Yuhyun Kim

School starts in March Two semesters First semester begins in March and ends in mid-July Second semester begins in late August and ends in mid-Feb Summer vacation from July to August Winter vacation from Dec to early Feb

From 7 to 13 Korean, math, science, social studies, fine arts, English, P.E., music, and ethics. Most subjects are covered by homeroom teacher Sometimes, depending on school, English and P.E. are taught by specialized teachers. Start learning English in the third year of elementary school Most students start learning English earlier through private tutoring.

From 13 to 16 Uniforms Strict rules and regulations No make up, piercing, dying hair Teachers move around from classroom to classroom Students spend most of the day in the same homeroom with the same classmates About 45 students in one homeroom Unlike elementary school, students have different teachers for each subject.

Most middle school students have six periods a day. (8:30am-3pm) Math, English, Korean, social studies, science, history, P.E., music, art, and ethics. Japanese/ computer/ Kanji (Chinese character) About 45min classes Saturday As of 2008, students attend school from Monday to Friday, and have a half-day every 1st, 3rd, and 5th Saturday of the month. Saturday lessons usually include Club Activity (CA) lessons, where students may participate in extracurricular activities.

From 16 to 19 Public, private, and specialized schools (science, foreign languages, and art) Korean Minjok Leadership Academy (KMLA) Many students of KMLA have received awards in international competition/Olympiads, in science, mathematics, debating and philosophy average SAT scores for students enrolled in the international program in 2008 were critical reading, 654; math 786; writing 697 (total, 2137) Approximately half of the graduates enroll in foreign universities, mostly in the United States.

Once a year From 8am to 6pm Korean, math, social studies, science, English, and secondary foreign language. Number of tests they take vary depending on students, but most students take about 7 subjects

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSKpALL tEMI

SKY- top 3 universities in Korea Seoul National University Korea University Yonsei University

Ages vary because a lot of students who perform below their expectations would take a year off after graduating high school to score higher on the entrance exam. 4 years Relatively easy Lots of club activities, Unlike the US, it is very hard to change ones major.

English is crucial Many companies require English skills Mother and her children move to a English speaking country, while the father remains in Korea Private tutorings after school TOEFL, TOEIC, TEPS, etc.

Very different educational system

Memorization Lack creativity Intense pressure on studying Educated to pay attention Lecture based classes http://4brevard.com/ch oice/international-testscores.htm

Not a lot of pressure on studying Educated to think critically Cant concentrate Discussion based classes