The shift from learning English for 'exams' to learning to develop skills

English is no longer a priority subject.

From 3 English lessons, up to now, Ms. Tran Thi Hang's daughter, who is currently studying in grade 7 in Vinh city, has decided to focus on only 1 lesson with the general English teacher at school. Other lessons to get an English certificate have been stopped to focus on other cultural subjects.

Not only for junior high school students, the teaching and learning of English in high schools has also changed a lot, after English changed from one of the three compulsory subjects to an elective subject. At Ky Son High School, according to school statistics, this year the school only has 13/500 grade 12 students registered to choose English as the subject.

After many years of teaching English, teacher Truong Thi Lan of Ky Son High School seemed to have "anticipated" this choice of her students.

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"For students in my school, learning English is quite difficult, because at previous levels, learning English was not easy for them.

Therefore, currently, the fact that students do not choose English but choose other subjects is entirely based on reality. With the current capacity, the amount of knowledge to choose English will not be safe and more difficult than other subjects.

Teacher Truong Thi Lan - Ky Son High School

This school year, teacher Ngo Thi Thanh Thu - English teacher of Nam Dan 1 Secondary School is also responsible for teaching students of 5 classes in grade 12. Of these, only a few classes such as D1, D3 have the initial orientation of students in block D, the rate of registration for the English exam is quite high. The rest, the general rate is only about 30%. Faced with this reality, teacher Thanh Thu said, "quite sad" because maybe "students do not understand the importance of this subject".

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"I'm lucky to teach classes where most of the students are aiming for university entrance exams, so they haven't completely turned their backs on English yet.

However, teaching in a class with many different subjects and purposes will cause teachers to encounter many difficulties and have to prepare many types of exercises to teach appropriately.

I hope that in the future, when you graduate, you will have the right perspective and reorient yourself, because English is one of the necessary skills in the integration period," Ms. Thu shared.

Teacher Ngo Thi Thanh Thu - English teacher of Nam Dan 1 Secondary School

Make learning English fun

English used to be a compulsory subject in the High School Graduation Exam and was also one of the three subjects in the 10th Grade Entrance Exam. However, from this school year, English is no longer the only option and instead there are many alternatives. In particular, at the high school level, English becomes an optional subject. At the middle school level, the Ministry of Education and Training is drafting a draft, in which localities are required to choose a third subject that varies from year to year, instead of English as before.

With these changes, English learning in schools has clearly been affected quite a lot. Teacher Nguyen Thi Hong Anh - English teacher, Nghi Loc 5 High School said: "Changing the English subject has two aspects, first, it reduces the pressure on teachers to review for exams, because for a long time, reviewing English for lower-ranking classes has been very difficult. In previous years, we had to tutor continuously to achieve the desired results. Besides, there are also shortcomings, I clearly see that students have changed their attitude towards learning English, they are no longer studying seriously and diligently as before. This leads to many shortcomings in teaching English in schools, affecting the overall quality of education, especially in rural schools like ours".

Due to the low starting point, students are not as uniform as before, so now the Foreign Language Department at Nghi Loc 5 High School has divided students into groups to teach according to each subject. With mass classes, to create interest for students, teachers have reduced exercises and practice test questions. Instead, they practice listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills according to the topic of each lesson, and guide students to make videos to encourage students to love and learn English voluntarily.

Similarly, at Ky Son High School, Ms. Truong Thi Lan added: "We determined that the more difficult the subject, the more effort teachers must make. Along with encouraging learning, we must change teaching methods. The knowledge of the 2018 General Education Program is relatively difficult, so English teachers must convey the correct program objectives, but also must be appropriate to the students, their level and ability. Teachers must research and exploit information technology to apply to lessons, arouse interest in learning, thereby conveying knowledge and attracting students...".

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Recognizing the practical value of English for students in the future, the school regularly improves the quality of its staff.

At the same time, invest in facilities and equipment to support English learning at school. Currently, the school has 2 labs for students to practice English effectively, improving listening, speaking, reading and writing skills.

Teacher Le Van Tao - Principal of Ky Son High School

For secondary school level, teacher Ho Thi Ngoc Diep - English teacher, Vinh Tan Secondary School (Vinh city) also shared: "If English is no longer one of the three compulsory subjects, it will lead to changes in English teaching in schools".

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In fact, in the past, students studied for exams, studied as a compulsion and did not see the importance of English, did not see the love or interest in it.

But now, when English is no longer subject to exam pressure, learning English will be more comfortable, shifting from learning for exams to learning for application in life. As teachers, we will also have to change our teaching and learning methods to bring interesting and exciting lessons to students."

Teacher Ho Thi Ngoc Diep - English teacher, Vinh Tan Secondary School (Vinh city)

This change is expected to bring a "breath of fresh air" to teaching and learning in schools. Teacher Phan Trong Dong - Principal of Dien Chau 3 High School added: The high school graduation exam plan does not affect the quality of teaching and learning of foreign languages ​​at all levels of general education. When English is not a compulsory subject, it will help students "lighten the burden" in reviewing, and create a new step in teaching and learning foreign languages.