Abolishing the 10th grade exam is not only a reform but also an educational planning problem.

Universalizing high school education and expanding schools: The "key" to eliminating the 10th grade exam

In fact, for many years now, the entrance exam for grade 10 in some localities has been more rigorous and competitive than that for university. Many opinions say that, in order to not have to rely on screening exams, universalizing high school education along with expanding the scale of schools is a prerequisite and indispensable.

Mr. Le Trung Kien, Principal of Nguyen Gia Thieu High School (Long Bien, Hanoi ), said: “If we abolish the 10th grade entrance exam, we need to have an alternative solution to ensure fairness. For example, Hanoi used to apply for admission based on academic records, but it was only effective in the first one or two years. After that, “good academic records” became popular, not reflecting the true abilities of students.”

According to Mr. Kien, only when high school education is universalized, meaning students can study near their place of residence, will the admission process be truly fair. “To do that, we must open more schools, increase the number of classes, and ensure enough places to study. If we do not have enough conditions, we still have to take exams to screen.”

Ms. Hai Yen, a parent of a 9th grader in Hanoi, also said that eliminating the exam means that students will no longer have the freedom to choose a school and will have to study in their residential area. Exams and exams are two different forms of selection, but both are essentially selective. Parents are very concerned about the admission process because they fear it is unfair.

Alternative solutions to the 10th grade entrance exam need to be carefully designed, transparent and based on practice, ensuring fair rights for students.

According to many education experts, the policy is correct, but to implement it, there must be a roadmap and specific conditions. This is a multi-variable problem that requires a comprehensive solution. In particular, expanding schools is an urgent requirement in big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, where the population is growing rapidly and the demand for education is very high.

Teacher Nguyen Quang Thi, Bao Loc High School (Lam Dong), also made a very practical suggestion: " The Ministry of Education and Training should build a question bank and eliminate the 10th grade entrance exam to reduce pressure and create fairness for students."

According to him, at the secondary level, students have gone through many regular, mid-term, and periodic tests, and the transcript is the basis for admission, helping to save costs for the locality," he analyzed. He also cited localities such as Ca Mau, Gia Lai, Vinh Long and Lam Dong that have applied the 10th grade admission method for many years and achieved good results. Lam Dong province has used this method for more than 10 years with high school graduation exam results among the highest in the country. The important thing is to organize teaching and manage quality, not whether to take the exam or not.

Examination innovation and streaming must ensure transparency and fairness.

In this context, educational experts have put forward many viewpoints and solutions to improve assessment quality and build a student streaming system suitable for practice.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Thi said that each locality needs to develop a suitable enrollment plan, ensuring that students study near their place of residence. Schools are responsible for the quality of teaching before the Department of Education leaders. In addition, with two-level local governments, each commune and ward almost always has at least one high school, making it convenient for students to be classified according to their residential area.

Dr. Hoang Ngoc Vinh, former Director of the Department of Vocational Education (Ministry of Education and Training), said that the current innovation of exams and student streaming still has many shortcomings, which need to be recognized and thoroughly resolved.

First of all, he pointed out that organizing too many exams is putting a lot of pressure on students, and at the same time contradicting the principle of continuous assessment during the learning process. According to him, there needs to be a suitable adjustment plan, in which admission based on transparent and reliable academic records is a feasible direction to reduce the burden on both students and schools.

However, he also warned that the current method of considering academic records for admission is questionable in terms of reliability. To overcome this, it is necessary to improve the quality of exam management, strengthen teacher inspection and focus on professional ethics in student assessment. He proposed applying blockchain technology in exam management to prevent cheating and ensure transparency in the entire process.

In addition, Dr. Vinh emphasized that student streaming needs to be strongly socialized. He proposed expanding the role of vocational colleges, combining general education with vocational skills training. This approach will help students have more choices suitable to their personal abilities and labor market needs, while improving employment opportunities after graduation.

It can be said that the alternative solution to the 10th grade entrance exam needs to be carefully designed, transparent and based on practice, ensuring fair rights for students, while expanding the scale and quality of general and vocational education.

Original link: https://vov.vn/xa-hoi/bo-thi-lop-10-khong-chi-la-cai-cach-ma-la-bai-toan-quy-hoach-giao-duc-post1239551.vov