Expect many new points
Normally, the 10th grade entrance exam in localities will take place from the end of June to the beginning of July every year. Most localities organize entrance exams in 3 subjects: Math, Literature, and Foreign Language for admission.
In Hanoi alone, according to regulations, from 2019, the city will organize exams in 4 compulsory subjects for admission to grade 10. In addition to Math and Literature, students must take an additional Foreign Language exam and a fourth subject, announced by the Department of Education and Training in March. This is to avoid students from studying lopsidedly, learning by rote, and not ensuring the quality of teaching and learning.
In 2020, the city dropped the fourth subject due to the COVID-19 outbreak. In 2021, Hanoi returned to testing four subjects, then continued to drop the fourth subject in the 10th grade entrance exam from 2022 to present. Students take fixed exams in three subjects: Math, Literature, and Foreign Language. In the two fourth subject exams, History was the chosen subject.
According to the draft regulations on secondary and high school admissions that the Ministry of Education and Training is soliciting opinions on, if the exam method is applied, Math and Literature will be fixed, the third subject (or combined exam) will be selected by the Department of Education and Training and announced before March 31 every year.
In the context of the highly competitive 10th grade entrance exam, the fact that the exam plan has not been announced has caused many parents, students, and teachers to worry.
Tuong Anh, a 9th grade student at M.V. Lomonosov Secondary and High School (Hanoi), said that she has mastered the knowledge and has stable test-taking skills, but is still worried about the 10th grade entrance exam. Sharing the same opinion, Ms. Luu Thanh Thao (Hoang Mai district, Hanoi) - a parent with a 9th grade student expressed her concern: "Changing the 3rd subject in 10th grade every year will create an unstable mentality, waiting, and increase pressure for students".
Active review
Currently, although the Ministry of Education and Training has not yet "finalized" an official plan, the review for grade 9 students is still being implemented by schools as planned.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhung - Vice Principal of M.V. Lomonosov Secondary and High School (Hanoi) - said that teaching for grade 9 students is currently being implemented according to the plan and requirements of the Ministry. The school does not focus on any particular subject.
"However, the general mentality of students, parents, and teachers is to hope that the exam subjects will be announced early, so that students have a certain amount of time to review in depth and achieve better results," Ms. Nhung shared, and at the same time advised parents and students not to worry too much, creating pressure.
Dr. Nguyen Tung Lam - Vice President of the Vietnam Association of Educational Psychology, President of the Education Council of Dinh Tien Hoang High School (Hanoi) - said that for a long time, both teachers and students still maintain the habit of teaching and learning only when there are exams, and ignoring the remaining subjects. This teaching and learning method is outdated, causing students to not study, and teachers also do not have methods to attract students to study that subject.
“I think parents should not worry about students having to study many subjects, but should motivate their children to study. Knowing all the knowledge will be an advantage later when children grow up and develop themselves,” said Dr. Nguyen Tung Lam.
Commenting on the draft circular of the Ministry of Education and Training, Dr. Nguyen Tung Lam proposed that the third subject in the 10th grade entrance exam should be fixed as a subject combining basic knowledge of natural and social subjects in the form of multiple choice tests. This will ensure that students grasp knowledge of all subjects. This way of learning will help students fully equip themselves with the basic knowledge and skills required in secondary school.
