A progressive teachers’ group pledged Tuesday to fight the government’s order to expel fired teachers or risk losing its status as a full-fledged trade union.The Ministry of Employment and Labor on Monday sent a one-month ultimatum to the Korean Teachers and Educational Workers’ Union to change a contentious bylaw which allows dismissed teachers to be members.Unless the group complies with the order by Oct. 23, the ministry said it would be deprived of its rights as a trade union, including the

Authors of seven high school history textbooks, which have been accused of conservative bias along with another right-wing textbook, said Sunday they won’t comply with Education Ministry orders to revise their texts.Education Minister Seo Nam-soo said last week that the ministry will conduct an in-depth review of the eight recently licensed textbooks and order them to make revisions if necessary, after one of them, published by Kyohak Publishing Co., sparked ire for containing a conservative bia

The publisher of a controversial Korean history textbook said Thursday it would consider canceling publication amid growing criticism of its allegedly slanted depiction of the country’s modern history.“We’re looking at all possibilities, including the cancellation of publication,” an official from Kyohak Publishing Co. was quoted as saying by Yonhap News.“We’ll announce our official decision next week.”The announcement came amid progressive lawmakers and scholars’ request to cancel the authoriza

Kyohak Publishing Co. said Thursday it may not publish its controversial Korean history textbook amid protests over its content.The textbook authored by conservative scholars was accused of distorting historical facts, sparking disputes among progressives. Criticism of the book was especially focused on the depiction of Japan’s colonial rule (1910-1945), which described it as making a positive contribution to Korea’s modernization.An official from the Kyohak company said, “The president of the c

The government will simplify the state-managed Korean language proficiency test and increase the number of exams conducted every year in an effort to increase foreigners’ access to the Korean language and the test, authorities said Thursday.Test of Proficiency in Korean, a test for non-Korean natives interested in attending school and working in South Korea, measures one’s ability to understand Korean grammar, writing, listening and reading.Launched in 1997, TOPIK is offered four times a year in

The number of South Korea’s primary and secondary school students has fallen 3.6 percent over the past year amid the country’s chronically low birthrate, data showed Wednesday. According to the data by the education ministry, the number of elementary, middle and high school students combined came to 6.52 million as of April, down 240,000 from a year earlier.Elementary schools saw the largest decrease of 5.7 percent on-year from 2.95 million to 2.78 million, with the number of middle schoolers de

A new Korean history textbook authored by conservative scholars was approved for use in high schools Friday amid criticism over its allegedly slanted views on the country’s modern history. The National Institute of Korean History, the screening panel commissioned by the Ministry of Education, authorized eight Korean history textbooks, including a controversial book from Kyohak Publishing Co., to be used at high schools from next year.The decision was expected to prompt strong backlash from progr

Questions are mounting over a new state-administered English proficiency test as the government is reversing its plan to use it for college admission.The government initially sought to substitute the National English Ability Test for the English section of the College Scholastic Ability Test from 2016.But the Ministry of Education announced Tuesday it decided to abandon the plan due to systemic problems and concerns about rising private education costs.“We realized that it is technically impossi