Prime Minister Han Deok-su: "The State Must Strive to Exclude Killer Questions That Form Cartels"

"Abnormal Practice of Starting Entrance Exam Study from Kindergarten Must Be Corrected"

A private academy district in Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo strongly criticized the controversy over the ‘killer questions’ in the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), saying they “played a role in forming a (private education interest) cartel.” He also emphasized that since exams that distinguish students through high-difficulty questions do not align with the value of fairness, the government should step in to eliminate them.

On the 21st, Prime Minister Han met with reporters at the Government Complex Sejong and stated, “The imbalance and abnormality of starting entrance exam preparation from kindergarten must be corrected.” He added, “Killer questions serve as a kind of cartel, and shouldn’t the government make efforts to exclude them and ensure they do not exist?”

So-called killer questions refer to the most difficult CSAT problems that are hard to solve with public education alone. Typically, 1 to 2 such questions appear per subject to secure differentiation. Because the correct answer rate is below 20%, many test-takers rely on private education to prepare for these killer questions. This has led to criticism that killer questions push students into the private education market.

The recent controversy over killer questions began with this month’s mock exam evaluation. President Yoon Suk-yeol had instructed in March to exclude killer questions, but they reappeared. To hold someone accountable for the situation, President Yoon dismissed the director in charge of university admissions at the Ministry of Education and reportedly ordered that complex killer questions be removed from the upcoming September mock exam and CSAT. In particular, President Yoon is said to have stated, “The interest cartel that pushes students into the private education market distorts the educational order and hinders students from receiving fair opportunities from the same starting line.”

On the same day, Prime Minister Han explained, “Basically, the difficulty should be based on what is learned in the curriculum,” adding, “It is really unacceptable for students who have received normal education to make a fuss and attend academies to solve problems that come from completely different places.” He further said, “The President has been saying this for a long time, and although it was not reflected in the June mock exam, I believe it really should be.”

Prime Minister Han also stated again, “The killer question controversy is completely different from how to set the difficulty level of the CSAT,” and “The difficulty should be formed within the scope of what is learned in the curriculum.” Regarding claims that such questions are necessary, he rebutted, “It sounds like an excuse. I agree with the opinion that this is playing games with our precious children.” This remark is known to reflect what President Yoon recently conveyed to his aides about killer questions.

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