Will the 2025 high school graduation exam in Literature no longer have 12-page answer sheets?

Sample test for the Literature subject in the 2025 high school graduation exam with many new features.

PHOTO: SOURCE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

On the afternoon of October 18th, the Ministry of Education and Training officially released the sample exam questions for the 2025 high school graduation exam for 17 subjects, along with the answer keys. Among them, the Literature exam attracted significant public attention due to the absence of any works from the current textbooks, its innovative question format compared to the old curriculum, and several new requirements, such as the 600-word essay writing requirement for the most-point question instead of allowing free writing.

The 2025 high school graduation exam in Literature will undergo a complete transformation.

Nguyen Van Thu, a 12th-grade student from Tam Vu High School ( Hau Giang province ), commented that the sample literature exam was "quite difficult and highly differentiated." This is because, starting from question 3, students had to identify the effectiveness of a literary device, instead of beginning with questions about rhetorical devices, genres, and the effects of literary devices in a specific sentence as in previous exams. "This makes it easy for students to get confused when reading the questions," the student said.

Meanwhile, regarding the writing section, Thu said that although the prompt required students to adhere to the excerpt, the question asking for an analysis of images of Hanoi was still not easy for those who had never been to the capital to experience its atmosphere and streets. This made it difficult for them to write well-written, emotionally resonant essays. "For question 2, while artificial intelligence is realistic, we would find it easier to share our opinions if the question addressed issues relevant to young people," Thu said.

Thu also added that this was the first time he had seen a requirement to write a 200-word paragraph, while the 600-word requirement had been announced by his teachers a long time ago. Thu also supported the requirement to write a 600-word social commentary essay, because it's difficult to include many ideas in a literary analysis essay of only 600 words. "I found the prompt much easier," the male student shared, adding that creating an outline before writing the essay seemed mandatory for this prompt.

"Overall, I think the exam was quite challenging and practical, but it didn't fully follow the textbook curriculum as the writing section didn't include a comparison between the two works," Thu stated. According to the student, 600 words wouldn't fill three pages, so from 2025 onwards, there will no longer be instances of a student writing up to 12 pages like before.

Candidates in Ho Chi Minh City before the 2024 high school graduation exam in Literature.

A 12th-grade student from Bach Dang High School ( Hai Phong ) assessed the 2025 literature exam as a "complete breakthrough and transformation." In the reading comprehension section, instead of asking about poetic forms as usual, the exam requires candidates to identify the characteristics of each form. This is a very new question and requires students to have a new way of answering, the male student observed. "However, I'm not too worried because my teachers will guide me," the student said.

Worried about losing points on the writing section.

The male student added that question 1 in the writing section would be difficult for those who couldn't identify the question's requirements. However, those who listened carefully to the lectures and developed a natural reflex would not be discouraged. As for question 2, the social commentary section, it allows students to freely express their own viewpoints and explore various aspects, rather than being confined to a specific work. "I think I can get over 8 points with this exam," the student said.

"I personally hate having to memorize study guides every day, and I would never support that. I quite like the open-ended exam format as it is now, although it's quite difficult at first because there will be many new question types that require students to think critically, research, and keep up with current events to answer them. But any exam requires learning the skills to do well, so I don't feel pressured," the male student added.

However, the male student also pointed out a difficulty: having to write exactly the number of words required by the exam, because he and his classmates often write "over" in tests due to the large number of sections to cover. "So I'm worried about whether I'll be penalized for doing that in the exam, or if the teachers will be flexible on this matter," the student wondered.

Answer key for the sample test in Literature for the 2025 High School Graduation Exam.

PHOTO: SOURCE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Sharing the same concern, Nguyen Thi Thanh My, a 12th-grade student at Nguyen Thi Minh Khai High School (Ho Chi Minh City), also fears that examiners will deduct points if she writes less or more than the required length. My added that setting a predetermined length of 200 or 600 words requires students to practice writing "extremely much" to be able to develop ideas and structure their writing according to the requirements.

Another difficulty in the sample literature exam, according to the US, is that it hasn't been clarified whether the writing section will follow the correct order of a 200-word literary essay and a 600-word social commentary essay, or whether the official exam will change. Historically, social commentary essays have always been shorter than literary essays, instead of the other way around as in the current sample exam, and this significantly impacts how students prepare.

"Previously, we were always used to writing longer literary analysis essays, and it became a habit when doing the exam, so if we don't clearly differentiate between them, it will be very difficult for us to prepare," My said, adding that because the exam questions are based on works outside of the textbook, students have to learn how to write the right type of essay: comparing or evaluating two different works, or both comparing and evaluating.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thi-tot-nghiep-thpt-2025-mon-ngu-van-se-khong-con-bai-lam-12-trang-giay-185241018203840246.htm