Two prominent instructors, Hyun Woo-jin and Jo Jung-sik, who are accused of engaging in multi-million won 'question trading' with current teachers experienced in the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), are expected to testify at this year's national audit.
Recently, a court recognized Hyun's question trading as a 'private transaction' and acquitted him in the first trial. In response, the National Assembly's Education Committee plans to summon them to rigorously investigate the allegations of undermining public education and the private education cartel.
On September 18, the office of Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Moon-soo officially requested the attendance of the so-called 'top instructors' Jo Jung-sik and Hyun Woo-jin at the national audit regarding the question trading controversy.
The request stems from concerns that the practice of question trading disrupts the educational ecosystem. A representative from Kim's office stated, "The practice of question trading not only undermines the credibility of public education but also clearly drives students to large private academies. We have requested the testimony of Hyun and Jo to confirm this."
In March, MBC's 'PD Notebook' also delved into the issue of the private education cartel involving large academies and top instructors. Prosecutors view their actions of bribing teachers with experience in creating CSAT and mock exam questions as illicit trading and have brought the case to court, but the outcomes have been mixed.
A representative from Kim's office noted, "While the trial is ongoing, the instructors and large academies are actively responding to the lawsuit with the help of major law firms. They claim it is a 'private transaction' and received an acquittal in the first trial."
Indeed, at the end of last month, Hyun Woo-jin was acquitted in a first trial regarding allegations of violating the Anti-Graft Act by paying over 400 million won to current teachers for exam questions, with the court ruling it as a 'private transaction' that could not be considered a crime.
Kim's office has completed its own investigation to directly counter the instructors' claims of simple private transactions. It has reportedly confirmed that several teachers and professors, who have previously served as exam question writers or contributed to EBS textbooks, were deeply involved in question trading across various subjects.
Kim's office expressed its intent to thoroughly clarify the facts by bringing the two key instructors to the national audit, stating, "We aim to confirm the facts regarding the question trading. If their attendance at the national audit is finalized, the debate surrounding the court's acquittal rationale and the ethical responsibilities of the private education cartel is expected to take center stage."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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