A group of current high school teachers and private academy instructors who leaked College Scholastic Ability Test mock exam booklets and answer explanations were caught. The academy instructors used the diverted test papers and explanations to promote their academies.
The anti-corruption investigation unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Metropolitan Investigation Division said on the 22nd it had referred three current teachers and 43 private academy instructors to prosecutors on charges of violating the Higher Education Act.
It said a total of 46 people, including three current high school teachers and 43 academy instructors, were referred for opening sealed envelopes containing academic achievement evaluation and College Scholastic Ability Test mock evaluation test papers and answer/explanation sheets and leaking them.
They are accused of leaking and distributing the test papers before the disclosure time during 14 rounds of CSAT mock evaluations from June 2019 to June last year. Under the Higher Education Act, CSAT mock evaluation questions are to be disclosed after the end of each session, based on the schedule for test-takers with severe visual impairments.
Among the suspects, Teacher A and academy instructor B, who were graduate school senior and junior, allegedly agreed in advance to leak nationwide joint academic achievement evaluation and CSAT mock evaluation test papers and are also accused of opening sealed envelopes of test papers and answer/explanation sheets sealed by city and provincial office of education officials on four occasions from Apr. 2022 to June last year (opening official secrets).
According to the police investigation, the suspects knew that leaking and distributing the test papers was illegal, but took it lightly because the mock evaluations are not reflected in school records.
The leaked test papers and other materials were used for academy instructors' explanation lectures. Some instructors formed groups through online communities or social media (SNS), systematically obtained the test papers in advance, then produced explanation sheets to attract students.
A lead emerged when the Seoul education superintendent requested an investigation in June last year into the distribution of nationwide joint academic achievement evaluation test papers via SNS. Based on an analysis of chat room conversations, police identified A and B as the initial leakers, then conducted a forensics analysis of seized items and apprehended additional distributors.
Police said that although the timing for storing, managing, and disclosing CSAT mock exam test papers and answer/explanation sheets is specified in detail in the implementation guidelines, there were cases where even test administrators did not know.
Police also said there is no particular administrative sanction mechanism for academies where test papers and the like were leaked, and decided to request system improvements from the Ministry of Education and city and provincial offices of education.
A Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency official said, "Even though there were cases in 2012 and 2022 where current teachers and academy officials colluded to leak CSAT mock evaluation test papers and were caught, moral numbness persists and the practice has not been eradicated," adding, "We will respond strictly to illegal acts and establish a society where fairness is guaranteed."