From Education to Lifelong Learning the Case of

From Education to Lifelong Learning: the Case of South Korea Gwang-Jo Kim World Bank 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 1

Outline § § § 5/20/2003 Education system Education and economy Achievements and problems Education reform for lifelong learning Conclusions WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 2

Country at a Glance (1) 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 3

Country at a Glance (2) § Area: 99. 3 K Sq. Km § Population: 47. 8 Million § GNI: US$ 477. 0 Billion (per capita GNI US$10, 013) (FY 02) § GDP growth: 9. 3% in 2000; 3% in 2001; 5. 8% in 2002 § Structure of the Economy (as % of GDP) - Agricultural: 4. 4% - Industry/manufacturing: 41. 4% - Services: 54. 1% § Unemployment: 3% 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 4

Education System § Socio-cultural context § § Tradition of Confucianism: High Regard for Learning & Zeal for Education § § Homogeneity of Korea Society: Prevalence of Egalitarian Ideal High Premium for Prestigious Colleges Formal Education § § Primary & Secondary: 10, 165 schools, 8 M students, 341 K teachers § § Primary (6)-Middle (3)-High Schools(3)-Universities & Colleges(4) Universities & Colleges: 358 institutions, 3. 3 M students, 60 K FT teachers Non-formal Education & Training § Public/private job training institutions; Private tutoring institutions, adult education centers; In-plant training institutions, etc. 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 5

Education Financing: Public Resources 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 6

Privatization of Education 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 7

Initial industrialization: 60’s~mid-70 s Economy Education • Take-off (‘ 60 s) • Heavy and chemical industries (’ 70 s) • Expansion and • Top 5 Exports: Ø ‘ 60: Iron, Tungsten, Silk, Anthracite, Cuttlefish(US$ 79) Ø ‘ 70: Textiles, Plywood, Wigs, Iron Ore, Electronics (US$ 249) 5/20/2003 upgrading of primary & lower secondary ed. • Emphasis on TVET (late 1960 s) * manpower planning WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 8

Accelerated industrialization: mid-70 s~80 s Economy Education • Adjustment from imitation to innovation: electronic industry • Top 5 Exports: • Expansion/upgrading of upper secondary & tertiary education • Strengthening of TVET: Vocational HS & Junior Colleges Ø 1980: Textiles, Electronics, Iron & Steel Products, Footwear, Ships (US $ 1, 598) 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 9

Entering Knowledge Economy: ‘ 90 s~ Economy Education • Competitiveness, Knowledge-based Economy • Top 5 Exports: • Quality enhancement for K-12 • Public investment in higher ed. (Brain Korea 21*) • Lifelong Learning Ø 1990: Electronics, Textiles, Footwear, Iron & Steel Products, Ships (US$ 5, 886) Ø 2000: Semiconductor, Motor Cars, Computers, Ships, Petroleum Products (US $ 9, 770) 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 10

Achievements § GER as of 2001 Ø Ø AVG School Years 14 Ø ’ 89, ’ 96 TIMSS 12 Population 8 6 4 '80 '75 '70 '66 '85 '90 5/20/2003 Ø 2001 PISA '95 § No skill mismatch until ‘ 90 s § Contributed to Age>50 industrialization & democratization 2 0 Tertiary (84%) § International assessment Age(20 -29) 10 Prim. (98%), Sec. (96%) 2000 4000 6000 8000 10, 000 GDP(Per Capita) WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 11

Problems § School education obsessed with “college-entrance” § Rote memorization, lack of creativity, foreign language § Inordinate private cost of education (3% of GDP) § “Education exodus”: 4 th largest among int’l students in US § Soaring training costs for business firm (as of 2002): Hyundai Motor Co. (US$ 6 M), Samsung Electronics (US$ 6. 4 M) § Deficiency of the system for LLL& KE § Low participation of adult population in LLL § Skills gap – creativeness, foreign language, computer skills, etc. § Lack of incentives for both learners and providers 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 12

1997 Financial Crisis & Reform § Foreign liquidity risk and a massive IMF bailout package § Macro-economic stability programs and restructuring: Ø Reprivatization of banking sector and SOEs Ø Political and administrative reform Ø Improvement of social safety net § GDP growth: from 5. 0 in 1997 to – 6. 7% in 1998 § Massive lay-off, labor flexibility: increase in part-timers Ø v unemployment rate: 8. 4 % in 1999 Cutting teachers’ retirement age from 65 to 62 (30 K teachers retired in 3 years) 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 13

Strategies for Lifelong Learning § Curriculum reform and VTET § Investment in e-learning § Governance reform § Redirecting resources 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 14

Curriculum Reform § Learner-oriented curriculum Ø Reduce subjects, common course up to 10 th grade Ø Diversify curriculum choice at 11 th and 12 th grades Ø Require ICT literacy as a basic competence § Transformation of out-dated VTET schools Ø Link to tertiary and labor market Ø “Specialized” high schools: design, graphic, ICT, cartoon, etc. 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 15

Investment in e-Learning § World’s most comprehensive Internet network (NY Times, May 5) Ø Initial investment by government (Info. Super Highway) Ø Lifting monopoly and competition § Incorporation of ICT in schools Ø All 10 K schools linked to Internet by 2000 (EDUNET) Ø Curriculum mandate: 10% of classroom time Ø ICT skill competence as requirement for HS graduation 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 16

Governance Reform § Legal Foundation for LLL Ø Ø Legislation of Lifelong Learning Act: Basis for Cyber Education Ø § Delivery of Curriculum Contents through Technology (’ 97) New recognition system: private qualification, Credit-Bank System Deregulation and Evaluation Ø School Autonomy: from PTA to School Council Ø Stakeholder Participation: Teachers’ Union, Parents’ Association Ø Devolution: Curriculum, Learning Materials, etc. Ø Performance Evaluation of Local Education Authorities Ø Coordination between Ministries: Ministry of Education and HRD 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 17

Redirecting resources § Cost-sharing bet. Central & Local Government Ø Local Ed. Grant: Block (Formula) Grant to LEAs since 1991 Ø Center vs Local Contributions: 25 to 75 § Reorienting investment priorities Ø Improving ECD, prim. & sec. quality – class size reduction Ø Strategic investment in tertiary ed. : BK 21 Project (IT, BT, etc. ) § Participation from private sector Ø 50% upper secondary, 80% tertiary Ø 10 % of Total Investment in ICT in Education since 1996 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 18

LLL Strategies Then - regulation oriented - youth (high school graduates) - rote-learning - egalitarian financing - standards/process - no competition 5/20/2003 Now - incentives oriented - all, including unemployed - creativeness, self-directed competitive funding qualifications/outcomes some competition WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 19

Some Results § Credit Bank System Ø 6, 773 obtained BA & Associate BA degrees in 2002 (34 in 1999) § 15 cyber univ. (35 K students) since 1997 § 3 Years accomplishment of BK 21 Ø Ø 5/20/2003 SCI papers: 3, 842 (’ 99) - 5, 698(’ 02) International Patent: 145(’ 99) - 174 (‘ 02) WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 20

Backlash § Top-down reform: “Reform fatigue”, sabotaging (teachers unions), interest grid-lock § “School failure”, persistent private tutoring, highstake college entrance exam § Lack of policy coordination § Partnership between public and private sectors 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 21

Conclusions § End of state-led reform § Coherent LLL policy framework § Coordination, concerted approach § Incentive-driven system and participation 5/20/2003 WEM 2003, Lisbon, Portugal 22