Jeongeup High School Where the College Scholastic Ability Test Was Held
Bell Rang 10 Minutes Early Due to Teacher's Mistake
"Teacher in Charge Confused"... Examinees in Chaos and Confusion
A bell-ringing error occurred at a high school in Jeongeup, Jeonbuk, where the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) was held. Due to a mistake by the broadcasting room teacher, the announcement bell rang 10 minutes earlier than scheduled, causing confusion among the test takers. As a result, the exam site added one extra minute to the test time.
On the morning of the 14th, when the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) was conducted, examinees were waiting for the exam to start at Dongsan High School in Dong-gu, Incheon. This image is unrelated to any specific content by the reporter. Photo by Yonhap News.
On the 15th, Jeonju MBC reported, "At around 3:50 p.m. the previous day, an announcement was made at the Jeongju High School CSAT test site in Jeongeup, Jeonbuk, signaling 5 minutes before the end of the Social Studies test." However, the Social Studies test was not scheduled to end at 3:55 p.m. but at 4:05 p.m. The preliminary bell, which was supposed to ring at 4:00 p.m., was mistakenly rung 10 minutes early due to the staff's error.
Some test takers protested, saying, "Isn't this an announcement error?" and the test site reportedly fell into confusion. One test taker who was at the site at the time said, "Test takers, including myself, were flustered because of the incorrect preliminary bell. Our mental state collapsed."
The school then made an announcement one minute later, stating, "A bell-ringing error occurred," and added one minute to the test time. A representative from the Jeongeup Office of Education said, "The broadcasting room teacher pressed the bell button at the wrong time due to confusion. An unacceptable bell-ringing accident occurred," and demanded an explanation from the school.
Bell-ringing errors during the CSAT are not uncommon. Since the exam is crucial in determining university admissions overall, related legal disputes are frequently seen. At Gyeongdong High School in Seoul, where the 2024 CSAT was held, the bell signaling the end of the first period rang about one minute early, leading 39 test takers to file a lawsuit against the state seeking 20 million KRW in damages per person.
During the 2021 CSAT, a bell-ringing error also occurred at Deokwon Girls' High School in Seoul. At that time, the bell operator accidentally adjusted the bell time using a mouse wheel, causing the bell to ring about 3 minutes before the end of the first selected subject in the fourth period of the Social Studies section. Subsequently, eight students and their parents who took the CSAT at Deokwon Girls' High School filed a damage claim against the state, Seoul city, and the bell operator. In the second trial ruling issued in April 2023, the court ordered the state to pay 7 million KRW in consolation damages per test taker.
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