This is also the first time that combined social science subjects, which include history, geography, and civic education, are being tested using multiple choice questions. Student's outlines scattered with red and blue notes; margins being filled with keywords for answers to the multiple choice exam of combined social science subjects. These are some of the most common ways that students in Ho Chi Minh City use to prepare for their upcoming exams, which will be conducted in a new method.
Nguyen Vu Thu Trang, Class 12CA1, Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted said: “I note all the keywords down to be safe, so that later I can study them”.
As for teachers like Thục Uyên, now, she is required to integrate additional geography, literature and civic education into her history lessons.
Huynh Oanh Thuc Nguyen, History Teacher, Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted said: “Whenever I mention a historic location, I always ask the students about its geographical position to remind them of their geography lessons”.
While the debate on whether multiple choice exams limit students' critical thinking and language ability is still unsettled, many students have voiced their preferences for this type of examination. For example, in Lê Hồng Phong High School for the Gifted, 150 out of 400 students chose the multiple choice exams for their social science subjects.
Do Chau Giang, Class 12CA1, Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted said: “The multiple choices in these exams are not numbers. They're all about the meanings of certain historical events. They're quite simple to learn”.
This is the first year that exams for social science subjects are carried out in this method, so the questions bank is still constructed based on the teachers' intuition and perhaps pupils may find the first round of exams more difficult due to a lack of awareness about the expected content.
