Humanities Exam Diary, July 2, 2015

Sunny, sunny and sunny

The hot weather continued throughout the exam day, leading to fatigue and exhaustion among the candidates. Two candidates had health problems during the exam (one fainted and the other had a nosebleed), however the medical team provided timely first aid to help them complete the exam and the results were accepted by the Examination Council.

Outside the exam room, parents were waiting in the sweltering heat. Ms. Lien (Ha Nam) shared: “It’s also hot in the countryside, but not as hot and uncomfortable as here, because we have a lot of fields. My child and I will take the exam this afternoon and then I will take him back to the countryside. It’s also uncomfortable in the rented room, and there was a power outage.”

Parents are angry, candidates are angry and even the exam supervisors have to endure the heat to accompany the students, but the teachers still work very seriously, transparently and effectively.

The heat still torments candidates on the second day of the exam (Photo: Pham Thanh Tung)

Parents waiting for their children in the sun (Photo: Ninh Thu)

Easy exam

The weather was so uncomfortable that it burned our hands and feet, but in return, this year's exam questions were very easy and within the candidates' ability. Nguyen Van Viet (Tran Hung Dao High School) commented on the morning literature exam: "I found the exam questions to be easier than the previous exam questions introduced by the Ministry. Literature is the subject we are most worried about because this year the exam structure is completely new. Although the first Reading - Comprehension section is really difficult for us, the social argument and literary argument questions that follow are very easy because they are about issues and characters that we are familiar with. I also tried to write 6 pages." This year's literature exam with its new structure was truly a surprise for the 97 candidates, the reading comprehension section was completely new material about love for the sea and islands and indifference. The social argument section discussed the importance of life skills. The literary essay section gives candidates an overview of the character of the fishmonger woman in “The Boat Out at Sea” by Nguyen Minh Chau – a typical female character in the 12th grade Literature program.

The afternoon physics exam was not difficult for candidates, even for social science candidates like Ngoc (Kim Lien High School): "I took the physics exam to have enough subjects and enough points to graduate, but I think it is not too difficult to get a score of 5-6."

The test was not difficult, the candidates were excited when they left the exam room (Photo: Pham Thanh Tung)

Thuy Loi "fell in love" with Nhan Van

Having only been together for two days of competition, the volunteer teams of the two schools have “fallen in love” with each other in their good coordination, solidarity, discipline and enthusiasm to bring about two effective competition days. Because more than 150 members are all wearing the same volunteer green color.

Nguyen Anh Truong – Captain of the volunteer team of Thuy Loi University said about the Humanities Volunteer Team: “My impression of the whole team is the enthusiasm and the large number of people. They showed themselves to be hospitable hosts when taking on the most difficult task of coordinating traffic on Nguyen Trai Street and from the school gate. They burned themselves out in the sun under the Humanities.”

Le Quang Phap - Captain of the Humanitarian Shock Team also responded positively: "Although the Thuy Loi team only has a small number of volunteers to support us, they still maintain a high level of discipline when working. They are especially enthusiastic and energetic. During breaks, even though they are very tired, the team still sings and plays games."

Members of the two schools had two days of effective collaboration in a clear division to ensure peace of mind at the exam site for candidates and parents. Both also shared the harshness of the weather these days when having to work in the hot sun.

Volunteer team of DDH Thuy Loi at Nhan Van (Photo: Pham Thanh Tung)

The Nhan Van volunteer team coordinates traffic on Nguyen Trai Street (Photo: Pham Thanh Tung)

Closing two days of the National High School Exam at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, the golden sunshine and green shirts are the most impressive things that remain in the minds of the candidates and their families. The High School Exam will continue until July 4 with the remaining 4 elective subjects.