Seoul Science High School for Gifted Students is an academy for gifted students (ages 15–18) interested in science. The school was established in 1989, and is located at
Jongno-gu
file:Korea-Seoul-Bosingak-05.jpg, Bosingak bell pavilion
Jongno District () is a district () in central Seoul, South Korea. It takes its name from a major local street, Jongno, which means "Bell Road".
Characteristics
Jongno District has been th ...
,
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
. It was established as one of the 'Science High Schools' in
Republic of Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its ea ...
. In 2009, it has become an 'Academy for Gifted Students' selected by the Ministry of Education of Korea. Now, it is one of the eight such academies in
Republic of Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its ea ...
.
The school is famous for its rigorous selection process in the search for the most gifted students among the top middle school graduate applicants from all over the nation.
Before the transition, there were about 180 students in each grade. The general program was a three-year course, but an early graduation program existed. About one-third of sophomore students graduated one year earlier than the typical high school students in Korea. After the transition to an 'Academy for Gifted Students', the number of the students admitted each year was reduced to approximately 125, and the curriculum was modified to fulfill the need and curiosity of students better. The new curriculum includes the following:
* Non-graded, credit-based graduation system
* Strengthening research activities to develop creativity
* Interdisciplinary curriculum
Purpose of establishment
The school was switched from a 'Science High School' to an 'Academy for Gifted Students' according to the procedures set out in Enforcement Decree of the Gifted Education Promotion Law Act Article 19. As stated in the article 12 of the same law, a person who meets the following conditions is defined as a gifted
* 1.Those who are recognized as having a certain level of talent or potential above a specific subject or in a specific field, according to the method of standardized intelligence test, thinking ability test, creative problem-solving ability test, or any other method of inspection, interview or observation.
* 2.Those who are recognized to have a certain level of talent or potential in the artistic and physical fields according to methods such as inspection, interview, or observation other than practical examination.
In accordance with Article 1 of the Gifted Education Promotion Law, the purpose of SSHS is to make early identification of talented people and early education of their talents and abilities which will develop the natural potential of the individual, promote self-realization of the individual, and contribute to the development of the nation and society.
Focusing on advanced courses
* Geared to the level and aptitude of each individual
* Various programs for whole-person education
* No obligation to complete the curriculum of general high schools
* Differentiated selection process
Student recruitment is done nationwide, and multiple applications to other special high schools are allowed.
Unlike general high schools, students study the‘required courses’in their 1st grade, and have an opportunity to choose‘advanced courses’in their 2nd and 3rd grades.
In order to achieve graduation, a student must fulfill 170 credits in overall course work, which consists of 140 credits in academic courses and 30 credits in research. Also, the student must fulfill at least 240 hours on special activities: 120 hours on group activity, and 120 hours of volunteer work. The university-level courses are accepted as Advanced Placement credit at
KAIST
The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) is a national research university located in Daedeok Innopolis, Daejeon, South Korea. KAIST was established by the Korean government in 1971 as the nation's first public, resear ...
,
POSTECH
Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) is a private research university in Pohang, South Korea.
History
POSTECH was established in 1986 in Pohang, Korea by POSCO, a steel company.
POSTECH hosted POSCO's Research Institute of ...
,
UNIST
Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, simply referred to as UNIST (), is one of the four public universities in South Korea which are dedicated to research in science and technology, along with KAIST, GIST, and DGIST. UNIST was f ...
,
GIST
In computing, GiST or Generalized Search Tree, is a data structure and API that can be used to build a variety of disk-based search trees. GiST is a generalization of the B+ tree, providing a concurrent and recoverable height-balanced search tr ...
, and
DGIST.
The school is famous for many national and international
Science Olympiad
Science Olympiad is an American team competition in which students compete in 23 events pertaining to various fields of science, including earth science, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering. Over 7,800 middle school and high school team ...
participants and medal winners. Usually, a quarter to a half of the Korean participants in the
International Science Olympiad
The International Science Olympiads are a group of worldwide annual competitions in various areas of the formal sciences, natural sciences, and social sciences. The competitions are designed for the 4-6 best high school students from each partic ...
s are from Seoul Science High School for Gifted Students.
Graduates from this school typically enter
Seoul National University,
KAIST
The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) is a national research university located in Daedeok Innopolis, Daejeon, South Korea. KAIST was established by the Korean government in 1971 as the nation's first public, resear ...
, and
POSTECH
Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) is a private research university in Pohang, South Korea.
History
POSTECH was established in 1986 in Pohang, Korea by POSCO, a steel company.
POSTECH hosted POSCO's Research Institute of ...
. Some students enroll to colleges abroad such as
MIT
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...
,
Caltech
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
,
UC Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...
,
Stanford,
Harvard, and
Cornell
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach a ...
. Many alumni have undertaken graduate studies at top institutions in Korea, U.S., and Europe after earning their bachelor's degrees.
The school motto is "Intelligence and Righteous Action" (예지의행, 叡智義行).
Most of the students at Seoul Science High School are male.
Curriculum
Grades
All classes and assessments at the school are operated on a credit system and students can choose the course you want, like universities and other gifted schools. However, all subjects are absolute assessments. That is, if the score is 90 or more, A+ is given. If the score is 85 or more, and less than 90, A0 is given. If the score is 80 or more, and less than 85, A− is given. Since then, grades have been divided into 5 points. In addition, all the arts and physical education semesters are pass/fail system, and receive a pass if the score exceeds 60 out of 100 points.
If the grade of any subject is less than B0 or Fail, you can apply for re-entry. Students can apply for a maximum of four times per student per class and up to B+ per class if they retake classes.
Enrollment
All courses fall into three categories: required courses with scheduled classes, required courses to choose when classes are taken, and elective courses.
Applications are accepted every June and November. Unlike college, this school receives a course enrollment and then schedules a timetable according to the number of students. A minimum of 10 credits and a maximum of 29 credits are allowed per semester. If the number of applicants for any subject is less than seven, the subject is discarded. Also one class enter up to 20 people. There is also a hierarchy between subjects. For example, to apply for Advanced Chemistry I, a student must have already completed Chemistry I, II, and III.
Since students do not enroll in the first grade, the credit is fixed (first semester 30 credits, second semester 29 credits). In the second year, there will be individual differences but generally most of students get 25–29 credits per semester. In the third grade, the individual differences become more pronounced. Usually, about 40 credits are allocated to the first and second semesters. There are about 6–15 hours between classes. However, the level of difficulty of the subject greatly increases and also they live in the burden of entrance examination.
Notable alumni
*
Kim Seung-chan,
scientist and 2009
Talent Medal of Korea honoree
*
Lee Jun-seok
See also
*
Gyeonggi Science High School
*
Daejeon Science High School
Daejeon Science High School for the Gifted (DSHS, ko, 대전과학고등학교) is located in Daejeon, South Korea. It was founded in 1984. The school is for gifted students with talents in mathematics and sciences.
The graduates of the school ...
*
Daegu Science High School
Daegu Science High School is a gifted school located in Daegu, South Korea. The school opened on October 26, 1987. As of 2020, it has 281 students. The school is for gifted students with talents in mathematics and sciences. The graduates of th ...
*
Gwangju Science High School
*
Korea Science Academy of KAIST
*
Hansung Science High School
*
Sejong Science High School
References
External links
Seoul Science High School website(English)
Alumni Website "천년바위"(Thousand Years Rock) (CUG)hn
{{Authority control
Science high schools in South Korea
Educational institutions established in 1989
High schools in Seoul
Boarding schools in South Korea
1989 establishments in South Korea