Since reading the information that the Ministry of Education and Training requires specialized high schools to stop enrolling students for grade 6 in the 2024-2025 school year, Ms. Tran Thi Lan (born in 1985, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi) has been restless. Over the past 3 years, she has invested hundreds of millions of VND in extra classes and tutoring for her child with the goal of passing the entrance exam to the Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted.
Starting when her child was in 3rd grade, every week, she regularly let her child take extra classes in 3 subjects: Math, Vietnamese, and Foreign Language, an average of 6 sessions/week, regardless of rain or shine.
“Following the advice of my colleagues, the earlier we start studying, the higher the passing rate will be. My husband and I also try to save money for our child to take extra classes. The money for one month of extra classes for our child is equal to my entire month's salary as an office worker,” said Ms. Lan.
Each lesson costs an average of 300,000 VND, 24 lessons per month, costing about 7.2 million VND. The cumulative average investment for a year in extra lessons for children is about more than 80 million VND.
Thus, since grades 3, 4, and 5, her family has invested nearly 300 million VND, not to mention the cost of reviewing advanced classes during this final stage to prepare for the entrance exam to grade 6 at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted.
Parents and students are worried about the announcement of stopping enrollment in 6th grade at specialized schools. (Illustration photo)
Ms. Lan assessed that with her child's academic ability, she could completely enter public schools without having to review. This extra study is mainly to serve the entrance exam to Hanoi - Amsterdam High School.
"On some chat groups, parents also advise to find the right exam preparation class with teachers who are teaching at the school, which will be reputable, have a higher passing rate, and teach exam preparation closely. Of course, this also means that the tuition fee for extra classes is twice as expensive," said this parent.
In the 2023-2024 school year, students who want to be admitted to grade 6 at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School need to pass strict requirements such as having 5 years of primary school with excellent completion of learning and training tasks. They must not have more than 2 9 points in all subjects during the 5 years. Understanding this criterion, last year Ms. Lan closely monitored her child's studies to ensure good grades in each semester.
Ms. Lan and her husband have been doing ideological work for their children since they were young. Their only tasks are to eat and study. After finishing school, they go to the center to study, and after finishing the class at the center, they go home to continue studying. She also admitted that recently, they have forced their children to study too much, leaving little time for rest and entertainment.
“Having to put in so much effort and money, my husband and I sometimes feel pressured. Seeing our child study so hard makes us feel sorry for him, but for his future, the whole family encourages each other to try a little harder. The child tries to study, the parents try to earn money,” she said.
Since she learned that the Ministry of Education and Training has requested to stop recruiting 6th grade students for specialized schools, she has always had her phone in her hand to update the latest information. "The documents are almost ready, if we change them now, all our efforts will be in vain," Lan said, waiting for the school to respond.
In recent years, the enrollment quota for grade 6 at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted is usually 200 students, but the number of students eligible to take the entrance exam is usually more than 4,000. This means that a student will have to compete with at least 20 other students to get a place at this school.
Thanks to the experience of his eldest son, for his second son, Mr. Nguyen Van Hung (born in 1973, Ha Dong, Hanoi) prepared his application early, not afraid to find a good teacher, or pay high tuition for his son to study. He is also confident that his son's application will pass the first round of the preliminary exam to enter grade 6 at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted.
Starting from grade 2, in addition to regular school hours, he invested in extra classes for his children in Math, Vietnamese, and Foreign Languages, each subject 2 sessions/week.
He often practices with his children and monitors the test questions of these subjects for many years. He assesses that the test questions are very difficult, and if there is no early preparation, it will be difficult to pass the exam.
"Everything was ready, but when the Ministry of Education and Training requested to stop enrolling in grade 6 at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted, my family was shocked and regretful. It was a pity because of the amount of money invested in my child's review classes over the years, and also because this is a school with a long history, good training quality, proven through many generations of students," said Mr. Hung.
Regarding some opinions that the junior high school system in specialized schools should be maintained as before, the leader of the Hanoi Department of Education and Training said that the unit is developing a plan for enrollment at the beginning of the new school year 2024 - 2025, focusing on research and consulting for the city to propose a specific mechanism with appropriate solutions in enrollment in specialized schools, especially for grade 6.
So, whether the secondary school system in specialized schools is really "erased" or not is still an open answer that many parents are concerned about.
The secondary school system of Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted (often referred to as "Ams2") was established in 2009 by the decision of the City People's Committee. Since then, the enrollment (planning, preliminary selection, exam organization, exam questions, grading...) into grade 6 at Amsterdam school has been organized by the Hanoi Department of Education and Training.
Every year, the Amsterdam school's 6th grade exam recruits about 200 students. This is a notoriously difficult exam with extremely strict requirements right from the application round. After passing round 1, candidates will continue to participate in the competency assessment test (round 2) with questions at a high level of application.
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