Schools will return to a mix of online and offline classes from Monday, as the country reinstates stricter social distancing measures due to rising cases of COVID-19. The Ministry of Education announced Thursday that schools in Korea will reduce student density to prevent classroom transmissions starting Monday, less than a month after schools returned to in-person classes on Nov. 22. The ministry said as the rate of transmission in schools is not high, they will continue to have in-person cl

Social Affairs Dec. 16, 2021

Nearly a month of trouble over a two-point question on this year’s college entrance test was settled in court on Wednesday, highlighting once again the weight the annual test carries in Korean society. On Wednesday, the Seoul Administrative Court ruled that a question in the bioscience part of the recent college scholastic ability test was inaccurate, and ordered the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation to cancel its designated answer. “There is not a distinguished diff

Social Affairs Dec. 15, 2021

Though South Korea is to go ahead with its controversial “vaccine pass” plans for teenagers, details of the scheme may be adjusted. The government’s decision to expand the vaccine certification system to those aged 12 to 18 from Feb. 1 has been met with criticism from many students and parents. Faced with opposition, the Ministry of Education is considering making some adjustments regarding the expansion of the vaccine pass system. “Though we have announced that t

Social Affairs Dec. 14, 2021

Starting Wednesday, medical staff will visit schools to begin administering vaccines to those aged between 12 and 18, health authorities said. The vaccine rollout comes as the Education Ministry on Monday released the results of a survey held Dec. 6-12 regarding the outreach vaccination program at schools. A total of 498,062 students participated in the survey and 83,928 students said they are willing to be vaccinated through the outreach vaccination program. Of the 83,928 students, 79.4 pe

Social Affairs Dec. 12, 2021

South Korea on Thursday fell deeper into the COVID-19 crisis, reporting over 7,000 new cases for a second consecutive day while critical cases hit an all-time high. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said 7,102 cases were reported in the 24 hours ending Wednesday at midnight, putting the country’s total number of cases to date at 496,584. It is the second-highest tally of daily cases since the pandemic began nearly two years ago. On Tuesday the country reported 7,174 cas

Social Affairs Dec. 9, 2021

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases reached an all-time high Wednesday, surpassing 7,000 for the first time since the virus crisis began nearly two years ago. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said 7,175 cases were registered in the preceding 24 hours to Tuesday midnight, exceeding the 7,000 mark for the first time, a week after staying in the 5,000 range since Dec. 1. The latest tally puts the country’s total caseload at 489,484. The number of patients in serious

Social Affairs Dec. 8, 2021

South Korean authorities are speeding up an inoculation plan for students as schools across the nation saw a significant spike in COVID-19 infections after returning to full-scale, in-person classes. From Nov. 29 to Sunday -- the second week since schools have fully reopened -- 1,450 students in Seoul tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a report from the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education released Tuesday. The cases marked a 33 percent increase from the 1,090 infected studen

Social Affairs Dec. 7, 2021

Presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo from the People’s Party met with Rep. Sim Sang-jung from the Justice Party on Monday to discuss how to improve nation’s election system and agreed to push for special prosecution against two key candidates from the ruling and main opposition parties. “We shared that the two party system has caused difficulties in people’s lives. We will cooperate on what we can do to restore the politics for the future, for the people,” Sim s

Politics Dec. 6, 2021

Despite some hiccups, the Korean government will go forward with its plan to implement a “vaccine pass” system for school pupils aged 12 to 18 from February. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said teenagers born between 2003 and 2009 will be allowed to go to private cram schools, cinemas and cyber cafes only if they are fully vaccinated from February. Alternatively, those who have not been fully vaccinated will have to show a recent negative COVID-19 test result for

Social Affairs Dec. 6, 2021

Schools are to remain open and hold in-person classes despite the surge in COVID-19 cases related to schools. A total of 1,185 people, including students and staff at schools in Seoul, have been confirmed with COVID-19 since schools fully reopened last week, marking an increase from the 1,018 confirmed cases in the previous week, according to the data provided by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education. From Nov. 22 through Sunday, 1,090 students in Seoul tested positive for COVID-19. Mor

Social Affairs Nov. 30, 2021

Korea University’s deliberation on the admission of the ex-justice minister’s daughter is to take more time, after her high school was barred from providing her school transcript record to the university. On Monday, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said it ordered the Hanyoung Foreign Language High School to withhold their transcript of ex-Justice Minister Cho Kuk’s daughter, Cho Min. Though Rep. Hwangbo Seung-hee of the main opposition People Power Party claimed

Social Affairs Nov. 30, 2021

The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education deleted a cartoon after it drew controversy for praising North Korea. The education office uploaded a cartoon on social media Friday, based on a story sent in by an elementary school teacher. The story was about what happened in class when they introduced what school life is like for North Korean students. In the cartoon, a teacher character talks about a typical school day for North Korean children, explaining that the students go home or eat lu

Social Affairs Nov. 29, 2021

The Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation will release the answers for this year’s Suneung, or college scholastic ability test, on Monday, after reviewing 1,014 complaints filed against this year’s exam questions. The institute, which organizes the standardized exam required for university application, will post the answers on its website on Monday at 5 p.m. The 1,014 complaints submitted more than double the 411 complaints made last year. The institute received objections

Social Affairs Nov. 28, 2021

Two months after President Moon Jae-in said South Korea should consider banning dog meat consumption, the government is to officially launch a consultative body to discuss the matter. 　 Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum held a meeting Thursday and announced the decision to launch a consultative body to discuss dog meat consumption. The body, consisting of representatives of concerned groups, experts and government officials, will hold discussions from December to April.　   “The controv

Social Affairs Nov. 25, 2021

The Democratic Party of Korea’s Lee Jae-myung on Wednesday pledged to increase support for small and medium-sized businesses, vowing to boost the pandemic-hit economy with “government-led investment” should he be elected president. On Wednesday, Lee announced his vision for small and medium-sized businesses at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business in Yeouido, western Seoul. As a factory worker-turned-politician, Lee has positioned himself as a labor-friendly figu

Politics Nov. 24, 2021