The School Day That Doesn't End

This is the daily schedule at Seongju High School.  

It's a high school I visited recently in Gumi, an industrial city in the middle of South Korea.

8:20 to 9:10 - Study period for the college entrance exam 

9:20 to 10:10 - First period

10:20 to 11:10 - Second period

11:20 to 12:10 - Third period

12:20 to 1:10 - Fourth period

1:10 to 2:10 - Lunch

2:10 to 3:00 - Fifth period 

3:10 to 4:00 - Sixth period

4:00 to 4:20 - Cleaning time - Students do chores around school

4:20 to 5:10 - Seventh period

5:20 to 6:10 - Study for the college entrance exam

6:10 to 7:10 - Dinner

7:10 to 8:20 - Study for the college entrance exam

8:20 to 8:40 - Break

8:40 to 10:00 - Study for the college entrance exam

10:00 to 11:00 - Extra study time for students applying to select colleges

*Some hagwons or cram schools open at 10:00 p.m. and go until 1 a.m.  In Seoul these late night schools have been outlawed, but they are still legal in many parts of Korea.  Many high schools in Seoul clear out after the last class, because so many students pay for private tutoring after school rather than studying on their own or with public school teachers.