The University Scholastic Ability Test (SAT), which was held on the 18th on the 18th while wearing a mask for the second time following last year, was analyzed to be difficult overall. The exam committee said, “It is at a level similar to that of previous years,” but the level of difficulty was so high that some students even expressed it as ‘impossible to take the exam. The entrance exam was held in an integrated liberal arts and science department, and the entrance exam companies evaluated that the math and English sections that were easy last year were difficult this year. In particular, in the Korean language area, there was a big gap in the level of difficulty experienced by the test takers, teachers, and examinees. The admissions industry believes that the media generation, who are familiar with videos and social media, finds it difficult to read difficult texts, and the school has been unable to operate normally for two years due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), and the accumulated learning deficit has had an impact.
● “I am nervous from the first period because the Korean language is difficult”
At a briefing this morning, Su-min Wi (professor of Korea National University of Education), who chaired the question papers, said, “Although the issue of academic ability gap has been raised due to COVID-19, as a result of the analysis of the simulated CSAT evaluation conducted twice, no singularity has been found in the polarization of academic ability by characteristics or achievement level between current students and graduates. “We kept the previous issue,” he said.
In the case of the Korean language area, there was even an explanation that it was plain, but the atmosphere at the scene was different. A high school principal in Seoul said, “There were many students who came out and cried after the first period.” Kim Min-yang, 18, who took the entrance exam at Ewha Girls’ High School in Jung-gu, Seoul, said, “I was nervous from the first class because the Korean language was so difficult.” An official from an admissions company said, “I thought the technical fingerprint was easy, but after analyzing a few students, the correct answer rate was the lowest.”
After completing the second period of mathematics, the evaluation that ‘this year’s CSAT was difficult’ became clear. The common subjects (Mathematics I, Mathematics II), which reached 74 points out of 100, had many problems of medium and high difficulty, and were difficult to answer as there were types that were not covered in the CSAT mock evaluations in June and September. Applicants for the humanities department will certainly be at a disadvantage. Until last year, in the math area, scores for liberal arts and science students were calculated separately, but this year it is not. In addition, the Korean Curriculum and Evaluation Institute adjusts the scores of the elective subjects by using the average score of the common subjects of the group taking the elective subjects, so it is expected that science students will have an advantage. Nam Yoon-gon, head of the Megastudy Education Admission Strategy Research Institute, explained, “In terms of probability and statistics, not only the humanities but also the arts and sports departments who gave up math took the exam, and overall, the scores were lower than those of the geometric but calculus selection group.”
● Mathematics and English were also difficult.
The English area, which is an absolute evaluation, was also more difficult than last year. Last year, the percentage of perfect scorers was 12.7%. This year’s English section has been changed to an indirectly linked method, in which the material and subject are similar to the questions instead of using the fingerprint as it is, and the level of difficulty for the test takers has increased. Seong-ho Yoo, a teacher at Sungdeok Girls’ High School in Incheon, said, “There will be more perfect scores than in the September CSAT mock evaluation, when the percentage of perfect scorers in the English area was 5% (4.9%), but it will be less than last year.” In this year’s entrance exam, it is expected that the top-ranked candidates will have a differentiating power in mathematics, the high-ranking students will be Korean and math, and the mid-to-lower-ranking students will be English.
Compared to last year’s first entrance exam under the Corona 19 situation, this year’s quarantine rules were stably observed both inside and outside the exam hall. As in last year, the education authorities recommended refraining from cheering, so juniors and teachers did not appear. Most of the parents cheered and patted their children on the shoulder. There were many cases where only the children of the students were dropped off in front of the school gate and left.
Jeon Da-eun (18), who entered the test center with four friends who studied together, said, “(Due to social distancing) the study cafe and reading room are only open until 10 pm, so it’s a pity that I couldn’t study enough.” Mo Kim (19), a retraining student, said, “I’m less anxious than last year, probably because I got the vaccine.” Appeals for questions and answers can be made on the website of the Evaluation Institute by 6 pm on the 22nd. The correct answer will be announced at 5 pm on the 29th, and the test result will be notified on the 10th of the following month.
Sejong = Reporter Choi Yena yena@donga.com
Reporter Jo Yura jyr0101@donga.com
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