President Yoon Suk Yeol instructed the education minister Thursday to exclude material that is not learned at school from the annual college entrance exam, the minister said.

Lee Ju-ho said he received the instruction while briefing Yoon on education reforms, one of the top three reforms pushed by the administration, along with labor and pensions.

"Set problems so that they can be solved just by diligently studying during school classes," Yoon said, according to Lee, who briefed reporters at the presidential office.

Yoon also instructed the government to come up with ways to reduce private education expenses, citing their recent increase, Lee said.

The state-administered college entrance exam, or the College Scholastic Ability Test, is one of the nation's most important academic events, during which airplane takeoffs and landings are banned nationwide for the English listening portion.

Yoon also called for college reforms, saying the government, businesses and educational bodies should work as one to foster talents equipped for a rapidly-changing digital society, according to Lee.

In particular, the president stressed the need to break down "barriers" between colleges and instructed the minister to provide full support to innovative colleges that "break barriers."

On childcare services, Yoon called for transferring all related work handled by the welfare ministry to the education ministry, saying the aim should be to provide world-class childcare and education for young children.

He also called for strengthening Korean language education for children from immigrant backgrounds to ensure they are not discriminated against for their lack of Korean skills.

Source: Yonhap News Agency