Education plays a central role in the development of society and fuels a virtuous circle of improvement and growth. Korea has built a well-educated workforce that has propelled the country to the forefront of the global knowledge economy. The importance of education for economic growth and well-being creates high demands on the system. School leaders, teachers and parents expect every student to succeed and students push themselves to exceed those expectations. Correspondingly, teacher recruitment, training and support are focused on building a profession where quality has traditionally been a priority.

The story of Korean education over the past 50 years is one of remarkable growth and achievement. Korea is one of the top performing countries in PISA and among those with the highest proportion of young people who have completed upper secondary and tertiary education. Korea is continuously exploring ways to improve its education system and has dramatically increased government investment in education over the last decade. Nevertheless, further reforms are needed to spur and sustain improvements. Rapid globalisation and modernisation are also posing new and demanding challenges to equip young people of today and tomorrow with skills relevant to the 21st century.

This chapter first introduces the purpose of the Strong Performers and Successful Reformers in Education series and the focus of this report on Korea. The second part describes the methodology employed for the report, including the framework for analysis and how PISA results are used in the analysis. Finally, the background of Korean education is summarised. Highlights on the education reform trajectory in Korea illustrate the shaping of the Korean education system.

Ever since the first PISA assessment was launched in 2000, Korea has remained at or near the top of international assessments of student learning. This chapter reviews Korean students’ performance in PISA 2009. It also examines some of the key issues that PISA results demonstrate, such as spending on education, the relationship between socio-economic background and performance, equity in learning opportunities, students’ attitudes towards learning, digital literacy and the learning environment.

This chapter looks into supplementary education, which is a notable feature of Korea and more generally of East Asia. It begins by defining and mapping out the participation in supplementary education as well as its main drivers. It also analyses the contribution of supplementary education to learning through additional inputs (e.g. time, materials) and different instruction methods and arrangements. The chapter argues that the impact of supplementary education on academic performance is still inconclusive, but that this form of education exacerbates socio-economic inequalities. It also provides evidence of its potential detrimental impact on student well-being and disrupt the normal functioning of schools. The chapter concludes by reviewing the main policy responses to supplementary education, which range from laissez-faire to implementing active policies limiting its extent or broadening access to supplementary education.

Less than three decades after the Cultural Revolution, when educated people, including teachers, were sent to rural areas to work in the field, parts of China, notably Shanghai, now rank among the best-performing countries and economies in PISA. This chapter looks at how the education systems in both Shanghai and Hong Kong-China have benefited from the realisation that economic growth depends on individuals who are adaptable, creative and independent thinkers. Education reforms in these two cities have focused on upgrading teaching standards and teacher education, introducing greater curricular choice for students, and giving local authorities more autonomy to decide the content of examinations.

Singapore has transformed itself from a developing country into a modern industrial economy in one generation. In the past decade, Singapore’s education system has remained at or near the top of most major world education rankings. This chapter examines how Singapore has achieved so much so quickly, focusing on the government’s ability to match skills supply with demand; the prevailing belief in the centrality of education; the emphasis on building teacher and leadership capacity to deliver reforms at the school level; and a culture of continuous improvement that benchmarks its own education practices against the best in the world.

Not only do Canadian students perform well in PISA, they do so despite their socio-economic status, first language or whether they are native Canadians or recent immigrants. Canada has achieved success within a highly federated system that accommodates a diverse student population. This chapter examines Canada’s success through an in-depth look at the education system of the country’s largest province, Ontario. It describes how the province combines a demand for excellence with extensive capacity-building, and fosters a climate of trust and mutual respect among all stakeholders.

Finland has been ranked as one of the top-performing countries in PISA for the past decade. During the same period, it has also been cited as one of the world’s most competitive economies. This chapter looks at some of the factors that contribute to this double success, including an emphasis on co-operation and networking, rather than competition; education policies that favour informality, flexibility and quick decision making; career guidance and work placements that bridge formal education and the world of work; and an emphasis on teaching skills and creativity.

Korea has one of the most educated workforces and is among the highest-performing countries in international educational assessments. Success in education has been the result of the strong capacity to foster rapid and remarkable improvements in the education system. This chapter summarises the key strengths of, and some policy challenges to, Korea’s education system. This chapter highlights ways to improve the education system, firstly by improving the transition from schoolto- work and the labour-market outcomes of education, focusing on quality and relevance of education. Secondly, improvement can be seen as a result of strengthening equity and social cohesion through education, in particular by addressing effective policy responses to Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) and supplementary education.