Seoul to set new rules on textbooks’ political neutrality

The Education Ministry said on Sunday that it would devise a set of guidelines on the political neutrality of textbooks.

The ministry’s move comes after controversy arose over literary works by an opposition politician that appear in middle-school textbooks.

A team of private experts and education officials will start researching by the end of this month on ways to improve the current textbook-screening system. It aims to formulate guidelines based on which the state-run textbook review board will decide on the appropriateness of an author, especially a living one, and a specific work of his or hers.

“The recent incident about the screening process for textbooks proved that we need standards to judge the neutrality of education,” an official said.

A final outcome is expected only after the presidential election scheduled in December since the issue requires social consensus, the official added.

Controversy flared up after the state-run Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation recommended in late June that publishers of middle-school textbooks remove or modify poems and essays written by Do Jong-hwan. Do, a renowed poet, became a lawmaker for the Democratic United Party, the main opposition party, in April’s general elections.

The institute later canceled the recommendation in the face of strong public criticism.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)