Superintendent Kim Dae-jung: "No Unilateral Push for Essay-Based Assessments... Communication and Consensus Are Top Priorities"

Abolishing Multiple-Choice Assessment for 5th-Grade Elementary to 1st-Year Middle School Students

Five Organizations, Including Local Governments and Universities, to Develop "Local Responsibility College Admissions System"

Kim Dae-jung, Superintendent of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Office of Education, has launched initiatives in partnership with the National Education Commission, local governments, and regional universities to reform the college admissions system according to local characteristics and to innovate public education based on artificial intelligence (AI).

On the afternoon of August 20, the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City Office of Education, together with the National Education Commission, held a “Field Discussion for Establishing the National Education Development Plan” at the Kim Dae-jung Convention Center in Gwangju.

Kim Daejung, Superintendent of Education, is delivering a keynote speech at the "Field Discussion for Establishing the National Education Development Plan." Provided by Jeonnam Gwangju Office of Education.

In his keynote speech that day, Superintendent Kim asserted, “The era of selecting only the right answers is already over,” urging a fundamental reform of the college admissions process to enable genuine evaluation of students’ critical thinking skills.

As a concrete measure, from 2027, essay-based and written expression assessments will be fully introduced for 5th and 6th graders in elementary school and 1st-year middle school students. To ensure fairness in the evaluation process and to reduce the workload for teachers, an “AI EduTech Grading System” will be implemented. In addition, plans are underway to establish a new (tentatively named) “Jeonnam-Gwangju Curriculum Development and Assessment Institute.”

This blueprint for sweeping educational transformation was further detailed through a “joint declaration” by five organizations, announced the previous day. On August 19, Superintendent Kim, joined by the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City government and local universities, announced the “Jeonnam-Gwangju Regional Responsibility Education Transformation Joint Declaration” in a press conference at the integrated city’s Gwangju office.

This declaration was triggered by President Lee Jaemyung’s request in a work briefing by the National Education Commission on August 5, in which he cited the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City as a case when calling for a review of education policies tailored to local characteristics.

Following the declaration, a joint development body involving local governments, education offices, and universities will be established to actively develop a “local responsibility college admissions system,” and both the target pool and admission quota for the local talent selection system will be gradually expanded.

In particular, to foster talent in strategic regional industries such as semiconductors, the institutions involved plan to jointly propose to the central government the lifting of restrictions on university enrollment and admissions. The idea is to cultivate talent within the region so that it can flourish locally—an approach described as “education self-sufficiency.”

There will also be a significant expansion of autonomy in the elementary and middle school curriculum at the local level. The five participating organizations agreed to formally request the Ministry of Education and the National Education Commission for special exemptions to operate the “Jeonnam-Gwangju model curriculum,” based on essay/written expression and absolute evaluations, in a self-directed manner.

Building on this declaration, the integrated city plans to further reinforce the collaborative framework among local governments, education offices, and universities, and to accelerate discussions on follow-up tasks such as introduction of special curriculum exemptions. However, recognizing concerns regarding rapid changes in assessment methods, the city set “communication” and “consensus” as its top guiding principles.

In a phone interview with The Asia Business Daily on this day, Superintendent Kim stated, “The full-scale introduction of essay-based assessments, which has been a major topic of discussion recently, will by no means be unilaterally pushed forward at the sole discretion of the education office.”

He emphasized, “We are fully aware of the concerns about fairness and the increased burden on teachers in the field. Before implementing any policies, we will advance step by step, ensuring ample consultation and social discussion with teachers, parents, and the entire education community.”

The concepts of “local responsibility college admissions” and “innovations for future public education” collected from the two-day session are expected to serve as the backbone of the National Education Development Plan, which will establish the vision for Korean education over the next ten years.

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