Korea to stop entrance exams for English preschools next year

Entrance exams for preschool English academies — also known as “English kindergartens” — will be banned as early as June next year under a new law aimed at curbing early childhood cram schooling.

Yellow school buses for English kindergartens are parked on a street in Gangnam District, southern Seoul on March 13. [YONHAP]

Entrance exams for preschool English academies — also known as “English kindergartens” — will be banned as early as June next year under a new law aimed at curbing early childhood cram schooling, with academies that violate the rule liable to face business suspensions.

However, tests used to place students in level-based classes after enrollment will still be allowed.

On Monday, the National Assembly’s Education Committee passed a partial amendment to the Act on the Establishment and Operation of Private Teaching Institutes and Extracurricular Lessons. The revision was spearheaded by Rep. Kang Kyung-sook of the Rebuilding Korea Party and others.

The revision comes amid growing criticism that “level tests” for young children applying to English academies are encouraging excessive early education and harming children's healthy development while placing additional financial pressure on parents.

The amendment explicitly bans entrance exams that categorize preschool applicants as “pass” or “fail” at private academies and tutoring centers that target children between the ages of three and six, before they begin formal education. Violators may face business suspension or be fined.

The new rule will take effect six months after the law is promulgated. Until now, there was no legal basis to regulate entrance exams directly. Authorities could only sanction academies for misusing the term “kindergarten” or charging excessive tuition fees.

The version of the amendment passed by the subcommittee was less strict than the original draft. Initially, the proposal also prohibited exams used for level placement after enrollment, but that provision was removed.

A banner showing information for admission to an English kindergarten is seen on a street in Gangnam District, southern Seoul on March 13. [YONHAP]

The Education Committee is scheduled to hold a full session on Tuesday to formally pass the bill and proceed with the next legislative steps.

According to the government’s 2024 trial survey on private education costs for preschoolers, conducted between July and September last year, 50.3 percent of three-year-olds, 68.9 percent of four-year-olds and 81.2 percent of five-year-olds were receiving private education.

The average monthly cost per child for preschool English academies was 1.545 million won ($1,050).

The National Human Rights Commission also raised concern in August, saying that extreme forms of early education such as “age seven entrance exams” — which originated in highly competitive education districts like Seoul’s Gangnam area — pose serious risks to children’s rights and urged the government to address the problem.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY HEO JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]