At a classroom demonstration event held at an elementary school in South Korea, students are learning division in math using the AI Digital Textbook (AIDT). (Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 22 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s National Assembly Judiciary Committee on Monday passed a controversial bill that would strip artificial intelligence (AI) digital textbooks of their official status as “textbooks,” reclassifying them instead as general “educational materials.”
The move marks a significant challenge to one of former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s flagship education initiatives.
The amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act clarifies the legal definition of textbooks and creates a separate category for educational resources. Under the revision, AI textbooks can be used in schools only after being reviewed and approved by school management committees — no longer enjoying the blanket authority previously granted under the “textbook” designation.
AI textbooks had been introduced this year as part of the Yoon administration’s push to modernize classrooms. The materials were rolled out in math, English, and computer science courses for third and fourth-grade elementary students, as well as first-year middle and high school students.
The ruling Democratic Party (DP), which holds a parliamentary majority, initially passed the bill unilaterally last year, but it was vetoed by then-acting president and finance minister Choi Sang-mok. On Monday, the DP, joined by the Rebuilding Korea Party, reintroduced and successfully passed the revised legislation in committee — despite vocal opposition from lawmakers in the conservative People Power Party, who criticized it as an attempt to politically undermine Yoon’s legacy.
The bill is widely expected to pass the full National Assembly vote as early as Tuesday. If enacted, experts predict the already modest adoption rate of AI textbooks — currently at about 30 percent — will likely decline even further in the upcoming school term or by next year.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
