Parents of Seoul Foreign Language High School students hold a rally in front of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on Monday to protest the latest evaluation that may lead to the end of the school ’ s elite school status . ( Yonhap ) Parents of students from a special purpose school held a protest Monday , denouncing Seoul education authorities ’ recent announcement that its status may be stripped due to poor performance . Last Thursday , the Seoul Education Office of Education said this year ’ s general assessment on 13 special - purpose middle and high schools found that Seoul Foreign Language High School and Younghoon International Middle School failed to meet the requirements necessary for redesignation as de facto elite schools . “ Even though our school received high scores in categories that we were told would be the main game - changer , such as the ratio of students accepted at universities , ( the officials ) said it may have its status revoked , ” said Jo Dae - yeon , head of an emergency parents ’ committee at the schools .   A foreign language high school specializes in foreign language education . They are widely considered as elite as only students with top grades are granted admission . According to the committee , Seoul Foreign Language High School has been among the top in terms of the number of graduates that were accepted at colleges and universities . They demanded that the SMOE should unveil the evaluation scores . But an SMOE official said the Seoul Foreign Language High School generally received low scores and refused to disclose the actual numbers , stating that the hearing has not yet taken place . Jo said the committee plans to hold protests about the “ unjust selection ” by the SMOE every day until the hearing next Tuesday , when both schools will submit their explanations . As of Monday , Younghoon International School did not reveal plans to hold protests . However , it faces a much more daunting battle protecting its status , as a recent admission fraud has already placed it in the firing line . Last year , an appellate court also confirmed a prison term for a former Younghoon chief for a series of irregularities related to admission processes . The school claimed to have successfully rooted out corruption and vowed to fight to retain its status at the hearing . Korean law stipulates that any school that has been found guilty of grade tampering or admission or accounting fraud can have their status stripped by local education authorities . An SMOE official said schools can receive an extension or extra credit on their assessment if they provide a sufficient explanation and plans for improvement at the hearing . If the education office decides to cancel their designation , it must lodge a request for the Education Ministry ’ s approval ― which is mandated under the recently - revised ordinance on the operations of specialized schools ― within 20 days of the hearing . The government then has 50 days to reach a decision , although it can choose to delay its decision for two months . By Yoon Min - sik ( minsikyoon @ heraldcorp . com ) [ 우리 아이 영어 글쓰기 , 어떻게 교육 하 나요 ] 	 더 많 은 기사 보 러 가 기 → [ 코리아 헤럴드 홈페이지 ] [ 트위터 ] [ 페이스북 ] 	 구독 신청 1588 - 0533 	 <ⓒ KoreaHerald ( www . koreaherald . com ) 무단 전재 및 재 배포 금지 >