The student is tense before the 10th grade entrance exam

This year, Oanh applied for the first place in Saigon University’s Practical High School – a school in the top 10 with the highest benchmark scores for decades. Before 2020, with the method of entrance exam, multiplying the coefficient of two subjects Math and Literature, the school took the standard score of 39-40. This year, the admission score is calculated as a factor of 1 for all three subjects of Mathematics, Literature and English. To be admitted, candidates must score about 8 points in each subject. This is not a small pressure for Oanh and the candidates who choose the top school.

Oanh said that the entrance exam to the Gifted High School is a rehearsal for girls before the most important goal – the public 10th grade exam. “However, the type of questions in the two exams are different, so I still have to make a lot of effort,” Oanh said.

In addition to self-study, Oanh participates in a number of extra classes. Oanh’s total study time in a day is about 12-15 hours. For Literature and Math subjects, female students review all core knowledge and do basic math forms. Particularly in English, Oanh learns formulas and grammar. According to Oanh, a few days before the exam is the right time to memorize the formulas, helping to solve the exercises more firmly.

“I get a lot of encouragement from my family and teachers, but I can’t avoid psychological stress because of the fierce competition for this school,” said Oanh.

Similarly, Nguyen Hung Duy (District 5) is also worried about the desire to enter Nguyen Thuong Hien High School. This is a school with competitive rates and benchmarks tallest for years. The school’s match rate this year is 1/3.2. In addition to Nguyen Thuong Hien, Duy also registered for entrance exams to Le Quy Don High School and Tran Huu Trang High School.

According to Duy, the pressure to enter the top schools comes from the high and uniform competition rate and quality of candidates. “Most of the people who applied to Nguyen Thuong Hien have good grades, so the competition is fierce. I put all my effort into studying in the last three weeks,” Duy said.

This year, the city has 108,000 students graduating from secondary schools with a total target of nearly 73,000 public schools.

According to initial data released by the Department of Education and Training, about 93,000 contestants register for the exam. However, after the adjustment of aspirations, about 86,200 children participated; in which more than 6,400 exams for specialized classes, 1,300 exams for integrated classes. Many candidates decided not to take the 10th grade exam, choosing another path.

Many high school principals said that the decrease in the number of candidates does not mean that the level of competition for public schools has also decreased. In addition to the group of top schools, in the city center such as Nguyen Thuong Hien, Nguyen Huu Huan, Gia Dinh, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Le Quy Don… Good high schools in the district also have fierce competition.

Do Nhat Anh (Thu Duc City) hastily reviewed the core knowledge of three subjects in the last week before the exam, with the goal of entering Duong Van Thi High School. The school’s 2020 standard score is not too high, about 19-22.5, but the school has just been established, with spacious facilities, so many parents and students are interested.

Through mock exams and self-assessment, Nhat Anh’s score was enough to pass Duong Van Thi school according to the previous year’s benchmark. However, Nhat Anh is not reassured because this year’s benchmark may increase due to the increase in the rate of admission to the school. Not to mention, the pressure of the exam room will make the results not as good as the mock exam.

Mr. Le Hoai Nam, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, said that about 70-80% of the content of the 10th grade exam is knowledge in the form of awareness and understanding, mainly in the 9th grade program. Students have to study online for most of the first semester, the advanced knowledge in the exam is reduced, in line with their general ability.

In general, about 35,000 children will not enter the public high school system. The department’s leader said that these students do not worry about lack of places to study because there are nearly 50,000 targets to enter private and people-founded high schools, vocational education centers – continuing education and vocational schools.

Manh Tung – Thu Huong