The Literature exam was long, leaving many candidates with regrets.

The test wasn't too difficult, but it was quite long.

At the exam center at Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School (Vinh City), after leaving the exam room, many candidates expressed surprise at this year's exam questions. Therefore, instead of studying the poem "The Country," the candidates predicted the poem "Viet Bac" and focused their studies on it extensively.

Phan Nhat Linh, a 12th-grade student specializing in English, who has the advantage of being a candidate in the humanities/social sciences group, said that this year's literature exam wasn't too difficult but was quite long. Therefore, with only 120 minutes, candidates needed to concentrate intensely to complete the exam successfully.

Besides the literary essay question, Nhat Linh said she quite liked the reading comprehension question when the exam used an excerpt from the essay "The River and the Generations of the Nation" by writer Nguyen Quang Thieu. The question asked her to draw a life lesson for herself from the author's reflection, "If we separate each drop of water from the unity of the ocean, we will only see tiny, solitary drops of water that gradually disappear."

According to this female student, people, regardless of the era they live in, need to respect the past and the cultural values ​​of their nation. Therefore, as young people, while embracing modern life, they still need to harmonize with the past, knowing how to filter information in order to best improve themselves. Furthermore, each person should live for the benefit of others, avoiding individualism and selfishness.

In this analysis, the female student also stated that she did quite well on the social commentary question, which asked her to express her thoughts on the meaning of respecting individuality. According to Nhat Linh, the issue of "the individuality of young people" is causing much debate and conflicting opinions in reality. Everyone has their own unique self. Many people, especially the older generation, who hold many traditional views, may not like young people expressing their individuality. However, individuality does not mean bad; each person is an individual, who may differ in their clothing style, lifestyle, and desire for others to respect their differences. Furthermore, this candidate also mentioned that many professions require individuality, such as artists and designers.

Prior to this exam, Phan Nhat Linh had already received acceptance letters from the Foreign Trade University, the Diplomatic Academy, and the University of Law. Although she went into the exam with a relaxed mindset, she was still determined to achieve 27-28 points in the High School Graduation Exam.

Meanwhile, candidate Pham Anh Tuan from Hermann Gmeiner High School said: "This year's exam was well-suited to the candidates, and in the current context, the exam focusing on the country is perfectly appropriate. Personally, I liked this year's exam because it addressed love and national unity. I was also quite impressed with the social commentary question because it was quite novel. Respecting differences is also relevant to today's youth."

Present at the exam site at Anh Son 3 High School, most candidates leaving the exam room appeared relaxed and assessed the Literature exam as being of appropriate difficulty for them.

Nguyen Thi Thuy Ngan happily shared: "This year's Literature exam was quite basic, manageable, and focused on core knowledge, closely following the high school Literature curriculum and thoroughly reviewed by our teachers. With this year's exam, students only need to study carefully and apply their own experiences to achieve high scores. For me, this is my strong subject, so I did very well and am confident I can score 8 to 9 points."

Meanwhile, candidate Nguyen Thi Phuong Anh from Anh Son 1 High School said she felt relaxed and comfortable after finishing the first exam. She felt the exam wasn't too difficult this year, and she did quite well on both the reading comprehension and essay sections.

The reading comprehension section was arranged according to cognitive levels, from recognition and understanding to application and higher-level application. In the literary analysis section, Nguyen Khoa Diem's ​​"The Country" was a work I had studied thoroughly, so I did quite well on the exam. Although Literature isn't my strongest subject, I found the essay topic manageable and very good. The pleasant weather today also helped to ease my stress and anxiety.

At the exam center at Thai Hoa High School, after 120 minutes of taking the exam, candidate Le Van Hieu shared: "When I held the exam paper in my hand, I felt reassured because the Literature exam this morning was within the content that the teachers had reviewed. The essay section had two questions, and I was able to do the basic part of the 5-point essay question. I'm taking the D-block exam, and my aspiration is to get into the National Economics University, so I predict my Literature score will be around 7-7.5 points."

Mai Thi Tuyet, a student from Dong Hieu High School, said: “The reading comprehension section was quite easy, the questions were relevant to real life and suitable for my abilities. I was impressed with question 1 in the essay section, which asked me to write a paragraph expressing my thoughts on the meaning of respecting individuality. I found this question very meaningful because I could relate it to my own experience of expressing opinions, respecting others, behaving appropriately, valuing the honor, dignity, and rights of each person. At the same time, I must know how to live in harmony and love everyone; respect everyone around me, regardless of social status, wealth, or ethnicity. I'm taking the B-block exam, hoping to get into the University of Medicine and Pharmacy – Hue University, so I didn't aim for a high score in Literature, but with this exam, I'm confident I can get a good score.”

The teacher predicted that many candidates would get good scores.

Commenting on the Literature exam, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhung, a Literature teacher at Thai Hoa High School, assessed that this year's exam was relatively manageable for candidates, especially the reading comprehension and social commentary questions, which covered topics familiar to students, discussing personal opinions and the perceptions of young people. However, the exam still felt safe rather than groundbreaking. The question format followed the basic structure of recent years.

"Regarding the overall scores, it's difficult to predict because it depends on each student's ability. However, with some of the questions at the beginning of the exam, I think most students will get a fairly good score," Ms. Nhung added.

After two hours of taking the Literature exam, the first candidates to emerge from the exam center at Nguyen Sy Sach High School in Thanh Chuong were all feeling cheerful.

Nguyen Dinh Nhat Quang, a top student in class 12C1, said: "I found today's Literature exam to be manageable. I did best on the reading comprehension section, but the social commentary essay on respecting individuality was the most difficult. Although I didn't focus on studying Literature, I think I did quite well and predict I'll get around 8 points."

According to Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh, a student in class 12 C2, the Literature exam was quite good and closely followed the high school curriculum. “I did quite well on the reading comprehension and analysis section of the poem ‘The Country’ from Nguyen Khoa Diem’s epic poem ‘The Road of Thirsting for Hope,’ but the social commentary section on respecting individuality wasn’t so good. I hope to get an 8. I feel happy and ready for the next exam.”

The familiar but difficult-to-score essay topic was the consensus of many candidates after the Literature exam of the 2024 National High School Graduation Examination this morning at the Con Cuong High School examination center.

Candidate Luong Ngoc Huyen, a private candidate at the Con Cuong High School examination center, believes that while it's easy to get an average score on this Literature exam, it's difficult to achieve a high score.

Regarding the reading comprehension section (3 points), which included an excerpt from "The River and the Generations of Water," Ngoc Huyen believes it's a good question. However, she notes that candidates who rely on rote learning, lack life skills, and have limited social knowledge will find it difficult to fully address all the requirements of the question. She hopes to only get 1.5 points in this section.

Regarding the essay section, which had two questions, candidate Ngoc Huyen commented on the 5-point essay question: “Analyze the excerpt 'The Country' (from the epic poem 'The Road of Thirsting Hopes') by poet Nguyen Khoa Diem, and then comment on the combination of emotion and reflection expressed in Nguyen Khoa Diem's ​​poem. This was a pretty good question, closely related to our curriculum. However, it was quite difficult. Students in the social sciences would do better, but for those in the natural sciences, I found the question required a rather lengthy analysis, making it difficult to score high, especially for those who are subjective or lack a deep understanding of the work. I was able to answer this question basically. Overall, I think I will get an average score in this first exam.”

The weather was quite favorable for the candidates from Do Luong during the first exam session. Emerging from the exam room with a radiant face, happily greeting relatives in the schoolyard, Le Duc Huy, a 12th-grade student from Do Luong 1 High School, said: “The Literature exam this morning was quite manageable for students. I did well on this exam and expect to score between 8.5 and 9 points.”

Similarly, candidate Le Thi Kim Quy, a student from class 12T1, happily said: “This year's Literature exam was manageable. I did very well, and my classmates in the room even asked for a second and third sheet of paper to complete the exam. The reading comprehension section didn't follow a structured format with a main mode of expression, but instead asked directly about the issue; the social commentary question was about the importance of respecting individuality; and the literary analysis question was based on the poem 'The Country,' one of the two poems I studied thoroughly last night.”

At the Quy Chau High School examination center, out of a total of 535 candidates, there were 487 students from the 12th grade of the regular high school system, 20 students from the 12th grade of the continuing education system, and 28 independent candidates, who were assigned to take the exam in 23 rooms.

After finishing the Literature exam, Phan Thuy Tien, a student from Quy Chau High School, said: "I found the exam structure quite similar to the mock exams, and I think I answered about 80% correctly."

According to Ms. Nguyen Trang Nhung, a Literature teacher at Quy Chau High School: "This year's high school Literature exam had a familiar structure and question types, so I think it didn't pose a challenge for most candidates. The exam had good integration, with the reading comprehension section focusing on the relationship between individuals and the collective."

The quote, "If we separate each drop of water from the unity of the ocean, we will only see tiny, solitary drops that gradually disappear," is also excellent. Through this, candidates can see the importance of unity and how strong, cohesive relationships between individuals create a strong collective.

For the essay section, the chosen excerpt is excellent, rich in literary quality, intellectual depth, and lyricism, ensuring that candidates can demonstrate their thinking and knowledge. Candidates with broader knowledge and more in-depth analysis of the content will achieve a score of "good" or higher.