Not new but surprising and creative

N MANY POINTS OF INNOVATION

Teacher Vo Kim Bao, head of the Literature Department at Nguyen Du Secondary School (District 1), commented: "The exam format is unusual because it's a framed, beautifully decorated letter from the teacher, a notice board from the 'Growing Up with Books' Club… The content of the exam is also new, as the reading comprehension text is no longer 100% quotations but is guided by the question setter. The reading comprehension text is written by the question setter themselves, playing the role of the teacher, and includes quotations from works related to the theme 'Let thoughts be put into words…'."

In the social commentary section, the essay prompt had two new points compared to previous years: introducing the topic with a poetic idea and creating an essay based on a given title. Regarding this requirement, Mr. Kim Bao said that the prompt wasn't difficult and most students could answer it. However, if students weren't careful, they might write an essay that didn't focus on the main point (only discussing the content of the poem or only discussing the given title without any connection).

Regarding the theme of patriotism in the first essay section of the literary analysis exam, teachers at Nguyen Du Secondary School believe it is very relatable to students.

Regarding topic 2 on family feelings, teacher Kim Bao believes the topic is not limited to poetry or short stories; students can choose any work that fits the theme, in any genre, for discussion. The difference from topic 1 is the supplementary requirement: sharing how they read and understood their chosen work. This supplementary requirement is not difficult; students can freely express their views, but those accustomed to model essays and formulaic thinking may not understand it.

Candidates confidently enter the 10th grade entrance exam in Ho Chi Minh City, starting with the Literature subject.

STUDENTS ARE FREE TO EXPRESS THEIR OWN THOUGHTS

Regarding this year's exam structure, teacher Huynh Le Y Nhi from Dong Khoi Secondary School (Tan Phu District) commented that although the structure is not new, there is still creativity in the exam, especially the social commentary question. The topic of discussion is humanistic in nature, allowing students to freely express their own perspectives and thoughts (this is also a question with a differentiating level of difficulty).

According to Ms. Nhi, at the age of 15, when students are taking their first important exam in life, the way the questions are structured is appropriate because the questions are both easy but also clearly differentiate between students' abilities.

Teacher Truong Minh Duc from Le Quy Don High School (District 3) commented: "The exam questions were creative within acceptable standards. The topics weren't new, but the way they were asked was always innovative. For example, the theme 'Let thoughts be put into words...' was consistently reflected in all three major questions with different texts. This created interest because it allowed students to view the issue from multiple perspectives. Moreover, the thematic consistency made it easier for examiners to differentiate students because the theme explored both the breadth of knowledge and the depth of perception through the details."

THERE ARE STILL MANY REGRETS

Master's degree holder Nguyen Phuoc Bao Khoi from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education commented that the exam structure hadn't changed much compared to last year. However, the thematic focus "Let thoughts be put into words..." wasn't really relevant to question 3. Nevertheless, this is a new direction that is suitable for teaching literature in recent times.

3 qualities in 1 topic

With the theme "Let your thoughts be put into words...", this year's 10th grade entrance exam in Ho Chi Minh City integrates three qualities into one theme: expressing your feelings and reflections on love for your country, love for your family, and love for yourself.

With that in mind, all three questions in the exam were designed to be open-ended, focusing on the qualities related to the topic.

From a content perspective, the exam is highly educational , appropriate for the students' age group, and practical. This is especially relevant given the current context where many young people are withdrawn and less likely to share or open up to those around them. In terms of presentation, the exam doesn't feel heavy or confusing for students. Although it's only two pages long, the presentation is light and the images are quite youthful and lively. Compared to previous years' exams, this year's literature exam still has some unexpected innovations, but they don't shock the candidates.

Given the open-ended nature of the exam questions, the grading rubric must also be open-ended to suit this. This requires a high degree of consensus within the grading committee, and examiners must be consistent in their grading.

Tran Ngoc Tuan

In addition, Master Bao Khoi provided specific analyses and comments on each aspect of this year's exam structure. First, regarding the reading comprehension text, Master Khoi believes it's highly likely that the text was created by the exam setters themselves, as there are no source citations. This feeling is even more pronounced upon closer reading, as the evidence supporting the viewpoints presented in the text lacks coherence, although it still has the potential to clarify the issue. This is quite regrettable, even though the question components are appropriate for different cognitive levels and show a clear differentiation.

Students discussed the exam after completing the Literature test. Many teachers commented that the essay topic in the exam was quite good, had high educational value, and was appropriate for the students' age group.

Lecturers from the University of Education commented that the essay topic was quite good, had high educational value, and was suitable for the students' age group. The way the problem was presented—posing a hypothesis to ask students to clarify the consequences—was quite creative. However, for intelligent students, it is entirely possible that they would find many clues in the letter's content to develop their essay. It is advisable to avoid using information from the previous question to suggest answers to the following question, as this reduces the exam's ability to differentiate between students.

Regarding literary analysis, for question 1, according to Mr. Khoi, the topic for discussion is a different subject (understanding patriotism) that is being tried to be applied to the main theme of the exam. However, patriotism and humanism are two main currents of Vietnamese literature, so students will easily be able to choose an excerpt that is compatible with the topic to write their essay.

Question 2 also faces a similar problem by attempting to incorporate a different theme (family feelings) into the theme "Let thoughts be put into words...". Furthermore, the additional instruction (share a few thoughts about how you converse with and understand the work/excerpt), which serves as a differentiating factor, is still unclear.

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