The Ministry of Education to Hold Online Session for Parents on the 26th
Real-time Chat and Pre-submitted Questions to Be Addressed by Officials
(Seoul=News1) Reporter Hyungjin Kwon: “With the full implementation of the high school credit system starting this year, will previously taken courses lose their significance if a student’s career path changes? Will it be disadvantageous for college admission?”
On the 24th, the Ministry of Education announced it would host an online session for parents interested in the high school credit system on the Ministry’s YouTube channel ‘Education TV.’
The high school credit system allows students to select courses according to their career paths and aptitudes. Students graduate by earning a required number of credits. Announced in 2018 and gradually applied to Meister and specialized high schools in 2020 and 2022 respectively, this system has been fully implemented for all first-year high school students nationwide starting March this year.
Though various sessions have been conducted at schools and by regional education offices for new students and parents in preparation for the full implementation, the Ministry is organizing this session to directly address parents’ inquiries.
The session will cover topics like course selection, course registration, grade assessments, school records, credit acquisition criteria, and measures ensuring minimum achievement levels. Ministry officials will directly explain these and answer pre-submitted questions and real-time chat queries.
Until the 25th, questions can be submitted via a QR code, and the most frequently asked ones will be addressed during the online session. As of the 23rd, 2,025 parent questions were submitted, with 42.1% from parents of first-year high school students and 23.7% from parents of third-year middle school students.
Common questions include whether courses taken become meaningless if career paths change, the possibility of changing courses, whether being ranked in the fifth level of internal assessments favors specialized or autonomous private high schools, and queries about how internal assessments are conducted.
The session will be live-streamed on ‘Education TV,’ open to all participants. The Ministry plans to upload the recording on the digital platform ‘Together School,’ to ensure parents who could not attend can access the information. Moreover, they will compile key pre-submitted questions and unanswered live chat queries into a frequently asked questions format and upload them on ‘Together School.’
In addition to this session, the Ministry will hold various online and offline sessions to directly communicate with parents and alleviate their concerns over the new system. They also plan to increase opportunities for direct interaction with parents via curriculum explanations and exhibitions hosted by regional education offices and schools to assist in student career guidance and course selection.
Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Education Lee Joo-ho stated, “Parents’ understanding and agreement are preconditions for the stable operation of the high school credit system.” He added, “The Ministry will continue actively communicating with the field to ensure the high school credit system is well-established.”