The provincial office of education plans to begin using the International Baccalaureate curriculum at some local public schools, claiming it will help keep the academic records of students fair. Critics, including some teachers, disagree. Mike Laidman reports.

This design class at Branksome Hall Asia uses the International Baccalaureate, or IB curriculum.

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Students choose their own themes for projects

The girls choose a theme for their design projects and then lead the class themselves.

Assessment results, of course, vary between students.

INTERVIEW
Shin Da-gyeong / Grade 12, Branksome Hall Asia (Nov. 17, 2018)
My design and technology teacher gives us an overarching subject, and we ourselves select a theme and complete our own projects.
[인터뷰 신다경 / 브랭섬 홀 아시아 12학년 (18.11.17) ]
"제가 하고 있는 디자인 & 기술 과목은 선생님이 큰 주제를 던져 주면 저희가 그 안에서 소 주제를 찾고 저희만의 프로젝트를 만들어 나가서.."

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Students trust evaluation results

Assessments are ultimately done by a teacher, but most of students trust the results.

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External reviews on teachers’ assessments of student performance

Outside experts review the assessment results teachers give for student performance.

INTERVIEW
Jennifer Johansen / Teacher, Branksome Hall Asia (Nov. 17, 2018)

[인터뷰 제니퍼 존한슨 / 브랭섬 홀 아시아 교사 (18.11.17) ]
"(학교) 내부 평가는 학생들이 시험으로 볼 수 없는 계획 습관이나 장기간의 관찰, 무엇보다 배우는 것에 대한 능력을 평가하게 됩니다. "

The provincial office of education plans to adopt the IB curriculum in public schools.

One of the reasons for the planned introduction is to restore trust in academic reports by reforming the student assessment system.

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‘Academic records must be seen as legitimate and fair’

School records are significant as high school entrance exams have been abolished and high school records are now more critical for acceptance into university.

Meanwhile, questions on the fairness of these school records have been raised.

Recording
Lee Gang-shik / Jeju Provincial Office of Education
The IB curriculum will help boost the quality of education in Jeju by giving teachers more autonomy and adopting IB assessment tools.
[녹취 이강식 / 제주도교육청 학교혁신 담당 ]
"선생님들이 자율성을 갖고서 수업을 계획하고 다양한 방법으로 수업을 진행하는데 그 다음에 이어지는 평가 부분을 (IB를) 활용하면 훨씬 더 제주교육이 질적 성장을 가져 올 것이다."

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Some remain skeptical

But despite the potential benefits, some remain skeptical about the introduction of a foreign system.

They emphasize better efforts by teachers and schools to build trust in school reports.

Toughened punishments for corrupt teachers and intensified internal audits of student performance evaluations are among their suggestions.

INTERVIEW
Kim Hong-seon / Teacher, Hwabuk Elementary School
The IB curriculum is more than just a course of study. Teachers should be involved in developing a curriculum and evaluation tools from the very beginning. I think that while many teachers in Jeju are qualified to handle the curriculum, they are too busy to implement it. They need more time.
[인터뷰 김홍선 / 화북초 교사 ]
"실질적으로 교과서를 뛰어넘는 교육이에요. 교육과정을 처음부터 교사가 짤때부터 평가단계까지를 고민하면서 일련의 교육과정을 다 준비한다고 봐야되거든요. 현재 교사가 능력이 없어서 그것을 못하냐 저는 그렇게 보지 않고 너무 바빠요."

Meanwhile, there’s currently a plan underway to introduce the IB curriculum at only a limited number of schools in rural areas.

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Limited number of rural schools will use IB curriculum

The education office says it will introduce the International Baccalaureate curriculum to improve the quality of public education, but

[Reporter] Mike Laidman
[Camera] Ko Moon-su

the office’s plan to implement the program is somewhat undermining the validity of its argument.

Mike Laidman, KCTV