Nghe An: The math exam for admission to 10th grade was of moderate difficulty, not designed to trick students.
On the morning of May 26th, over 49,000 candidates in Nghe An province completed the Mathematics exam for the 10th grade entrance exam for the 2026-2027 school year. This was also the final subject of this year's exam and was considered by many candidates to be of moderate difficulty.
The math exam is designed to differentiate students' abilities.
At the exam center at Le Viet Thuat High School, it was nearly 10 minutes after the bell rang signaling the end of the exam that candidates began to leave the examination rooms. Thuy Nga, a student from Hung Binh Secondary School, who was one of the first to leave, said that this year's exam had a clear differentiation in difficulty levels, especially in the Geometry section.
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According to the student, she did quite well on the Algebra section and the basic questions, but struggled with the last two Geometry questions – which are considered to be designed to differentiate candidates.
“I completed the basic sections in 80 minutes and used the remaining time to focus on questions 4c and 5b. Despite my efforts, I still couldn't fully handle the difficult parts. I think I'll get around 8.5 points,” Thuy Nga confidently assessed after the exam.
After completing her final exam, Nga said she was quite satisfied with the results and believed she could get into her first-choice university. However, her goal is to take the entrance exam for the specialized Literature class, which will be held in two days at Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted.
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After completing her final exam, Tran Thi Khanh Huyen, a student from Trung Do Secondary School, shared that among the three subjects, Math was the one she was most worried about. However, with today's official exam paper, she estimated her score to be 8.5 points.
According to Khanh Huyen, the exam had 5 questions. Questions 1 to 3 covered basic knowledge and did not pose a challenge to students. However, question 4 (Geometry) showed differentiation in its sub-questions. Question 4a was quite easy, while question 4b required applying the results from the previous question to solve it. Question 4c was a more advanced question that she couldn't solve and left unfinished. The final question, worth only 1 point, was not overly difficult. Specifically, question 5a was a real-world question, clearly stating the requirement to "calculate the volume of a table tennis ball," not designed to trick students. Students who mastered the formula and applied basic calculation skills could solve this question.
The general consensus at Le Viet Thuat High School's exam center was that most candidates felt the exam closely followed the sample test structure, was not tricky, and was "easier than the mock exams from other wards." Therefore, many students achieved scores of 7-8 points.
The exam is suitable for students in many regions.
At the exam center of Do Luong 1 High School, immediately after the bell rang signaling the end of the exam, many candidates emerged from the exam room with relieved expressions and radiant smiles. Most students assessed this year's math exam as being of moderate difficulty, closely following the curriculum, but still containing questions designed to differentiate between high-achieving and excellent students.
Nguyen Ha My, a 9th-grade student from Doi Cung Secondary School, happily shared: “I completed 90% of the exam, and so did my classmates.” Sharing the same cheerful sentiment, Nguyen Hoai An, a student from Phan Thai At High School, said: “I completed 85% of the exam. The most difficult questions were 3c, part 2 of question 4b, 4c, and 5b.”
Observations at the exam center at Co Do High School showed that after the exam time ended, many candidates emerged from the exam room looking quite tense. Most candidates commented that this year's exam questions closely followed the curriculum, but there was a clear differentiation in the application and higher-level application questions.
Nguyen Thanh Dat, a student from Hong Minh Secondary School, said: “This year's exam followed the content we reviewed, with many questions close to the knowledge in the textbook and practical in nature. I completed about 60% of the exam. Questions 3b, 4b, and 5 were more difficult, requiring the application of knowledge and critical thinking, which will help differentiate between good and excellent students.”
Sharing the same opinion, Nguyen Thi Thu Hien, a student from Hoa Hieu 2 Secondary School, said: “The exam questions were arranged from easy to difficult, with most of the knowledge covered in the curriculum. However, the last few questions were quite difficult, so I was only able to answer a part of them.”
Many other candidates also believe that this year's Math exam closely follows the 2018 General Education Program, combining basic knowledge with practical application questions. In particular, the final questions are considered highly differentiating, helping to select students with strong thinking and application skills.
Commenting on this year's exam, Ms. Nguyen Thi Tra, a math teacher at a center in Truong Vinh ward, said that the exam was of moderate difficulty and that diligent students with above-average academic ability could achieve scores of 7 or 8.
Specifically, the exam consisted of 5 questions covering familiar topics such as statistics, probability, radicals, functions, practical problems related to setting up equations, systems of equations, and geometry. Of these, the first two questions were considered relatively easy by many teachers, mainly testing foundational knowledge and basic calculation skills.
The difficulty level starts to increase in question 3 with the group of practical problems. The first two parts, regarding setting up systems of equations - equations and motion - are still familiar, however, the last part, involving transforming expressions related to Vieta's theorem, can be considered a differentiating question.
In the geometry section of question 4, the first question is relatively familiar, involving proving that a quadrilateral is inscribed in a circle, making it easy for students to score points. However, parts b2 and c of question 4 are more challenging. Part c, in particular, is considered the most difficult part of the exam, combining knowledge of orthocenters, circumscribed circles, and proving perpendicularity.
For question 5, part a is a question worth points for students. However, part b, which is more advanced than average, relates to spatial geometry extrema and requires students to use reasoning and argumentation skills.
According to a report from the Department of Education and Training, 56 students were absent from the 10th grade entrance exam in Nghe An without explanation.
During the third exam, no other unusual incidents occurred. The exam proceeded normally, safely, and in accordance with regulations.
