Formation of Question Production Teams and Systematic Sales
Some Teachers Used Accounts Under False Names
Sold Questions Used in Internal School Exams
The National Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency announced on the 17th that a total of 126 people (24 cases) were booked and 100 were sent to prosecution following the investigation of the private education cartel case.
In July 2023, the police received a request for investigation from the Ministry of Education regarding Sidae Injae and MegaStudy, and obtained internal intelligence that active teachers were selling exam questions to private education companies and receiving large sums of money. They began a pre-booking investigation. The subjects booked include 96 active teachers (including those who retired after the crime), 25 private education company and instructor affiliates, and 5 others.
Among the active teachers, 47 created College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) questions from 2019 to 2023 and sold them to private education companies and instructors. The total amount they received was 4.86 billion KRW, with a maximum of 260 million KRW per individual. For CSAT preparation, a single question was sold for 100,000 to 500,000 KRW, and a set of 20 questions was sold for 2 million to 10 million KRW. The Act on the Prohibition of Improper Solicitation and Graft (Improper Solicitation and Graft Act) generally prohibits public officials from receiving money or valuables.
In particular, it was confirmed that a question production team composed of active teachers with multiple experiences as CSAT question setters and reviewers was formed, and they systematically sold questions to many private education companies and instructors. Mr. A, who has experience as a CSAT reviewer, led a team consisting of 8 active teachers and several part-time workers. This organization produced 2,946 questions and sold them to private education companies and instructors, receiving approximately 620 million KRW. Some teachers received payment for the questions in accounts under false names rather than their own.
In the case of question number 23 in the 2023 CSAT English exam, it was confirmed that the passage was identical to one included in a mock exam textbook by a certain private academy instructor, and that the textbook of a major private academy instructor was omitted without any particular reason. The Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE) has purchased various commercial textbooks, including private academy mock exams, to check for duplication of past questions. The person in charge stated that this was due to inexperience as it was their first time handling the task.
The police analyzed the account details, communication records, and email records of the question setters involved, instructors and textbook question setters, and KICE personnel responsible for duplication verification and appeal review, but found no suspicious connections. However, it was revealed that participants in writing and reviewing EBS textbooks violated confidentiality agreements by leaking textbooks externally before official publication; active teachers privately created and sold questions to private education companies and instructors; and KICE violated manual regulations by dismissing appeals without proper review.
Five active teachers each set questions for their respective high schools’ internal exams using questions they had previously sold to specific private education companies and instructors. When creating internal exam questions for subjects, it is strictly prohibited to copy and paste commercially available reference books or previously used questions to ensure objective evaluation of students.
Additionally, the investigation confirmed cases including: active teachers leaking their participation history as CSAT mock evaluation reviewers during question sales; a current university admissions officer receiving payment after privately tutoring examinees; active teachers leaking internal admission results of their high schools; private education company affiliates falsely claiming experience as CSAT question setters to obstruct publishers’ publication work; active teachers producing and selling questions using information learned as mock evaluation reviewers; and active teachers participating as CSAT (mock evaluation) question setters while concealing their authorship of commercial test preparation books.
A police official stated, "We will continue to respond strictly to illegal activities of the private education cartel," and added, "We will actively support the establishment of effective institutional improvements to ensure fairness in university admissions procedures and the establishment of a sound educational order."
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