Misunderstanding because of blurred 10th grade math exam

Hanoi: Some 10th grade math exams have blurred fraction dashes, causing many students to mistake them for negative signs and lose 1-2 points.

On the morning of June 11, more than 104,000 Hanoi students took the Math exam, which is also the last subject in the entrance exam for non-specialized public high schools.

In point 1, question III, the question requires candidates to solve a system of equations, finding two unknowns x and y. The first equation is in the form 2/(x-3). However, in some test questions, the dash in the equation is blurred and not continuous, causing many students to mistake it for a negative sign.

Point 1, question III is about solving a system of equations, in which the fraction sign in the first equation is blurred. Photo: Provided by the character

Tran Nghia, Gia Lam district, falls into this case. Taking the exam at Cao Ba Quat High School, Nghia initially felt "something was wrong" when he got an odd number, not a good number, but he thought "maybe this year the answer will be odd".

Having solved 4/5 exercises completely, leaving only the last exercise for gifted students, Nghia calculated that he got about 8.5-9 points, reaching his goal. But when comparing his answers with his friends, Nghia was startled.

"Your questions weren't blurred like mine, the dashes of the fractions were clear and seamless. Only then did I realize I made a mistake," Nghia said.

Ms. Lan, a parent in Cau Giay district, said her son also got this question wrong. The mother said that when he left the test site, his son was happy and said he was sure he would get 9 points.

"I was also happy, but when we compared the suggested answers, my son and I saw the difference between the questions," said Ms. Lan, adding that her son cried when he discovered he had made a mistake.

On forums, many students reported similar situations. Some parents said they would file a complaint with the Department of Education and Training, currently with about 40 signatures.

According to the exam regulations, "upon receiving the exam papers, candidates must carefully check the number of pages and the quality of the printed pages; if they find that the exam papers are missing pages or are torn, damaged, smudged, or faded, they must immediately notify the exam invigilator, no later than five minutes from the time the exam papers are distributed."

Nghia said he was also informed about this by the supervisor, but he did not think his test paper had poor printing quality.

"I really thought it was a negative sign, so I didn't report it to the supervisor," the male student explained.

Point 1, question III in another test, the fraction part in the first equation is not blurred. Photo: Thanh Hang

Question III of the exam does not specify the score for solving the system of equations, but according to many teachers, this part is worth 1 point. Thus, students who get it wrong will lose 2 points in the total score for admission to public grade 10, because the Math score is doubled.

Ms. Lan is worried that this mistake could cause her son to fail high school. This year, her son has placed his first choice in Le Quy Don High School - Dong Da, the school's average standard score last year was 8.05. Her son is strong in Math, and she is determined to raise his Literature and English scores. Therefore, she believes that if he loses 1 point in Math, her son will "most likely" not be able to pass his first choice.

With the second wish placed on Khuong Ha High School, the chance is also slim because this school has the highest 10th grade competition rate in Hanoi this year.

Nghia was also restless after discovering the mistake. He registered his first choice at Cao Ba Quat High School, Gia Lam District. Last year, this school had an average standard score of 7.1.

"Cao Ba Quat School has increased its benchmark scores for three consecutive years. If it increases again this year, I'm afraid I'll fail," Nghia said.

Mr. Vo Quoc Ba Can, a teacher at Archimedes Academy Hanoi, said this was a rare incident.

Mr. Can said that if students were calm and looked carefully, they would see that the blurred part was the fraction sign, because in terms of size or position of the x-3 calculation, this equation is not larger than the equation below. However, according to Mr. Can, it could be because the candidates were psychologically unprepared and not careful enough to observe, leading to mistakes.

The correct answer to the problem is (x,y) = (7/2, 1). If the calculation is mistakenly negative, the solution is (83/26, -19/5).

Regarding the regulations, Mr. Can said that the Department of Education and Training and the Examination Council were not wrong. When having doubts about the exam, students have the right to ask questions, but they may not dare to ask, or misunderstand the request "the supervisor does not explain anything further".

"If a candidate can still calculate the result after looking at it wrong, it shows that he or she still has the ability. I really hope the Department will accept the results and give points to candidates who miscalculated because they looked at the question wrongly," said Mr. Can.

This is also the wish of Nghia and Ms. Lan. "I hope the Department has a positive solution for us, the 10th grade entrance exam is already stressful enough," Nghia said.

The Hanoi Department of Education and Training said on the evening of June 11 that it had received feedback on the incident. Currently, the 10th grade exam has not ended, and there are still specialized exams tomorrow. Therefore, members of the exam-making council are still in quarantine. The Department will work with the exam-making council after the final exam ends at 4:30 pm tomorrow.

"After specific verification, the Department will have a handling plan in accordance with regulations, in the spirit of ensuring maximum rights and fairness for candidates," the Department informed.

During the two days of June 10-11, 104,000 students in Hanoi completed three exams in Literature, Foreign Language and Mathematics to enter grade 10 of non-specialized public high schools. With a target of about 72,000, the admission rate is 66.5%. The admission score is the sum of Literature and Math scores multiplied by two, plus the Foreign Language score and priority points (if any).

Tomorrow, about 10,000 students applying to specialized schools will take an additional specialized subject exam. The admission score for specialized 10th grade is the sum of the scores of the three exams Math, Literature, Foreign Language and the specialized subject score multiplied by a factor of two.

This year’s Hanoi public 10th grade exam scores and benchmark scores will be announced on July 4 and July 8-9. If admitted, students will enroll online. From July 18, schools that do not meet their enrollment quota will begin to consider additional enrollment.

Thanh Hang

*Names of parents and candidates have been changed

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