The 10th grade entrance exam should be clear, transparent and stable.

Admissions and graduation are very different

The Ministry of Education and Training is seeking comments on the draft Regulations on junior high school and high school admissions, of which the most important issue is admission to grade 10 of high school. I would like to make a few suggestions below.

Entrance exams for grade 10 should be clear, transparent and stable.

In my opinion, the nature of the graduation exam and the entrance exam are very different. The graduation exam mainly evaluates the quality of teaching and learning at a level; students who meet the final standards will be recognized as graduates. The entrance exam, based on students who meet the standards of the previous level, aims to classify students according to the training needs of each type of school; students who meet the standard (score) will be admitted.

Therefore, the draft high school admission regulations stipulate: "High school admission subjects are junior high school graduates with the age specified in the Charter of junior high schools, high schools and multi-level general schools".

However, Article 12, Clause 1, Section a stipulates that the selection of the third exam subject "changes over the years to achieve the goal of comprehensive education in the basic education stage. The third exam subject or a combination of subjects is selected from among the subjects assessed by scores in the junior high school program". This is under the function of the junior high school graduation exam.

It must be affirmed that all students recognized as graduating from junior high school must meet the requirements of quality and capacity of "comprehensive education in the basic education stage". It should not, once again, be included in the 10th grade high school entrance exam.

High school admission has 3 methods: selection, entrance exam or combination of selection and selection. Schools with enrollment quota equal to or less than the number of registered candidates only need to select candidates, do not need to organize exams, saving effort and money. Schools with the number of candidates exceeding the quota organize entrance exams or combine selection and selection.

The high school entrance exam subjects should be clearly defined, transparent and stable for many years. Do not and absolutely do not use the "lottery" method. Article 12, Clause 1 of the draft stipulates: the third exam subject or combined exam is selected by the Department of Education and Training, the higher education institution and one of the two options and announced before March 31 every year.

If this regulation is officially issued, it will lead to the Department of Education and Training having to "draw lots" and "take the risk". It really shouldn't be!

Why should you choose a foreign language as your third subject?

With the view that the high school entrance exam is concise, not stressful and costly, the number of subjects can be 2 or 3. If it is 2 subjects, choose math and literature. If it is 3 subjects, choose math, literature and foreign language.

Why should the third subject be a foreign language? Because foreign language is one of the eight compulsory subjects that all students must study in high school. In the future, if English is defined as the first foreign language, compulsory for all students from grades 3 to 12, the third subject will be English. According to Conclusion No. 91 of the Politburo, gradually making English the second language in schools, choosing a foreign language as the third subject is necessary and should not be discussed further.

For admission to specialized high schools, in addition to the two compulsory subjects of math and literature like non-specialized students, the third subject is a specialized subject, with a separate exam to select students with talent in that specialized subject.

Unpractical regulations should be removed.

I would like to add more comments on Article 14, Clause 2, Item a in the draft regulation that adds 2.0 priority points to "children of revolutionary activists before January 1, 1945" and "children of revolutionary activists from January 1, 1945 to the August 1945 uprising". According to preliminary calculations, revolutionary elders aged 95 and older are in this category. They cannot have children (15 years old) taking the 10th grade entrance exam from 2025 onwards. Therefore, the above regulations should be removed to suit reality.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mon-thi-vao-lop-10-nen-ro-rang-minh-bach-on-dinh-185241019222430189.htm