The Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Office of Education will abolish its guideline requiring that at least 70 percent of elementary school achievement standards be reflected in student assessments, through revisions to the "2026 Elementary School Student Assessment Basic Plan" and the "Elementary School Academic Record Management Implementation Guidelines," effective Aug. 1.
Superintendent Kang Sam-young said the practice of conducting formulaic assessments and generating unnecessary administrative work — driven by a uniform evaluation standard with no clear basis — must be corrected. "Under teachers' expertise and accountability, we will look more closely at student learning and provide targeted support where students fall short based on assessment results," he said. He added that Gangwon's education system would respect teacher professionalism and develop strong foundational academic skills, including literacy and numeracy, through responsible assessment and feedback.
The provincial education office said the principle of the 2022 revised national curriculum is not to assess only 70 percent of achievement standards. Instead, teachers are expected to professionally restructure the full set of curriculum standards to suit each student's developmental level and the way the curriculum is being implemented, then assess the necessary standards using appropriate methods.
The office said the purpose of assessment is not assessment itself but confirming student learning and addressing gaps. It plans to support more thorough individual student feedback and supplementary instruction following assessments.
The revisions cover three areas: deletion of the guideline mandating that 70 percent of elementary achievement standards be reflected in assessments; stronger analysis of student assessment results and more tailored feedback; and deeper integration of curriculum, instruction and assessment centered on achievement standards.
An office official said the requirement to assess at least 70 percent of subject-specific achievement standards is a benchmark for which clear policy grounds or research precedents are difficult to find even at the national level, and that schools have consistently raised concerns that it increases administrative burdens and encourages formulaic assessments aimed at meeting evaluation quotas.
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