of administration, obtain data and information for council activities and budget review, and ensure efficient execution of administration, there are criticisms that even proper preparation was not made.

In particular, during the audits of the Mokpo, Haenam, Yeongam, Muan, Wando, Jindo, and Sinan Education Support Offices, remarks by Assemblywoman Park Kyung-mi (Democratic Party of Korea, Gwangyang 4) came under scrutiny.

Assemblywoman Park requested the local education directors to "adjust the listening evaluation scheduled for the 4th period after lunch to the 3rd period, as students' concentration drops."

However, experts view this request as showing a complete lack of understanding of education policy.

The 4th period listening evaluation is scheduled according to the Ministry of Education’s arrangement of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) subject times, which is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, not the regional education support offices or city/provincial offices of education. Yet, Assemblywoman Park raised the issue with the local education directors.

Education Committee Chairperson Jo Ok-hyun stated, "There were demands from parents sensitive to the CSAT schedule, so Assemblywoman Park brought up the issue, but she did not demand corrections from frontline education directors. This is under the Ministry of Education’s jurisdiction, and it is impossible for education directors to change it," adding, "I hope Assemblywoman Park’s request is understood as conveying parents’ voices from the field to the government."

Along with this, there are also criticisms that both the assembly members and the heads of affiliated institutions who appeared as witnesses were inadequately prepared.

Fundamental and concrete problems and alternatives should be presented, but important questions by assembly members are being glossed over, leaving only unclear and repetitive questions. Meanwhile, the heads of affiliated institutions appearing as witnesses also failed to respond properly due to lack of understanding of their duties and insufficient preparation of materials.

During the administrative audit of 12 affiliated institutions of the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education conducted on the 3rd, the audit was even suspended due to some institution heads’ lack of preparation and inadequate responses.

An education official said, "Except for Chairperson Jo Ok-hyun, there were no assembly members who stood out as capable of properly addressing the issues in this audit," adding, "It has been the same in the past, but only when assembly members properly understand education policies and demand improvements through encouragement and stern admonitions will the field change."

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