The public arena

TP - Since when has the 10th grade entrance exam become a mental battle for every parent? There's no single correct answer to that question.

All we know is that when their children enter sixth grade, parents have to start worrying about finding extra tutoring, calculating, and choosing options so that four years later, their children have a chance to get into their desired public high school.

Children go to school every day filled with the hopes and expectations of their parents, but also with the pressure of securing a place in the future. The children go to school, but it is the parents who ultimately decide where they will study.

For parents in Hanoi, finding a place for their children in 10th grade is like a game of chance. No one knows why, in 2024, the entrance score for Doan Ket High School in Hai Ba Trung district dropped to only 23.75/50 points, a decrease of 16.25 points compared to 2023. If they could calculate it, many parents would surely "bet" on their children's admission.

And unexpectedly, the entrance exam scores for Le Quy Don High School (Ha Dong) have recently skyrocketed to levels comparable to Hanoi 's "five top high schools": Kim Lien High School, Phan Dinh Phung High School, Chu Van An High School, Tran Phu High School, and Viet Duc High School.

In the intense competition among parents, a difference of just 0.25 points can close all doors to public high schools because the cutoff score for the second choice must be higher than the first choice. These calculations are sometimes completely wrong, so every year parents are left scrambling to find the right school and class for their children.

These sudden and unexpected educational policies leave parents unprepared. In early 2024, parents were shocked when Hanoi Amsterdam High School for the Gifted stopped admitting students to the 6th grade, and after four years of searching for tutoring centers, all their plans for their children suddenly became meaningless.

At the end of 2024, parents were also taken aback by Circular 30 of the Ministry of Education and Training , which prohibited junior high schools from admitting students to grade 6 through entrance exams. Previously, the draft Circular had not mentioned this content.

Parents are complaining bitterly, and high-quality and specialized secondary schools in major cities are also worried and confused about how to recruit students when the number of applicants far exceeds the quota.

Public opinion was outraged, and leaders of many junior high schools that had previously organized aptitude tests reacted strongly. The information previously announced by these schools regarding admissions for grade 6 was abruptly halted. The Ministry of Education and Training immediately intervened, shifting the responsibility for guiding admissions to the provincial Departments of Education and Training.

Education needs innovation but also stability because of its impact on every family, every citizen, and every generation. Among the localities that have announced their 10th-grade enrollment plans, only two provinces, Vinh Long and Gia Lai, will not hold entrance exams.

Perhaps parents in these two localities are the happiest because they don't have to worry about securing a place for their children in public schools. Hopefully, when implementing policies, the authorities will conduct research on the impacts to alleviate the already immense pressure on parents.

Population pressure, pressure to streamline education after lower secondary school, and a shortage of schools and classrooms are weighing heavily on economically disadvantaged parents in large cities.

TP - Since when has the 10th grade entrance exam become a mental battle for every parent? There's no single correct answer to that question.

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