The exam on the morning of June 2nd gave a passage: "A magnificent building is built from sturdy pink bricks. But the bricks were originally just silent blocks of earth. What is remarkable is that they were created through the hands of the craftsman who selected, kneaded, refined, skillfully and wholeheartedly."
From there, the question requires candidates to associate the work of a bricklayer with the writer's process of creating literary works. This question is worth 6 points.
The remaining question, worth 4 points, asks students to relate it to the maturity of each person in life, to see the similarity with the work of a bricklayer.
Many Literature teachers believe that this exam is highly classified, helping to select excellent students with logical thinking. From phenomena in life, the exam poses two questions, with clear directions, candidates need to demonstrate both practical understanding and literary knowledge.
Literature exam for grade 10 entrance exam at Social Sciences and Humanities High School in 2024. Photo: Binh Minh
According to Ms. Pham Thi Giang, Literature teacher at Cu Chinh Lan Secondary School, Thanh Hoa, question 1 actually requires students to discuss the creative process of a writer. The work of a writer in particular and artistic creation in general is like that of a bricklayer. They must start from small things such as penetrating life, taking notes, filtering and using their ability to generalize to create works.
"If students do not understand the stages that a writer's creative process must go through, they will not be able to thoroughly understand the problem and write correctly, let alone well," Ms. Giang said.
In addition, borrowing the image of a bricklayer to associate with the writer's artistic work will help students understand academic knowledge in the most popular and easy-to-understand way.
"This is a bright spot for the test maker," Ms. Giang added.
Doctor of Literature Nguyen Xuan Hao, a teacher at Le Quy Don High School in Hanoi, also highly appreciated the test on this point. According to him, the test was not confusing as it was based on a specific event, making it easy for students to visualize and relate.
To solve question 1, students need to give evidence about the artistic work process of writers and poets, showing that they are like bricklayers in art. Teacher Hao suggested that students can take examples from the poem "Squadron of Glassless Cars" by Pham Tien Duat or "Sang Thu" by Huu Thinh.
In sentence 2, according to Mr. Hao, the maturity of each person is similar to the work of a bricklayer in that each individual must practice and cultivate both morality and knowledge from the smallest things, to become increasingly perfect.
"This is like building a house from the first bricks. The completed house is as beautiful as the person who has grown up and matured," Mr. Hao shared.
According to Ms. Giang, the second question is a social argument, but it is placed in relation to a literary argument, creating an intersection between literature and life. Students with good comparative thinking ability can do it well and meet the requirements.
"In this topic, if students are not taught in the direction of exploiting literary theory, they can only get from 5 to 6," Ms. Giang predicted.
Another point that Ms. Nguyen Hoa, Nguyen Huy Tuong Secondary School, Hanoi, highly appreciated was the use of materials to create questions that were not found in textbooks or advanced books. Therefore, the exam accurately assessed the candidates' abilities.
"In 150 minutes, students must have real talent, be quick in thinking, and flexible in language to be able to complete the test well," said Ms. Hoa.
Candidates exchange their answers after finishing the exam, morning of June 2. Photo: Binh Minh
This year, more than 1,500 students took the entrance exam for grade 10 at the High School for the Gifted in Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. Of these, nearly 1,000 students registered for the Literature class alone. With 70 quotas, the competition ratio for this class is up to 1/13.26.
The exam score, which is also the admission score, is calculated on a scale of 10, rounded to two decimal places. The results will be announced before June 28.
Last year, candidates had to take 4 exams (Math, Literature, English and specialized subject) so the highest total score was 50. The Literature class had the highest entrance score with 34.6/50 points, the other two classes had 4 points lower.
Press reported:
VNExpress:4,000 candidates flock to two specialized schools in Hanoi
VTV:Many candidates confidently finished the entrance exam to grade 10 of the Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and Humanities High School.
VNExpress:Grade 10 Literature Topic asks about the job of a bricklayer
Vietnamnet: Summary of entrance exam questions for grade 10 of Social Sciences & Humanities High School in 2024
VTCnews: Exam questions for 3 subjects: Literature, History, Geography for 10th grade of high school specializing in Social Sciences and Humanities
