The relationship between flowers and leaves and students' life experience

Today, after finishing the 150-minute Literature exam, many candidates and teachers still lingered at Ha Huy Tap High School (Vinh City) to discuss the exam.

With the structure of two parts: reading comprehension and writing, most candidates said that the reading comprehension and analysis of the poem "Sick Mother" by poet Tran Dang Khoa was "not difficult" and within the ability of candidates participating in the provincial exam for excellent students.The theme of maternal love is also very close, intimate and always evokes emotions in the writer.

Candidates discuss after completing the test. Photo: My Ha

However, when it comes to the writing section, there are many different opinions. This is understandable because the questions are open-ended, aiming to evoke emotions and express the writer's attitudes and viewpoints.

Talking about this exam, teacher Nguyen Thi Hao - a teacher who trained the team of Tra Lan Secondary School (Con Cuong) said: "The team of Tra Lan School has 3 students who took the exam and all did quite well and were excited about this exam. We ourselves were not surprised by the exam because the structure was quite similar to previous years.

I also found that, although 50% of the test material was taken from outside the textbook, it still dealt with practical and meaningful issues so students could perceive and write well. During the review process, we had done many similar types of tests so we had quite a bit of confidence in the students, even though they had never learned the fable “Leaf Cutting” and the poem “Sick Mother” they had learned in elementary school.

Literature exam for group A.

Talking about the exam, candidate Anh Thu (Do Luong district) said: "At first, when I read the article "Leaf Cutting", it was about a rich man who planted a peony tree and everyone praised its beauty. But when he cut all the leaves off, leaving only the flower, everyone shook their heads, I was quite confused. But after only three readings, the "idea" of the story was quite clear. Personally, I wrote it according to my own understanding, it is a story about aesthetics, about beauty in life."

This year, although the exam is divided into two groups A and B for two different subjects, 80% of the questions in the exam are the same. Only the final question in the literature essay section is different.

Specifically, if in table A, the question asked students to choose any literary work to analyze the problem that "literature also has the task of forcing readers to look more carefully and more critically at themselves", then in table B, students were asked to analyze the poem "Comrade" by author Chinh Huu to discuss the effective impact of literature.

Regarding the above difference, teacher Nguyen Thi Hao added: With this question, students in group A, if they have knowledge and synthesis skills, will do better. In contrast, group B, students are given a concise problem and in the analysis, it is easy to focus on the main topic.

Exam scores at Ha Huy Tap High School. Photo: My Ha

Commenting on this exam, teacher Nguyen Thi Thuan - teacher at Le Viet Thuat High School, commented: This is a very good exam, with literary quality, with difficulty but not challenging students. The exam will make students reveal their literary qualities and abilities. At the same time, the exam is also suggestive, allowing students to relate to themselves, allowing them to express their views on moral values ​​and lifestyles in society.

Teacher Nguyen Thi Thuan also analyzed the question in the Social Discussion section surrounding the fable "Leaf Cutting": "The story talks about the relationship between flowers and leaves, from which people relate to human issues such as between individuals and the community, ways of perceiving and evaluating all things as well as beauty in life.

In fact, all things and beauty in life are only truly fulfilled when there is a harmonious combination of factors. In my opinion, to do well on this topic, one needs a multi-dimensional view of life, not a one-sided view, and success depends a lot on the student's life experience and writing ability."

My Ha