National High School Exam Review: Be careful when... the questions are easy!
(Baonghean)- At this time, the review for the National High School Exam is being urgently carried out by schools. This year's exam is also assessed to face many difficulties after the Ministry of Education and Training made many changes in the exam plan.
Stick to the sample exam
For many years, sample exams have been the best way for students to review. At this time, after the Ministry of Education and Training announced sample exams for all subjects, the review process of schools has become more convenient. According to the assessment of many teachers, the sample exam in 2019 completely meets the requirements for graduation and university and college admission; there is a clear differentiation and that is the basis for students to review.
Sharing more about this, teacher Le Van Luong - Chemistry teacher at Hermann Gmeiner Primary School said: "Researching the sample exam, I see that in Chemistry, there are gradually fewer difficult and calculating questions. Instead, questions are increased to assess the nature of phenomena, apply theory to practice and real life. Before that, as soon as the sample exam questions were available, the school leaders also assigned the subject groups in the school to plan orientations for students to review. At the same time, build sample questions to help students get familiar with many different types of questions. For capable students, the school also classifies, cares for, and nurtures them so that they can have more opportunities to get high scores in the National High School Exam."
For capable students, the school classifies, cares for, and nurtures them so that they can have more opportunities to get high scores in the National High School Exam.
 |
| Literature teaching and learning at Quy Hop 3 High School. Photo: My Ha |
In Physics, right from the beginning of the school year, Nghi Loc 3 High School has required teachers to teach the theory part thoroughly to help students grasp the essence to do exercises easily. In addition, in the elective class, teachers divide the topics into topics that closely follow the sample exam questions of the Ministry of Education and Training so that students can do the test better.
Physics teacher Mai Dai Phuong said: “After having the sample exam, we are quite confident because the exam is “easier” than previous years. This year's exam has 40 questions, of which about 60% are basic questions and 40% are classified. The questions are not too challenging for students, many of the content is related to practice, application and the questions are arranged from easy to difficult so students can choose the answers based on that. The current difficulty is that the time to answer the questions is quite short, only 50 minutes, so in parallel with supplementing knowledge for students, we also guide students on how to do the test quickly and effectively, prioritizing easy questions first, difficult questions later”.
The current difficulty is that the time to answer the questions is quite short, only 50 minutes, so in parallel with supplementing knowledge for students, we also guide students on how to do the test quickly and effectively, prioritizing easy questions first, difficult questions later.
 |
| Physics class of 12th grade students at Nghi Loc 3 High School. Photo: My Ha |
In addition, although students have not yet completed the textbook program, they have determined that there is not much time left until the exam, so schools have a method of both studying and testing, assessing students' knowledge. Teachers also proactively refer to some sample questions from other schools, thereby helping students grasp the essence of the theory, and providing them with an opportunity to practice and hone their test-taking skills.
Regarding the National High School Exam, recently many schools have also organized mock exams for students. Some schools have also organized simultaneous exams for many students from other schools to participate so that students have many opportunities to test their abilities.
Previously, I was still wondering between block A (Math - Physics - Chemistry) and block A1 (Math - Physics - English). However, after the practice test, my Chemistry score was 6 points but my English score was only 4 points, so I decided to choose block A. From now until the end of the school year, I will "speed up" to achieve better results.
The immediate goal is to pass the graduation exam.
In 2019, one of the important changes that directly affects candidates is to increase the ratio of exam results in the high school graduation recognition score. Accordingly, instead of the national high school exam score and the transcript score accounting for a ratio of 50/50, this year, this ratio is adjusted to 70/30 (high school graduation score includes 70% of the average score of the national high school exams used for graduation + 30% of the candidate's average score for the entire 12th grade year + priority and incentive points). These changes also have a significant impact on the "lower" schools, which have quite low entrance requirements.
Therefore, at present, the immediate goal is still to increase the graduation rate. Sharing his concerns, teacher Phan Xuan Huynh - Principal of Hermann Gmeiner School said: "For many years, the school's graduation rate has always been 100%. However, we also did a "test", taking last year's results and calculating the scores according to the new calculation method and found that the rate has decreased by 5 - 7%. This is really a big challenge, forcing us not to be subjective and determining that we must step up review, first of all to ensure 100% of students pass the graduation exam".
 |
| Review session for students of College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense. Photo: My Ha |
At Quy Hop 3 High School, a school that has been at the bottom of the province in recent years in terms of entrance exams, the review atmosphere is also very urgent. To be proactive in teaching students to the right target and ability, from the beginning of the year, the school has conducted a survey to assess the quality and classify students to choose the fourth exam (in addition to the 3 exams of Math, Literature, and English). On that basis, based on the students' abilities, the school will divide them into appropriate review classes.
Through the first round of mock exams, the school used the exam scores with the average first semester scores of the students to evaluate and the graduation results were only 82%. Currently, for students with poor academic performance, in addition to organizing extra classes in the afternoon, we also open extra review classes in the evening and teachers volunteer to teach for free. For better students, the school prioritizes good teachers with a lot of experience to train them, creating opportunities for them to have the conditions to be admitted to universities and colleges.
“We review for students from low level to ensure that they do well in the test at the recognition and application level. As for the advanced level, we will classify students and only review for some capable subjects.” This year, the adjustment in the high school admission score ratio has made students somewhat change their learning awareness and become quite diligent and hard-working.”
Since the beginning of the second semester of the 2018-2019 school year, the Nghe An Department of Education and Training has issued a document requesting schools, professional groups, and teachers of exam subjects to proactively develop good review plans and content, paying attention to the knowledge content of the adjusted program; review must ensure time, focusing on the requirements for knowledge and skills standards of the high school education program, mainly in the 12th grade program. In addition, the Department also requires schools to pay special attention to weak students and create all conditions in terms of facilities and supporting materials to help students feel secure and confident before entering the 2019 exam season.
