The Ministry of Education and Training has just announced a draft circular amending and supplementing regulations on testing and evaluating primary, secondary, and high school students for comments.
The draft for the first time allows schools to organize periodic inspections and assessments using computer tests. However, the Ministry of Education and Training requires that this form be implemented when schools meet the conditions on facilities, information technology infrastructure, inspection and evaluation software, and operating human resources according to the guidance of the Ministry of Education and Training.
If applied, the school must notify students and parents in advance of the form of the test and technical requirements. The test results on the computer have the same legal value as paperwork.
The draft also notes that schools must prepare contingency plans when technical incidents occur (organize re-examination or switch to paper form within 7 working days) and make reasonable adjustments so that disabled students can still access this form of examination or be switched to a suitable form.
Thus, if the draft is approved, students from grades 6 to 12 will take periodic tests on computers.
The inspection and evaluation of secondary and high school students is being carried out according to Circular 22/2021/TT-BGDĐT from 2021 to present. Accordingly, in each semester, each subject evaluated by comments combined with score evaluation has 1 mid-term evaluation score and 1 end-of-term evaluation score.
You can refer to how to organize the IELTS exam
Mr. Nguyen Van Luc, former teacher of Trinh Phong Secondary School, Khanh Hoa, said that if this policy is approved, students' exams will be easier, reduce negativity, and aim for the goal of "real learning - real exams - real values".
Analyzing and clarifying, Mr. Luc said that the form of computerized testing helps reduce exam pressure, helps exam testing take place more easily, especially reducing human intervention in the testing process, fairness and objectivity are ensured more than traditional paper and writing testing methods as they are now, which are very prone to negative phenomena.
However, to do this, teacher Luc believes that there needs to be careful preparation and an appropriate roadmap. Teacher Luc proposed piloting first for localities and schools with sufficient conditions in terms of human resources and infrastructure; and at the same time training and guiding students to get acquainted with computer testing methods.
It is possible to refer to the organization of exam supervision in IELTS exams, organizing exams on machines according to standard procedures recognized by many countries around the world" - Mr. Luc suggested.
Need to consider the specific characteristics of each subject
Agreeing with this view, Ms. Le Mai Anh - an English teacher in Hanoi assessed that computer tests have many advantages such as reducing grading effort, printing costs, shortening time and convenience for data storage and systematization, thereby monitoring the learning process and progress of each student.
However, she believes that the honesty of the test not only depends on the exam format but also on the invigilators, examinees and organizational regulations. Therefore, it is necessary to consider applying the computer-based test format to each subject, ensuring it is suitable for the specifics of the subject and actual conditions.
In addition to facilities, learners also need to be equipped with necessary skills. Before deploying, students need to be guided and familiarized with computer operations, because this is a direct requirement when doing the test" - Ms. Mai Anh stated her point of view.
Teacher Luc also proposed that the Ministry of Education and Training should only apply periodic computer tests to subjects assessed by comments combined with scores in the 2018 general education program, instead of applying them simultaneously. Specifically, according to teacher Luc, it is necessary to exclude subjects and activities assessed by comments such as Physical Education, Arts, Music, Fine Arts, Local Educational Content and Experiential Activities, Career Guidance at the secondary school level.
