Education in Zhenia

Education in Zhenia is and  managed by the Ministry of Education and, in terms of selecting members of government and partially the higher levels of education, the Jungchuwon. The scope of education in Zhenia includes mandatory schooling and the primary and secondary levels of education, professional and tertiary education, technical institutes and academic research. The Constitution states that all Zhenian citizens and residents of appropriate age must undergo a total of 12 years of mandatory primary and secondary education, while further legislation makes the failure to enroll Zhenian citizens and residents of appropriate age into the education system a criminal offense, with the exception of some in "inevitable circumstances". Excluding such cases, mandatory primary and secondary education in Zhenia is done through both and, both of which receive varying levels of government funding.

Regardless of ethnicity, Zhenian is the primary language in the education system nationwide since the Empire of Zhenia; however, a selected number of government-approved International Schooling Institutes (ISI), although they are institutions mostly for foreigners and foreign-born residents, can select a language other than Zhenian upon which the curriculum would be laid out. Other languages in use by ethnic minorities, including Haedongese, Yemegese and Balakhaat, are taught as second or third languages, mostly in the secondary level of education. Jinmun remains the primary script used in the nation's education system as a whole, although Seomun, the classic Zhenian script, is taught alongside the curriculum towards the end of primary education.

Structured around meritocratic principles of "allowing one's set of options proportionate to his merits", the Zhenian education system is mostly centered around increasing the academic and vocational capacity of the student; this, coupled with the militant social drive for ascendancy via education, has resulted in a society-wide feverish drive and fierce competition for the most selective institutions in the nation, also known as "Zhenian fever" coined by international media. While it has been one of the leading factors that has resulted in Zhenia becoming one of the top-performing nations in the world academically, the Zhenian education system has also been criticized in recent years due to its extensive use of hindering  and  on the educational curriculum, as well as the educational pressure and competition to enter the most selective institutions in the nation that has brought about social problems.

School Grades
In preliminary, primary and secondary levels of education, school years in Zhenia consist of three, with the first one running from mid-January to mid-April, the second one running from mid-April to late July, and the third one running from late August to mid-December. School levels are mostly divided by age brackets, with each grade corresponding to an age bracket. Each school level after primary school is separated by the Academic Aptitude Test (Zhenian: 학문적성평가), the scores of which are factored into the student's future choices for the schools in the succeeding level.

Primary Education
As the beginning phase of mandatory education stated in law, primary education in Zhenia consists of a total of six years starting at ages 6-7, all of which is spent in (Zhenian: 초등학교). Alternative methods, such as, is granted only "in exceptionally inevitable circumstances" that make the child unable to attend mainstream schools; even in such cases, the child is ultimately subject to the Secondary Scholastic Ability Test (SSAT; 중등학업능력평가) taken towards the end of the sixth year of primary school, after which the child can either choose to remain being homeschooled or attend mainstream schools. With the exception of a small number of private schools, there are in principle no further costs for primary education in the nation, although miscellaneous costs for various purposes, such as field trips, should be covered at the student's side. Although general guidelines for setting learning standards in primary education, including the contents of the SSAT, is dictated by the federal government, provincial governments can self-regulate the specific details accordingly.

Of the six years of primary education, the first four years of primary school are centered in providing basic coverage in Zhenian, mathematics, science and Elyrian, the of the international community, as well as social studies, Civics and Moral Education, arts and crafts, music, physical education and health education. There are, however, also grade-specific subjects, such as 'Introduction to School', an introductory course for school life. While almost all of these subjects, excluding grade-specific subjects, continue on throughout the six years of primary education, the level of their contents differ by the grade. While most subjects are covered by the class teacher, some specialized subjects, such as music and physical education, are covered by a separate specialist.

The fifth and sixth years of primary school are regarded more academically important, due to the fact that grades during these years are taken into account alongside SSAT results in deciding the student's secondary schools. While a vast majority of the subjects covered in the first four years of primary education are also covered, additional subjects, including Seomun (classic Zhenian script) and a choice of one additional Zhenian language (, Yemeg or Balakhaat), are introduced in the final two years of primary school. Various subjects in advanced levels, such as algebra and the sciences, are also available in the fifth and sixth years of primary school, which can be factored into one's secondary school admissions as extra credit.

Towards the end of the sixth year of primary school, all students are subject to the federal-level Secondary Scholastic Ability Test (SSAT) at September. After the exam, students are able to choose a secondary school of their choice, factoring in both their grades in the fifth and sixth years and their SSAT exam scores, as well as extra credits (if any); they are ultimately assigned to a secondary school by early November.

Secondary Education
Secondary education in Zhenia primary consists of two levels of schools - intermediate and high schools. It is during the secondary school years in which students enter separated education tracks depending on their academic and technical merits: they are placed in different educational tracks - Academic, Technical, Special and Autonomous - primarily according to their grades in the fifth and sixth grades, as well as their SSAT results upon entering the seventh grade. The difference in curriculum between intermediate schools is less than the difference observed in high schools, as specialization increases proportionate to the school level. Intermediate and high schools are separated by the AAT-I exam, the first of the two Academic Aptitude Tests (AAT; 학문적성평가), taken at the end of the ninth grade; while it is theoretically possible for students to transfer to another level via their AAT-I exam results, such transfers in practice does not happen too often in the system.

"Academic" secondary schools are among the most common of secondary schools, with its curriculum primarily consisting of various academic subjects in preparation for the AAT-I and AAT-II exams at the end of the ninth and twelfth grades respectively. Subjects covered in academic secondary schools, both intermediate and high, include Zhenian, mathematics, Elyrian, the sciences, social studies, health education, music and art, home economics and physical education, with the curriculum being similar across almost all academic secondary schools in the province. Secondary schools can in principle offer elective programs and subjects, such as, debating courses and computer graphic software.

"Special" secondary schools are schools specialized in certain fields, including science, foreign languages, international studies and art, with the primary objective of fostering gifted students in such fields. Existing at the form of both intermediate and high schools, special secondary schools can organize their curriculum more towards their field of specialty and receive significantly larger amounts of government funding, with some science high schools, for instance, having university-level laboratories in their campuses. Due to their education being closely linked towards being admitted to and studying in some of the nation's most prestigious tertiary institutions, their weighted SSAT cut-off points are often among the highest in the nation.

"Autonomous" secondary schools, relatively a new form of secondary schools in the nation, are granted higher levels of autonomy than other schools; like special secondary schools, they can organize their curriculum more autonomously and in accordance to their educational objectives as long as they fulfill the minimal requirements of the Ministry of Education. Autonomous schools are usually subject to relatively high tuition fees; in return, autonomous secondary schools are allowed to offer various academic and preparatory programs not seen in most academic secondary schools.

Academic Aptitude Test
The Academic Aptitude Test (Zhenian: 학문적성평가) refers to the two exams, AAT-I and AAT-II, marking the end of intermediate and high school respectively. Both AAT-I and AAT-II scores are directly factored into the student's admissions into higher levels of education, alongside the student's during his/her school years.

Higher Education
Higher education in Zhenia is an optional stage of formal learning after secondary education, mostly done through one of the 2,451 four-year universities or colleges and two-/three-year technical institutes throughout the nation. As of 2020, around 57% of the nation's students between ages 18 and 28 enroll in or have graduated from universities or colleges, while another 17% of students in the same age bracket attend technical institutes, often in tandem with their employment.

Universities
Universities are the most traditional routes in which Zhenians pursue their tertiary education, historically regarded as the most prestigious form of higher education in the nation. Due to the Zhenian cultural sentiment of regarding a successful academic career - specifically, enrolling and graduating from the most prestigious academic institutions - as an epitome of success, competition for university spots, especially for the most coveted spots in the nation's most prestigious institutions, is extremely fierce. Many of the most prestigious institutes are key offering bachelor's, master's, professional and doctoral degrees; some of the most coveted include the University of Daedo, Changan Institute of Technology, Samsan University and the University of Zhuhae.

University admissions in Zhenia depend on an array of factors, although weighted and rankings, as well as the student's AAT-II scores, take up a considerable portion of such factors. Some universities and certain departments can also take independent exams apart from the AAT-II to assess its set of prospective students. In recent years, however, the tendency for most universities is to evaluate the student's overall portfolio, including volunteer experience, extracurricular activities, school and national awards, letters of recommendation and work portfolios.

Technical Institutions
Although a socially less desired path than universities in Zhenia, technical institutions remain as a viable option for those who are either already in the workforce or have chosen to take alternative paths for higher education.