Less than Half a Month Before School Starts, 17% of Schools Nationwide Have Adopted AI Textbooks

Only 6.4% of Schools in Seoul Have Finalized Adoption... Daegu at 50% vs. Sejong at 1%
Ministry of Education: Adoption Rate Rises to 30% When Including 'Planned Selection'
In 6 Out of 17 Regional Education Offices, No Schools Have Passed the School Operation Committee

As of next month, only 17% of schools that have autonomously adopted the 'AI Digital Textbook' for certain grades in elementary, middle, and high schools have completed the adoption process.

According to the office of Go Min-jung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, out of 11,785 elementary, middle, and high schools nationwide, 2,027 schools (17.2%) had finalized the adoption of AI textbooks as of the 14th, after passing the review by the School Operation Committee (Hakunwi), which decides on textbook adoption.

In Seoul, 84 out of 1,304 schools (6.4%) completed adoption, while Gyeonggi (31.8%), Chungbuk (42.2%), Daejeon (7.9%), Jeonbuk (21.6%), Jeju (42.3%), Gangwon (32.7%), Gyeongbuk (24.4%), and Daegu (52.1%) showed higher rates. Adoption rates were low in Sejong (1.0%) and Gyeongnam (0.3%).

New semester textbooks are finally confirmed by the school principal after passing the review of the Subject Council and the School Operation Committee. If the scope is expanded to include schools that have not yet gone through the Hakunwi but have announced they 'plan' to select AI textbooks, the adoption rate rises to 33.6%. The Ministry of Education's mention of an 'adoption rate above 30%' includes these 'planned adoption' schools.

In this case, seven cities and provinces?Gyeonggi (43.5%), Chungbuk (44.7%), Jeju (68.3%), Gangwon (48.5%), Gyeongbuk (45.5%), Busan (35.0%), and Daegu (98.3%)?exceeded the national average adoption rate. The remaining ten regions, including Seoul (24.4%), Incheon (20.6%), Chungnam (23.5%), Daejeon (19.8%), Sejong (7.6%), Jeonnam (10.0%), Jeonbuk (26.7%), Gwangju (11.8%), Gyeongnam (10.3%), and Ulsan (14.8%), fell below the average.

In six regions?Incheon, Chungnam, Jeonnam, Gwangju, Busan, and Ulsan?no schools passed the Hakunwi review. This means that no schools have completed AI textbook adoption or that such data has not been identified. Only schools that announced 'planned selection' were counted, and with the semester opening just two weeks away, it is expected to be tight to complete the Hakunwi review and finalize AI textbook adoption.

The Ministry of Education explains that the AI textbook adoption rate is in the 30% range. On the 18th, Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education, stated during a National Assembly Education Committee briefing, "As of February 14, about 30% of schools have either completed or plan to select AI digital textbooks." However, the detailed data submitted to the National Assembly lacked the basis for this 30% figure, prompting lawmakers to request additional information. A Ministry of Education official said, "We are continuously monitoring and will disclose the data once official statistics are prepared."