South Korean Schools Turn to Classic Texts to Counter AI and Rote Learning
In a classroom at Toegye public elementary school in Chuncheon, about 50 miles east of Seoul, a discussion on classic literature leads directly into modern ethics. Teacher Han Kyoung-min guides a seminar on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, asking students, “Is the Frankenstein monster human?”
Student Ma Yeonwoo suggests the creature is a human being without a soul, before the debate shifts toward artificial intelligence. Ma argues that AI isn’t human because, despite its intelligence, it lacks creativity. Rather than listening to a lecture, students rely solely on their assigned reading, personal reasoning, and peer debate to explore these complex concepts.
Rethinking Pedagogy in an AI Era
The seminar follows the Great Books educational framework popularized by St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland. Under this model, there are no lectures, traditional majors, or elective courses. Students are discouraged from searching the internet for quick answers, relying instead on primary texts and discussion.
This alternative approach comes as South Korea grapples with changing student habits and shifting test results. Data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development shows that 51% of South Korean students use AI chatbots to study at least once a week. Meanwhile, international PISA assessments recorded a post-COVID decline in reading scores, ending decades where East Asian students consistently outpaced their peers in North America.
Educators argue that intense pressure to pass college entrance exams—a stress that extends down to pre-K levels—has long driven families to private cram schools or foreign institutions. Lee Yonghwa, an English literature professor at Incheon National University, launched the country’s first Great Books initiative at his campus in 2019 after graduating from St. John’s College.
“We all feel that this system leaves students with no time to read and think,” Lee said, noting that heavy reliance on technology has eroded basic analytical skills. He warned that students collecting facts primarily from AI struggle to evaluate the quality or accuracy of the information generated.
A Growing Regional Network
Local leaders are actively seeking alternative approaches to traditional schooling. Chuncheon Mayor Yook Dong-han noted his own experience in the national education system motivated him to pursue changes. Last year, Chuncheon’s city government formed a formal academic partnership with St. John’s College to expand discussion-based learning.
The initiative has expanded rapidly across the country. According to Lee, South Korea’s Great Books program now encompasses 120 university students, roughly 770 younger pupils, and 40 teachers currently undergoing training.
Participants read foundational works by Aristotle, Euclid, and Shakespeare, as well as modern literature by Korean authors such as Nobel laureate Han Kang. At a seminar at Chuncheon High School, student Shin Donghyun read from Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 Letter from Birmingham Jail, leading into a discussion on civic duty and legal ethics.
Lee noted that high school participants drew direct parallels between King’s writings on just laws and recent domestic politics, including the 2024 political crisis where citizens and lawmakers blocked former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s attempt to declare martial law. City officials plan to continue expanding teacher training to support additional seminars across local public schools.