The Korean Curriculum in Primary and Lower Secondary Schools

The Korean national curriculum is revised periodically to reflect such things as newly raised demands in different educational fields, the emerging needs of a rapidly changing society, and new frontiers in academic disciplines. Curriculum standards serve as the basis for educational content and textbook development.

The Korean governmental authority revised the national curriculum in 2009—the 2009 Revised National Curriculum (referred to in this chapter as the 2009 curriculum)—to deal with Korea’s continuously evolving national and social needs; the revisions were finalized in 2011. The 2009 curriculum was implemented in elementary schools in Grades 1 and 2, in 2013; in Grades 3 and 4, in 2014; and in Grades 5 and 6, in 2015. At the same time, the 2009 curriculum was implemented in middle schools in Grade 7, in 2013; in Grade 8, in 2014; and in Grade 9, in 2015.5 Another curriculum revision was conducted for all grades in 2015—the 2015 Revised National Curriculum—which will be implemented gradually starting with Grades 1 and 2, in 2017.

The fourth graders who participated in TIMSS 2015 studied under the 2007 Revised National Curriculum (referred to in this chapter as the 2007 curriculum) in Grades 1 to 3, and under the 2009 curriculum in Grade 4. The eighth graders who participated in TIMSS 2015 studied under the Seventh National Curriculum (referred to in this chapter as the seventh curriculum) in Grades 1 to 3, under the 2007 curriculum in Grades 4 to 6, and under the 2009 curriculum in Grades 7 and 8.

The 2009 curriculum consists of common and elective parts. One of the major changes in the 2009 curriculum is the implementation of a grade band system, which divides the pre-existing nine grades into four groups as follows: Group 1, comprising Grades 1 to 2; Group 2, comprising Grades 3 to 4; Group 3, comprising Grades 5 to 6; and Group 4, comprising Grades 7 to 9. Under the grade band system, curriculum subject content may be taught over multiple grade levels, rather than in a single year.6