"Even Math Instructors Struggle for 20 Minutes"... Controversy Over 22nd 'Killer Question'

Difficulty High, Claims of 'De Facto Killer Question' Arise
Math Instructor Breaks a Sweat for 20 Minutes During Live Problem Solving
EBS: "No Violation of Curriculum, Discrimination Secured"

Ahead of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), the government announced its policy to exclude 'killer questions,' but claims of 'killer questions' have arisen regarding the high-difficulty questions in the 2024 CSAT mathematics section.

Test Takers Claim "A Killer Has Appeared"... Math Instructor Also Spent 20 Minutes Solving

There is a heated debate between claims that the question is a 'de facto killer question' due to its cleverly increased difficulty and arguments that, although difficult, it is a problem that can be sufficiently solved based on content learned in the public education curriculum.

Question number 22 in the mathematics section of the CSAT on the 16th is a problem that requires inferring the shape of a graph satisfying certain conditions by considering the sign of the derivative. Based on this, the function formula must also be found.

Because it requires accurately understanding the characteristics of the graph's shape, EBS, entrance exam companies, and test takers all evaluated it as a question with discriminative power.

The issue is whether it is a 'killer question' that demands excessively complicated calculations or cunningly sets traps.

In test taker communities, claims have emerged that question 22 is a 'de facto killer question.'

One test taker said, "The problem looks short and easy, but I still don't know how to solve it," and lamented, "I should have skipped (question 22) and reviewed other questions."

Others responded with comments such as, "If this isn't a killer, then what is?" and "It's not as difficult as a killer, but it's cunningly hard, and once you get stuck, you can't solve it."

A math instructor from an entrance exam company also spent more than 20 minutes solving question 22 during a live broadcast on YouTube.

"A question that secures discriminative power but does not induce other concepts or require unnecessary calculations"

Sim Ju-seok, an EBS instructor and teacher at Incheon Haneul High School, evaluated, "The short-answer correct rate was slightly strengthened compared to the September mock test to secure discriminative power for the top tier," adding, "Question 22 is not a question that test takers cannot approach, and the correct rate will vary depending on how much practice the test taker has done."

While acknowledging that question 22 is a tricky high-difficulty question that distinguishes performance, he explained that it is not a question that violates the curriculum or requires 'problem-solving techniques' taught in private education.

Some argue that the definition of 'killer question' itself is ambiguous and lacks quantitative criteria, so controversy is inevitable.

An official from the entrance exam industry stated, "Math question 22 involves complex calculations, and the Ministry of Education defined questions that require excessive complicated calculations causing test takers to spend a lot of time or make mistakes as 'killer questions,'" adding, "Due to social controversy, the entrance exam industry is holding back comments, but from the test takers' perspective, it is simply a 'killer question.'"

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