Every year in Korea, high school students hoping to attend college take the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), a day-long affair for which many students begin preparing since kindergarten.

The CSAT is given just one day per year (which just happened to be yesterday), so this particular day is treated almost like a solemn holiday in Korea. Stores are closed, traffic slows down, and flights are even delayed to lessen the noise (lest it distract the test takers). Parents line up on the streets to cheer on their children taking the test:

image source

Why is the CSAT such a big deal? Well, it can not only determine what university a student will attend, but it is the gateway to future job prospects, income, and social status in Korea.

The CSAT has several sections including a Korean language and literature, mathematics, and social and natural sciences, but there is also an English section. And the English section is notorious for being difficult even for native English speakers. Here are some questions from the English section from this year’s exam. Can you solve these?

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve read that the Korean method of teaching and testing English is flawed; they rely too much on memorization and scholarly works. In other words, they teach it like they would teach science. The students are taught academic English and are poorly prepared for using English in daily life. And if these questions are any indication of how English is taught in Korea, I would have to agree.

How did you do on these questions? I admit that I haven’t cracked a U.S. SAT practice book in a while — are current SAT questions like these? Do you think Korean students are played an unfair hand?

Via The Korea Times.