Changing the national high school exam plan, teachers and students are worried

Students mentally calculate that there are 10 months left until the exam, but they still don't know how the exam structure will change, and which parts they need to focus on to do well on the test.

After the Ministry of Education and Training announced the draft plan for the 2017 high school graduation exam and university and college admissions, many 12th graders are worried about the comprehensive and all-multiple-choice format of the exams. Thu Huong, a 12th grader at Cao Ba Quat High School (Hanoi), said that the 2017 national high school exam method is making it difficult for candidates by combining subjects into Natural Sciences (Math, Physics, Biology) and Social Sciences (History, Geography, Civics).

Students assessed that combining social subjects into one test reduced their strengths in each subject. Photo: Ngoc Thanh.

Right from the beginning of grade 10, Huong has invested time and effort in studying Math, Physics, Chemistry, and English. If the reform really takes place, she will have to review Biology to be able to take the Natural Science exam. "There are still 10 months left until the exam, but I have to study 6 subjects, especially having to re-study Biology from the beginning, I really don't know what to do," Huong said.

Having consulted the Hanoi National University's competency assessment test, Huong firmly believes that the multiple choice test for Math is not suitable. Because there are very easy questions and also very difficult questions. For those who are not strong in Math, those very difficult questions are a big challenge.

Hoai Anh (grade 12 Cau Giay High School) shared: "The pressure from improving knowledge, choosing schools, choosing majors has made us tired, now having to study more subjects to adapt to the new exam method is really exhausting". The female student is worried that there are only 10 months left until the exam, while the Ministry has not announced the sample questions, not knowing the structure of the questions, what parts to study to be able to do it correctly.

Choosing to study group C with Literature, History, and Geography to take the entrance exam for law or social sciences, Hoai Anh worries that if History and Geography are multiple-choice, it will unintentionally limit students' abilities. Group C essay subjects require candidates to be able to write, perceive, analyze, and evaluate, not just calculate, so multiple-choice tests are not appropriate.

"Not to mention the knowledge of History and Geography is quite broad, sometimes we only remember relatively and then write from the background knowledge. Now, when taking multiple choice tests with 4 answers and only choosing one, students must remember absolutely exactly, just a little mistake will lose points immediately. Switching from essay tests to multiple choice tests, many students will study by cramming, trying to remember and then forgetting after the test", Hoai Anh analyzed.

Having just registered for the Army Officer School but failed, Nguyen Ngoc Thang (Hoai Duc, Hanoi) planned to retake the exam, but when he heard about the draft new admission plan, his intention wavered. Thang said that if he took the comprehensive exam, he would not know which part to focus on. Taking 50 multiple choice math questions in 90 minutes is not feasible. "If the exam format or application submission method were changed, he could still adapt right away, but changing the exam structure would be too difficult, especially for those who intend to retake the exam like me," Thang shared.

Many teachers believe that change needs a roadmap so that both teachers and students can adapt. Photo: Ngoc Thanh.

As both a high school math teacher and a parent of a 12th grader, Ms. Ha Kim Thuy (Viet Tri, Phu Tho) thinks that the 50-question multiple-choice math test is unreasonable. Whether there are 4 or 5 tests, students still have to study all subjects, the burden is not lightened but the strengths in each subject are significantly reduced. The Ministry should review the roadmap, collect opinions to make appropriate amendments, and apply them to the exams in the following years so that both teachers and students have time to prepare.

As a 12th grade History teacher in a rural area, Ms. Nguyen Huong said that until now, the students where she teaches still do not know that the national high school exam may change. She is really worried about the future of History if it becomes part of the comprehensive Social Science exam. "History is currently taken lightly. If there is a multiple choice test, students will learn to cope with the pressure of the exam, and after the exam, the teacher will return the words to the teacher, because many students still have the mentality of studying whatever is tested," this teacher explained.

Ms. Huong further analyzed that the Ministry of Education's desire for students not to learn by rote or to study in a biased way is completely correct, but changes need to have a roadmap. Students in rural and remote areas are not updated with news regularly. Waiting until the Ministry amends the national high school exam regulations, the Departments of Education train teachers, and disseminate information again, students will need more time to "absorb" the new regulations, while the exam will be in June next year.

With much experience teaching English on television, Ms. Mai Phuong was "shocked" by the English test plan with 40 multiple choice questions in 60 minutes. According to her, such a test to assess ability is too short and subjective. Shortening the English test will not help students reduce stress, and the test will even be more difficult because it is also used for university admission.

According to VNE