The Literature exam was topical but 'not easy even for students specializing in the subject'.

Topicclosely reflects real life.

As a student specializing in Literature, Nguyen Mai Thuy (class 12C1, Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted) has a rather unique perspective on this year's Literature exam. According to Thuy, the exam made an impression because of its topicality and its ability to connect with the issues that young people are facing in modern life.

In the social commentary section, the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) piqued the female student's interest because it is a subject receiving significant social attention. According to Thuy, in the context of AI's increasing development and presence in almost all fields, the important thing is not to worry about being replaced by technology, but to know how to adapt and use technology effectively.

“AI can support humans in learning, work, and accessing knowledge. However, each person needs to have the ability to think critically, to distinguish between correct and incorrect information, and not to rely entirely on AI. I believe that technology should only be a supporting tool, while humans are the decision-makers,” Thuy shared.

Based on the exam content, the female student also related it to the responsibilities of the younger generation in the digital age. According to her, besides the support of family, school, and friends, each young person needs to proactively define their own goals, constantly learn, and improve their abilities to create their own value. This is also a way to assert oneself in a world that is changing very rapidly due to the development of science and technology.

Meanwhile, the literary analysis section brought Thuy many unexpected emotions. The student said that when she first read the poem "The Tale of the Leaves," she was quite puzzled because the work had many narrative elements, different from the types of poetry commonly found in previous exams. However, the more carefully she read and delved into the analysis, the clearer she felt the humanistic message the author conveyed.

"

“What I appreciate most is the image of leaves experiencing all four seasons of the year. Whether in the fresh spring or the harsh winter, each leaf lives life to the fullest in its journey of existence. I think that's also a message for people to live fully, to contribute, and to spread good things to life.”

Nguyen Mai Thuy - a student in class 12C1, Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School

Although Mai Thùy assessed the exam as open-ended, highly educational, and encouraging students to express their personal opinions, she believes that the difficulty level of the exam mainly focuses on the reading comprehension section, especially questions related to informational texts. She thinks that students who do not have a solid foundation of knowledge about this type of text will have difficulty answering the questions.

However, despite being a literature major, Thùy still felt that the exam didn't offer many opportunities for candidates to demonstrate their depth of literary appreciation and specialized analytical skills. "I'm not really satisfied with my work because I feel I haven't fully expressed what I'm capable of," the student frankly shared.

Despite some lingering concerns, Mai Thùy remains confident about her exam results and aims to score above 9 points in the subject.LiteratureThe female student said she would use these exam scores, combined with her aptitude test scores, to apply for her preferred major at the University of Architecture, where she hopes to continue pursuing her passion and future career path.

Literary essay questions carry many meaningful messages.

While some students specializing in Literature believe that this year's exam did not really provide many opportunities to showcase their in-depth abilities, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh - a student in class 12C5 at Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted - has a rather positive view of the 2026 high school graduation Literature exam.

According to Ngoc Anh, this year's exam questions left a strong impression due to their topicality, relevance to real life, and ability to stimulate students' thinking. "I found the exam questions very good," the female student shared immediately after finishing the first exam.

Nevertheless, Ngoc Anh admitted that the Reading Comprehension section still presented certain challenges. According to her, the text was quite long, requiring candidates to concentrate intensely, read quickly, select information, and grasp the issues accurately. Ngoc Anh was most impressed by the literary essay question using a poem about leaves as material. The student said this was also her favorite part of the entire exam because of the meaningful messages the work conveyed.

In her essay, Ngoc Anh chose to analyze the poem stanza by stanza, clarifying the leaf's journey through time, the author's feelings for nature, and the symbolic meaning of the leaf's image in relation to life. According to her, the unique aspect of the work lies in the fact that the leaf is not only beautiful when it is green and fresh, but even in the final stages of its life cycle, it continues to contribute to life in its own unique ways.

"I think the poem conveys a very beautiful message about dedication. A leaf, at any time, brings value to life. From that, I relate it to people, that everyone should live a useful life, know how to give and contribute good things to society," Ngoc Anh shared.

In the social commentary section, when the essay question posed the issue of building a resilient generation of young Vietnamese in the modern context, Ngoc Anh argued that achieving this requires support from many sides. According to her, besides their own efforts, young people need attention and support from their families, schools, and government policies. At the same time, the spirit of daring to think, daring to act, and daring to take responsibility should be nurtured from an early age to help them become more confident in their studies and lives.

Despite some concerns about the length of the Reading Comprehension section, the female student was quite satisfied with her work and did not hide her expectation of achieving a high score.

Besides the high school graduation exam, Ngoc Anh already had an IELTS certificate and an SAT score of 1530, so she approached this exam quite comfortably. Currently, she is aiming to be admitted to the Foreign Trade University.

Candidates feel relaxed after completing the first exam.

After finishing the Literature exam this morning, many candidates at the Quy Hop High School examination center left the exam room in a cheerful and relaxed mood. Most of them felt the exam was of moderate difficulty, closely followed the curriculum, and did not contain any overly unexpected content.

Nguyen Thi Mai Trang, a 12th-grade student at a high school in the former Quy Hop district, said: “The exam was manageable, not too difficult, and not designed to trick. I did quite well on the literary analysis section. Question 2 was a bit long, but still within my capabilities. I predict I can score above 8 points.”

Many candidates also commented that this year's exam focused on testing reading comprehension, the ability to understand and apply knowledge to practice, rather than requiring rote memorization. This gave students the opportunity to express their own thinking, personal opinions, and experiences.

Sharing her thoughts after the exam, Tran Thi Thu Huyen, a student at the Quy Hop High School exam center, commented: “I found the reading comprehension section quite good, meaningful, and relevant to real life. The initial questions were mainly at the recognition level, making them easy for candidates to understand. Meanwhile, the later questions required logical thinking, perception, and analytical skills. In particular, the last question was very relevant to current social issues.”

At the exam center at Co Do High School, most candidates shared the opinion that the exam questions closely followed the guidelines of the 2018 General Education Program, while also creating conditions for students to develop their independent thinking skills.

Candidate Tran Thi Lan, a 12th-grade student from Co Do High School, said: “The reading comprehension passage about the role of printers in the development of human knowledge was quite accessible. In particular, the social commentary question about using artificial intelligence (AI) to create knowledge synergy is a very relevant issue for students today. I am quite confident with my work and predict I will score around 7 to 7.5 points.”

Sharing the same opinion, Le Van Thanh said that the exam wasn't too difficult but still had a certain degree of differentiation. According to Thanh, the literary analysis section required candidates to analyze the poem "The Tale of the Leaves," demanding literary appreciation and analytical skills. "I basically completed the requirements of the exam and am quite satisfied with my work," Thanh shared.

Overall, many teachers believe that this year's Literature exam meets the requirements of the 2018 General Education Program, focusing on developing students' reading comprehension, critical thinking, and ability to apply knowledge to practical situations. The reading comprehension material is topical, while the social commentary on artificial intelligence (AI) is a topic receiving much attention in today's society.

According to teachers' assessments, the distribution of scores in Literature this year is likely to be at a moderate level. Essays with strong arguments, independent thinking, good ability to relate to real-world situations, and clear expression of personal viewpoints will have a higher chance of achieving high scores.