In the process of reorganizing the university admission system, the goals and principles should be clear.
The goal of the university entrance system reform that I would like to suggest is that the university entrance system should contribute to the normalization of public education, especially high school public education.
There is no school education for the university entrance system.
This is part of a statement issued by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Jo Hee-yeon in July 2018 against the government’s expansion of the regular entrance exam time.
Superintendent Cho said at the time, "The essence is the normal operation of school educational activities. This goal should always be emphasized in the course of discussing the university admission system."
Clearly, public education is not just for entrance exams.
So, what is public education for?
Our public education goals
When it comes to education issues, there is a phrase that comes up all the time.
'You can't line up children' and 'You should normalize public education'.
Probably no one will dispute this point.
However, it is difficult to find an article about the goal of public education that should be normalized.
Could it be that it's too obvious?
The official answer is well laid out in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
● Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Article 38 (Purpose) The purpose of elementary school is to provide basic elementary education necessary for people's lives.
Article 41 (Purpose) The purpose of middle school is to provide secondary education on the basis of education received in elementary school.
Article 45 (Purpose) The purpose of high school is to provide secondary education and basic specialized education on the basis of education received in middle school.
It is said that even elementary and middle schools these days struggle with entrance exams, but the core is still high school.
The goal of high school education established by our law is "secondary education and basic professional education".
Obviously, there are no college entrance exams for high school education purposes.
If so, why did college entrance exams become the purpose of the university entrance exam that had no purpose?
This time, I looked for the Higher Education Act to see if I could find a reason in the purpose of college education.
However, no matter how much I think about it, it seems that I am not studying so much for the sake of character development, the nation, and the contribution of human society.
● Higher Education Act
Article 28 (Purpose) The purpose of the university is to develop character, teach and research profound academic theories and their application methods necessary for the development of the nation and human society, and contribute to the nation and human society. .
The answer may be found in an article in a completely different field.
This is an article that companies are trying to preoccupy talented people by establishing contract departments one after another at excellent universities.
Entrance exam → University → Employment… What you want to achieve through education
Samsung Electronics announced on the 17th that it had decided to establish a contract department with Samsung Electronics that majors in next-generation communication technology together with Korea University.
Each year, 30 students are selected from the Department of Next-Generation Communication to provide hands-on, customized education that connects theory and practice in the field of communication. After graduation, employment at Samsung Electronics is guaranteed.
Samsung Electronics previously created contract departments such as Yonsei University's Department of System Semiconductor Engineering and KAIST's Department of Semiconductor Systems Engineering.
Not only Samsung Electronics, but also Hyundai Motor Group, SK Hynix, and LG Display have started to secure talent in this way.
These days, even college life is difficult to talk about romantically, and fierce competition begins at the time of admission.
It is a war for employment following the war for entrance exams.
Of course, there are people who are preparing for graduate school or preparing for certifications or exams, but most of them compete to get a good job.
In such a job war, if you go to that university or department, you are guaranteed a job.
It is an enviable thing for the liberal arts students who are 'sorry' (sorry because it's a liberal arts department).
It's not easy for liberal arts students who have passed the college entrance exam like a needle's hole, but have a hard time getting a job even if they're a so-called prestigious university.
This is a passage that clearly shows that college itself is not the goal.
An alternative to 'no need to stand in line' instead of 'do not stand in line'
Public education aims to educate the whole person. This is the legal purpose discussed above. But that's not all. There is also the nature of 'vocational education to find a way to make a living', which is also included for practical and legal purposes. It is said that “basic professional education” for the purpose of high school education and “teaching and researching applied methods and contributing to the nation and human society” for the purpose of university education contain such meanings. (Since the phrase is abstract, we consulted the Ministry of Education to see if this is correct, and we received the answer that the provision is also related to vocational education.)
As everyone knows, in Korea, universities are the first step toward securing a future for young people. It's also true that college isn't just a way to get a good job, but it's one of the biggest parts of it. Without a solution to this problem, it is meaningless to shout, 'Don't line up students' or 'Normalize public education'.
The reason that changes to the entrance exam system in Korea have no great effect is because there are a lot of people who want to go to college. This is a very simple principle of supply and demand. There are many people who want to go, and no matter how much the system is changed, only the form of competition will change, but the competition itself will not change. It only complicates the aspect of competition and only makes the private education problem more complicated. The sad thing is that our politicians and the education community are working hard on the paradox of public education, but they don't seem to see why people are flocking to good universities.
It is bittersweet to think that I have seen the same thing in the real estate problem, which the government has admitted to have failed.
The definition of the real estate problem put forward by the government was 'a house is a space for residence, not an object of ownership'.
He said that the supply was sufficient, and the rise in house prices was due to speculative demand.
It may have been a righteous decision, but it was far from reality, and in the end even the president bowed his head.
Everyone will agree with the perception that education is not for entrance exams and that public education should be normalized.
However, reforming the education system based on the doctrine of justification cannot be the answer to solving the entrance exam hell.