South Korean students sue government for ending exam 90 seconds too soon

A group of South Korean students has taken legal action against the government, alleging that their college entrance examination concluded 90 seconds earlier than scheduled, as reported by BBC.

Each student is seeking 20 million won (around US$15k)in damages, equivalent to the cost of a year's tuition for a retest. Their lawyer argues that this timing error had a widespread impact on the overall performance of the students.

The college admission exam, widely known as Suneung, stands out as an arduous eight-hour test marathon encompassing various subjects.

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This examination, considered one of the toughest globally, plays a pivotal role in determining university placements, job prospects, and even future relationships.

To aid students' concentration, the government implements measures such as closing airspace and delaying the stock market opening during the annual exam.

More than half a million students participated in the Suneung exam this year, and the results were released on December 8. The lawsuit, filed by a group of 39 students, highlights a crucial incident during the Korean language test in the capital Seoul.

The bell rang prematurely, prompting supervisors to collect answer sheets despite student protests. Although the mistake was acknowledged before the next session, only one and a half minutes were granted back during the lunch break.

How does it impact students?

The mishap left students emotionally distressed, impeding their ability to focus on the remaining sections of the exam. Some students even left the examination hall. Attorney Kim Woo-suk, representing the students, asserted that education authorities had not issued an apology for the incident. Public broadcaster KBS quoted officials attributing the error to a misreading of time by the supervisor at the specific test center.

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This lawsuit echoes a similar case in April where students received compensation for an early bell during the 2021 Suneung exam. Notably, in 2012, a Chinese man faced legal consequences, receiving a one-year suspended sentence for prematurely ringing the bell during the national college entrance exam in Hunan province.

(With inputs from agencies)