When will the admissions plan be finalized?

There isn't much time left until the 2025 10th grade entrance exam, but as of now, 9th grade students and schools nationwide still don't know the admission plan.

Pressure from the third exam.

The 10th grade entrance exams in various localities take place in June every year. While in previous years, students would already know the admission plan for the upcoming school year by this time, for the 2024-2025 school year, even though almost a semester has passed, the admission plan has yet to be announced.

The pressure of the 10th grade entrance exam always causes immense stress for students and parents, especially with the upcoming changes to the exam.

Candidates complete the Literature exam for the 10th grade entrance exam for the 2024-2025 school year in Hanoi . Photo: Le Khanh.

The 2024-2025 school year marks the first 10th-grade entrance exam for students under the 2018 General Education Program. According to the draft regulations for secondary and high school entrance exams currently being reviewed by the Ministry of Education and Training, if an entrance exam is implemented, there will be three subjects: Mathematics, Literature, and a third subject or combined test chosen by the Department of Education and Training or higher education institutions with high schools, and announced before March 31st of each year.

The third exam subject is chosen from among the subjects with graded assessments in the lower secondary education curriculum.

In Hanoi, for many years now, the issue of whether to have 3 or 4 subjects in the entrance exam for 10th grade has always been a hot topic. Therefore, the question of how the third subject will be chosen, as stipulated in the draft regulations, is currently being raised.

Many believe that if the exam plan is approved, students and parents will have to live in constant anxiety every year, no different from the anxiety they felt waiting for the fourth exam subject in previous years.

Ms. Nguyen Hong Giang (Ba Dinh district, Hanoi) has a daughter who is preparing to take the entrance exam for 10th grade next year. This is the first year the exam is being conducted under the new curriculum, so both mother and daughter are under immense pressure, and the exam format is still undecided.

Ms. Giang said: “Every year, we have to anxiously wait for the number of subjects for the 10th grade entrance exam or wait for the Department of Education and Training to choose the subjects, which makes it difficult for teachers and students to maintain a stable mindset in teaching and learning. I hope the Ministry of Education and Training will soon announce the exam plan so that the children can focus on reviewing and preparing as best as possible for the upcoming competition.”

Nguyen Trung Kien, a 9th-grade student at Phuc Xa Secondary School (Hanoi), said he is very worried about the third exam subject. If the locality chooses a combined exam, the exam will be much more difficult. Students will have to study 4 or 5 subjects. Moreover, announcing the third subject in March will leave students with little time to prepare.

The regulations are expected to be issued before December 31st.

Currently, although the Ministry of Education and Training has not yet finalized the official plan, exam preparation for 9th-grade students is still being implemented by schools according to schedule.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong Thuy, Principal of Tan Tien Secondary School (Tan Tien commune, Chuong My district), said that the school currently has 170 ninth-grade students, divided into four classes. The school is still ensuring teaching according to the curriculum, focusing more on Mathematics and Literature for now. When the city announces the third exam subject, the school will continue to develop a suitable plan to help students prepare well for the exam.

"Based on our understanding of the students and parents at the school, most hope that the third exam subject will be English or an independent subject. If the city chooses a combined subject for the third exam, it needs to be announced soon so that parents and students can feel reassured and focus more on the exam subjects," Ms. Thuy shared.

At M.V. Lomonosov Secondary and High School (Hanoi), teaching for 9th-grade students is currently being implemented according to the plan and requirements of the Ministry of Education and Training.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhung, the school's Vice Principal, stated: "The school doesn't focus on any particular subject. However, the general sentiment among students, parents, and teachers is that they want the exam subjects announced early so that students have sufficient time for in-depth preparation and can achieve better results."

Regarding this issue, Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long instructed the Ministry of Education and Training to carefully review, research, and incorporate public feedback; and to promptly announce the plan for the 10th grade entrance exam so that schools and students can proactively plan their teaching and revision accordingly and effectively.

The Ministry of Education and Training is expected to issue the regulations for admission to junior and senior high schools before December 31, 2024.

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/thi-vao-lop-10-bao-gio-chot-phuong-an-tuyen-sinh-10296820.html