High School for the Gifted: English 'easy', essay questions about Southern Vietnam and the choice of subjects.

This afternoon (May 23), more than 4,700 ninth-grade students from various localities officially completed their first exam session to compete for a spot at the High School for the Gifted (Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City), with two non-specialized subjects: literature and English.

Parents braved the heat to wait for their children taking the 10th grade entrance exam at the High School for the Gifted this afternoon, May 23rd.

PHOTO: NGOC LONG

"The questions in the non-specialized literature section are all relatable to young people."

Speaking to Thanh Nien newspaper at the exam site at Thien Ho Duong Primary School (Hoa Hung Ward, Ho Chi Minh City), Bao Han, a student from Tan Binh Secondary School (Tan Son Nhat Ward), said she completed the non-specialized literature exam without much difficulty. Han explained that the reading comprehension passage was taken from "Clinging On" - one of the short stories in the collection "Mangrove Forest" by author Binh Nguyen Loc - which tells the story of the life in the Southern region of old Nghiem, the boy At, and an unnamed widow.

Binh Nguyen Loc was born and lived almost his entire life in the former Dong Nai -Saigon region. He was a prominent prose writer in the Southern urban area during the period 1954-1975, specializing in writing about the life and people of the Dong Nai and Mekong Delta regions, according to the literary research and criticism book "Literary Perceptions" by Nguyen Thi Thu Trang.

In the work "Clinging On ," Old Nghiem—likened to a "chieftain of ancient times"—reflects on the fact that many fish, instead of "fleeing," try to swim against the current because they "love the place where they were born and raised." From this, Old Nghiem draws a parallel to how his ancestors "intended to leave the village to seek a living elsewhere," but ultimately couldn't bring themselves to leave because "as long as the village exists, so does the water."

"The essay question asked us whether the villagers' decision to stay was blind or wise," Han said.

Regarding the 200-word essay question, the female student said the prompt required an analysis of one of two things: either the storytelling style and use of Southern dialect in the text, or the psychology of the characters to clarify the work's theme.

As for the essay question, the text is taken from the book "The Paradox of Choice" by psychologist Barry Schwartz, which talks about how we have more and more products to consider, but the satisfaction of making choices is decreasing.

According to Han, based on Barry Schwartz's opinion and the choices presented in the text "Holding On ," the question suggests that young people aged 14-15 often live in uncertainty, hesitation, and regret before each choice. Therefore, the question asks candidates to present their own experiences, and offer their perspective and solutions to the aforementioned problem.

Ninth-grade students leave after the exam.

PHOTO: NGOC LONG

To elaborate on this point, Han shared that she presented two reasons: one subjective, stemming from the young people themselves, and one objective, arising from the fact that families today often give their children many different choices. The consequence is that many young people live lives of regret, when the moment they thought was right later becomes a moment they constantly blame.

"My solution is that families must accompany their children throughout life, and students should also expand their social circle to gain more life experiences," the female student shared.

"I felt completely immersed in the questions," Han said, explaining that the questions in the non-specialized literature section were all relatable to young people like her.

Nguyen Hoang Anh, a student from Tan Tao Secondary School, shared her opinion that the questions in the exam "related to herself" with topics relevant to the current reality of students. "The exam was manageable and not too difficult, but because I ran out of time, I wrote the essay quite briefly," said the female student who chose to specialize in physics at the High School for the Gifted.

• At the Gifted High School, 1 student competed against 8 others; which part of the exam did the candidates find the most difficult?

• With a surge in the number of candidates for the 10th grade entrance exam at the Gifted High School, what will the exam structure be like?

Standing beside me, a student from Ngo Quyen Secondary School (Bay Hien Ward) shared that their argument was based on two main points. Firstly, the constant hesitation about choices can easily drain the energy of young people, citing the example of a famous social media personality who initially pursued information technology as a trend but lacked passion, ultimately abandoning the profession and wasting four years of their youth.

Regarding the second point, this female student believes that young people should be more decisive, especially in small decisions, instead of constantly following the opinions of others. "My solution is that young people shouldn't focus too much on achieving a brilliant future; happiness in the present is more important," the student explained.

However, the student also expressed regret for not having enough time to complete the assignment fully.

According to information from the Gifted High School, the structure of the non-specialized literature exam has 3 parts, including 5 reading comprehension-multiple choice questions (2.5 points), 2 reading comprehension-essay questions (1.5), 1 paragraph writing question (2) and 1 essay writing question (4). The total time for the exam is 100 minutes.

Parents were thrilled after hearing the news that their child had done well on the exam.

PHOTO: NGOC LONG

"Some students in the exam room even said the questions were 'unbelievably easy'."

Regarding the English exam, Truong Phuc, a student from Lam Son Secondary School (Binh Phu Ward), said that the questions were "easy" and that he only faced challenges mainly in pronunciation, because "I'm already familiar with many words, so I don't know if my pronunciation is correct or not." Similarly, HTMy, a student from Ly Thanh Tong Secondary School (Chanh Hung Ward), recounted that a classmate in the exam room said the questions were "unbelievably easy."

For My, taking the entrance exam for the 10th grade at the Gifted High School was considered an experience, so she felt quite relaxed about the exam.

This afternoon, 9th-grade students will continue their non-specialized mathematics exam, lasting 120 minutes. Tomorrow (May 23rd), students will take the specialized subject exam they registered for. English, chemistry, physics, biology, and computer science will be tested in the morning, while literature and mathematics will be tested in the afternoon. All specialized subjects have a 150-minute time limit. The admission score is the sum of the scores from the three non-specialized exams plus double the score from the specialized exam.

According to the announcement from the High School for the Gifted, the exam results, admission scores, and cut-off scores for specialized classes will be announced within 15 working days from the last exam date. The appeal process will be conducted within the following 7 working days.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thi-pho-thong-nang-khieu-tieng-anh-de-van-hoi-ve-nam-bo-va-su-lua-chon-185260523142021834.htm