Primary school competency assessment exam is as intense as university entrance exam, no more exam slots before the end of the day

(Dan Tri) - The registration portal for the Foreign Language Secondary School's primary school student competency assessment test opened on the morning of March 26, but by the evening of the same day, there were no more spots available for the April exam.

Parents confused with first time primary school student assessment test

PSA - The primary school student competency assessment test of Foreign Language Secondary School, Foreign Language University, Vietnam National University, Hanoi - is a topic of special interest on forums for parents.

This is the first year that the University of Foreign Languages ​​has organized this exam with the aim of using the initial score for admission to grade 6. At the same time, other secondary schools can use the results of this exam for admission, similar to how universities consider the results of the National University's competency assessment exam.

After struggling all day to successfully register for the PSA exam for her child, Ms. Nguyen Thi Huyen (Cau Giay, Hanoi) expressed confusion and anxiety.

Ngoai Ngu Secondary School announced that the PSA exam registration portal will open from 8:00 a.m. on March 26 to the end of April 3. Because she thought there was no need to rush as the registration deadline was long and it was during office hours, Ms. Huyen only registered at nearly 12:00 p.m. on March 26.

However, the system announced that there are no more exam slots available on April 19-20, corresponding to Saturday and Sunday.

Students taking the entrance exam to grade 6 at Ams school (Photo: N.Hanh).

"It was then that I realized the situation. I immediately called my husband and mobilized more family members to register for the exam on April 18, Friday, and agreed to let my child take the day off from school to take the exam. Luckily, we successfully registered.

That same evening, the school announced that there were no more spots left for the first round of exams.

When I went online, I found out that many parents had missed the opportunity to register their children for the exam. Some parents waited until 8am on March 26th but still could not register for the exam with a good time slot. The feeling of tension was like their children were in a race to assess their ability to enter university, not entering 6th grade," Ms. Huyen confided.

According to Ms. Huyen, because the PSA exam allows all students to participate, many families will register their children to try instead of really setting the goal of entering a Foreign Language School. This unintentionally takes away the opportunity to take the exam from students who have clear goals but their parents did not register in time.

"Previously, the competition rate for entering grade 6 at the Foreign Language School was high, but any student who met the requirements and wanted to take the exam could take it. With the new organization, students who meet the requirements, have the ability and have a real need can still lose the opportunity to take the exam," Ms. Huyen commented.

Does the 6th grade exam require the same skills as high school students?

A parent who asked to remain anonymous said that he had his child take the PSA test on the system and received a score of 55/100. The test was not too difficult but required students to have proficient computer skills, especially typing skills like a high school student, to avoid unnecessary mistakes.

"Most primary school students from 2014 onwards have good computer skills due to having to study online for a year. However, private school students have an advantage and are faster when they regularly do homework on online learning software and applications.

From now until the official exam day, parents should let their children take the test many times to practice their skills," this parent suggested.

Candidates listen to the announcement of the regulations for taking the 6th grade entrance exam at Tran Dai Nghia Secondary and High School, Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

He also said that the second round of exams will be a fierce competition among parents to win a place for their children, predicted to be no less competitive than the HSA exam.

"Because children can register for many different exams, parents' mentality is to do a mock exam the first time and improve their score the second time.

Parents who have successfully registered for the first exam will continue to register for the second exam. Parents who have not registered for the first exam will have to focus on the second exam.

Not to mention the ripple effect from this exam will make parents who do not aim to enter Foreign Language Secondary School also want to register their children to try.

The scene of parents having to go to internet cafes and game stores from dawn to register their children for exams is very likely to happen.

On forums, many parents also expressed surprise at the heat of the PSA exam to enter Foreign Language Schools. "It's no different from high school students registering for the HSA exam", "like students registering for credits", "selection of both the child's level and the parents' ability to accompany them at all times"... are comments from parents about this exam.

This year, Foreign Language Secondary School has 150 students, including 12 students with special achievements. The school's admission method is to consider academic records combined with PSA test scores.

The PSA test consists of three parts: natural sciences and mathematics, social sciences and Vietnamese and English. The maximum score for the test is 100. Candidates will know the results immediately after the test.

The school organizes two PSA exam sessions, each session has 4 exam sessions at the following times: 7-9am, 9:30-11:30am, 1pm-3pm, 3:30-5:30pm.

This is the first year the school has switched to computer-based testing, which is relatively independent of the 6th grade entrance exam.

In 2024, the school has 2,715 students registered to take the entrance exam, the competition ratio is 1/18.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/thi-danh-gia-nang-luc-tieu-hoc-cang-nhu-dh-chua-het-ngay-da-het-suat-thi-20250328112730646.htm