Localities began grading the National High School Graduation Examination (THPT) immediately after the exam concluded. Literature is the only essay subject, and its grading process differs from other subjects, as stipulated by the THPT examination regulations.
Each Literature exam paper is graded independently in two rounds by two examiners from different grading teams and rooms. Prior to this, each team grades at least 10 papers together to standardize the marking approach, based on the Ministry of Education and Training's guidelines, scoring rubrics, and answer keys.
During the first independent grading round, examiners check each paper to ensure all pages and code numbers are present, and any remaining blank spaces are crossed out. If a paper is suspected of irregularities, such as writing in red ink or pencil, or containing irrelevant drawings or text, they report it and hand the paper to a superior for resolution.
According to regulations, if a paper is found to have markings or evidence of copying, candidates receive a 50% score reduction or a 0 score.
In this first round, examiners are prohibited from writing any symbols on the candidate's paper. Scores and comments are recorded on a separate grading sheet.
During the second grading round, the examiner records scores directly onto both the candidate's paper and the grading sheet.
Finally, the lead supervisor directs the teams to reconcile scores, depending on the situation:
| Score discrepancy between two grading rounds | Resolution method |
| Discrepancy under 1 point | The two examiners discuss and agree on a score. |
| Discrepancy between 1-1,5 points | The two examiners discuss and record the details in a report, then inform the head examiner or grading team leader to finalize the score. If no agreement is reached, the head examiner or team leader records the decision on the score. |
| Discrepancy over 1,5 points | The head examiner or team leader organizes a third grading round, directly marking the candidate's paper with a different colored ink. |
Furthermore, if deemed necessary, the Minister of Education and Training may decide to establish an appraisal council to review all or part of the exam papers.
Thus, a Literature exam paper may be graded anywhere from 2-4 times.
At a press conference following the exam on 12/6, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Pham Ngoc Thuong stated that the Literature exam questions are open-ended, meaning "the answer keys must also be open". When grading, examiners must respect the opinions and perspectives presented by candidates if they can defend their viewpoints, even if they challenge the content required by the question.
The Ministry has instructed provinces and cities grading Literature papers to update the progress and results of each grading session. If any anomalies are observed, such as too many high or low scores within the same batch of papers, a review is mandated.
This year marks the first time the Ministry has implemented the rubric method for grading Literature papers. This method employs specific descriptions of evaluation criteria and achievement levels for each criterion, ensuring fairness and reducing subjectivity.
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Candidates in Ho Chi Minh City taking the National High School Graduation Examination on 11/6. *Quynh Tran*
The National High School Graduation Examination took place over two days, 11-12/6, with over 1,2 million candidates. The Ministry announced the exam scores on the morning of 1/7.
Despite debates surrounding the Literature exam questions, particularly the prompt regarding "Vietnamese Steve Jobs", many teachers assessed the exam as appropriate in difficulty and effective for candidate differentiation, predicting common scores around 6,5-7.
Duong Tam
