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Wednesday, August 13, 2008
we're working on a new project now -- a book that would prepare korean high school students for their suneung exams, their version of college entrance exams in korea. it's serious stuff but i didn't realize how serious until i found a few articles on the internet how intensely koreans prepare for their suneung test. one article i saw said that an estimated 200 students commit suicide because of the SATs. students are put under a lot of pressure: they study from morning until very late at night, have no time for leisure activities, and are continuously monitored by their parents. they spend three years, the entire time they are in senior high school preparing for the suneung exams. (some students prepapre for it as early as their elementary years!) their future depends on the result of their suneung exams because it would determine whether they can be accepted at the best universities in korea. of the thousands of students who take the exam, of course, only a few really get to go to the recognized good universities. coming from a good university would mean that they get hired in the best companies and generally have a bright future. knowing that really puts into perspective what we do here. it's not just about writing an excellent passage and making the questions tricky. it's about helping those desperate kids through the most difficult day of their lives. they hold suneung exams every third thursday of november. it's like a national holiday for them because office workers are discouraged from coming to work early to help prevent traffic that would make students late for the exams. during the listening part of the exams, airplanes cannot fly or land, trains and trucks and any sort of vehicles cannot use their whistles or horns, to minimize the noise and help the kids hear the dialogues better. it's kind of weird for me actually. i don't remember being put in that kind of pressure when i took the upcat and the acet. i didn't do any special study for those, except maybe some saturday classes in high school which many of us did not even take seriously. i guess i was just lucky i went to an excellent school that prepared me indirectly for the college exams i was to take. i was fortunate, i guess, that the school i went to prepared me not just for the exams but also for college. having passed both exams *aherm* without being put under the tremendous pressure those koreans are in, i consider myself very lucky indeed. Labels: college, education, korea |
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