Ministry of Education and Training notes 'many special points' before high school graduation exam

This year's high school graduation exam took place with many special features and the Ministry of Education and Training had many specific instructions.

Yesterday, June 9, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Pham Ngoc Thuong inspected preparations for the 2025 high school graduation exam in Dong Nai; Deputy Minister Le Tan Dung also worked in Tien Giang and Vinh Long on this work. On the same day, Mr. Huynh Van Chuong, Director of the Department of Quality Management, inspected preparations for the exam in Bac Giang .

Summer exam review still complies with regulations on extra teaching and learning

These days, Viet Yen High School No. 2 (Bac Giang) is still organizing review sessions for 12th grade students to prepare for the high school graduation exam. Many students shared that although they are worried about the new way of making questions, especially the literature subject which no longer has materials from textbooks, teachers have focused on training their reading comprehension skills so that when approaching any text, they will not be confused.

Mr. Huynh Van Chuong, Director of the Department of Quality Management, talked with 12th grade students of Bac Giang province.

PHOTO: TRAN HIEP

Mr. Le Van Luc, the school's principal, said: Since February 14, when Circular 29 on extra teaching and learning took effect, the school has adjusted the 12th grade exam review plan accordingly. Although 100% of students registered for the course, and there was no fee, the review time for them not only did not decrease but also increased compared to previous years, because this year the exam followed a new curriculum and a new way of making questions.

At Bac Giang High School for the Gifted, although the quality of students is higher than the average, the school still organizes review sessions for students close to the exam date. Mr. Tran Duy Phuong, the school's principal, said that each week, 12th grade students are organized to review one session per subject. Although free for students, the school also balances expenses to allocate budget to pay teachers according to regulations on extra teaching hours, ensuring both consolidation of knowledge and adherence to the graduation exam reference structure of the Ministry of Education and Training. "Beyond this time, if any student is not confident in a subject and needs support, the school will arrange free teaching for them," Mr. Phuong said.

Mr. Bach Dang Khoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Education and Training of Bac Giang, said that because the first year of the high school graduation exam was according to the requirements of the 2018 General Education Program, in order to meet the requirements of innovation, the Department of Education and Training has directed units to carefully study the requirements of the program, analyze the Ministry's reference questions, develop plans and review content suitable for students. In particular, after Circular 29 took effect, the Department of Education and Training has instructed units to review professional assignments, encourage teachers to review for free for students according to regulations, diversify review forms, take advantage of the strengths of information technology applications, guide students to self-study, and proactively review to prepare for the high school graduation exam.

Mr. Khoa also said that the Department of Education and Training organized 100% of schools in the province to take two mock high school graduation exams last May so that students could get acquainted with the official exam locations and exam rooms. Based on the mock exam results, the Department of Education and Training continued to direct units, especially units that analyzed the mock exam results, thereby adjusting the teaching plan for each subject flexibly and effectively.

"Soft gate" and "hard" roster

In preparation for the exam, Bac Giang applied many special and unique measures. For example, all exam sites set up a "soft gate" to block illegal items from being brought into the exam room. Before entering this soft gate, candidates were reminded one last time by those in charge to only bring items that are allowed into the exam room according to the regulations. Mr. Bach Dang Khoa said that thanks to this approach, last year's exam had no cases of candidates violating the rules, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

For invigilators, Bac Giang has created a hard roster called "Invigilator's work in the exam room" for each subject. It clearly states each task that the invigilator must do in accordance with specific time frames. After completing each task, the invigilator ticks the sheet so as not to miss any steps in the exam room.

According to Mr. Khoa, this work sheet is also posted in front of each examination room so that not only the supervisors but also the candidates know, to ensure that the supervisors perform correctly and adequately to ensure the rights and responsibilities of the candidates in the examination room. This year, 2 elective exams are held in the same exam session, so detailed instructions for the supervisors, according to Mr. Khoa, are very necessary to ensure that there are no unnecessary mistakes or errors.

The leaders of the Bac Giang Department of Education and Training also affirmed that they have set higher requirements than the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training during the exam. For example, the regulations require that items that are not allowed to be brought into the exam room must be placed 20 meters away from the exam room, while Bac Giang requires 25 meters. The back of the exam room, especially the places with high scores where smart devices can be used to retrieve exam papers, have curtains or paper covering the windows to ensure that the exam papers are not leaked.

12th grade students in Bac Giang review for high school graduation exam

Photo: Tue Nguyen

Requirements "close to" the exam

Sharing with teachers and students in Bac Giang, Director Huynh Van Chuong mentioned the way the 10th grade entrance exam questions of the provinces and cities have been highly appreciated by public opinion recently and affirmed that the upcoming high school graduation exam will also aim to develop students' abilities like that. The literature subject will use rich materials outside of textbooks but still ensure that the materials are close to life and to 12th grade students. The exam questions have appropriate differentiation to serve the purpose of university admission. The results of the exam also serve to evaluate the end of the first cycle of the entireeducation sector implementing the 2018 General Education Program.

Mr. Chuong emphasized that this year's exam is an exam with "many special features": taking place in the context of the whole country implementing streamlining, rearranging administrative units, and merging provinces. Therefore, Mr. Chuong suggested that localities try to complete the review and issuance of high school graduation certificates to students before August 30 (the date of completion of the province merger) to create a stable mentality for candidates.

This is also the first exam to implement the exam regulations with many new points, including the transportation of exam papers via the transmission line of the Government Cipher Committee. Mr. Chuong requested that the provincial exam steering committees must closely coordinate with the provincial cipher committees and security agencies to carry out the transportation, printing, and security of the exam papers in absolute safety.

Regarding regulations on the use of high-tech devices to cheat in exams, Mr. Chuong requested to strengthen and enhance the responsibility of exam invigilators in monitoring and detecting devices, but must ensure that they do not cause stress or affect the psychology of candidates at exam sites.

Testing to prepare for computer-based exams from 2027

Previously, at Bac Giang High School for the Gifted, Director Huynh Van Chuong said that this was the testing site that the Ministry of Education and Training had chosen to coordinate a pilot test of organizing the high school graduation exam on computers and the results were very favorable. This is a premise to prepare for the expected computer-based exam from 2027.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bo-gd-dt-luu-y-nhieu-diem-dac-biet-truoc-ky-thi-tot-nghiep-thpt-185250609225240562.htm