[Vol.84] Equity or Competency?

The problem of changing special-purpose high school(SPHS) and autonomous private high school is a hot potato today. On November 7, 2019, Yoo Eun-Hye, Minister of Education declared a plan of changing foreign language high schools(FLHS) and global high schools(GHS), which are of SPHS, to regular high schools(RHS) in March 2025. She proclaimed that it is one of the projects for 'plans of easing the phenomenon of ranking high schools'. However, some existing SPHS's oppositions to that decision are strong. People working at SPHS feel that the quality of education is insufficient to students that have academic excellence.  Conversely, the government is still sticking to its original position.

 In this confrontation, what are the grounds of agreement and opposition surrounding the obliteration of SPHS? And, how are the positions related to the effacement of SPHSs, different?

 The side of agreement claims that degeneration to a professional institution of the entrance examination, the opposite of the purpose of the original establishment can be a reason for elimination. Career choices that don't seem to fit the purpose of the school's establishment are strikingly observed in FLHSs and GHSs. Also, it is a problem that the number of students in FLHS and GHS is excess, though the current society necessitates graduates to major in natural science&engineering in colleges. Supporters of the agreement also insist that FLHSs and GHSs trigger unnecessary competitions. The competition for the GPA in FLHSs or GHSs where relatively excellent students are concentrated is very severe. Also, teachers making school exam questions tough to select more excellent students is the problem.

 The opposing party is the group who strongly objects to the government's decision. It argues that the government's measure is not desirable, so the decision should be cancelled. First, the side of the opposition insists that the government's one-way and compulsory policy is unjust. The Ministry of Education's eliminating SPHSs invades the autonomy of schools and the right of choices of students. The most crucial reason for permitting the establishment of autonomous private high schools(APHS) is guaranteeing the autonomy of individual schools. But, extirpating these APHSs causes standardization of education. Second, it's expected that new problems will appear if SPHSs are eliminated. The representative one is an assertion that another entrance examination preparing-schools that are similar to SPHSs will be created, and the boom of middle&high school students' studying abroad will happen. These would function as the 'ground for refutation', being obstructive to the current policy of the Ministry of Education. And next, we have to focus on the reaction of the educational world, to the elimination of SPHSs. Educational opinions have two prominent positions depending on the purpose of education; conservative and liberal lines.

 The Conservative line maintains that the purpose of education is the contribution to society. On the contrary, the liberal line asserts that the purpose of education should be focused on developing individuals. In this context, the reason all liberal educational groups support the government's policy of extirpating or changing existing SPHSs and RHSs is explained. Because SPHSs concentrate on delivering knowledge and cultivating elites and developing one's property, and ability is not activated, people who have this liberal idea oppose the establishment of SPHSs. On the other hand, conservative lines think that the obliteration of SPHSs hinders the development of the country because fostering talents can't be operated in this case.

 After most presidential candidates stated their opinions of erasing FLHSs and GHSs in the 2017's Presidential Election period, and after the Ministry of Education's policy of erasing SPHSs is declared in 2019, the elimination of SPHSs is still a hot potato. Though the Ministry of Education proclaimed the plan of simultaneous change to regular high schools in 2025 in November 2019, the opposition from existing SPHSs and APHSs is fierce.

 Education functions to affect students' future and careers significantly. Considering Korean society's characteristics that the result of the college entrance test influences enormously future careers and social success, the importance of education has been much more highly positioned.
 
 If everyone in society gradually tries to pay attention to this problem and find solutions, society will find out sensible solutions to this issue.