The 2025 high school graduation exam tends to increase the number of questions on practical application, situation handling skills, and data analysis instead of just testing pure theory. Practical lessons from this year's exam show that schools and teachers need to prepare early and remotely so that candidates can best adapt to the following exams.
Change the way you learn and review
According to Mr. Trang Minh Thien - teacher at Nguyen Viet Dung High School (Cai Rang, Can Tho ), the innovations in the 2025 high school graduation exam may surprise many candidates who are not familiar with competency-based learning. However, this is the key to success in changing learning mindset, shifting from learning to memorize knowledge to forming competencies and skills - real learning, real exams, real competencies.
The new program does not require students to memorize every detail, but rather to deeply understand the nature of the problem, know how to link knowledge and apply it to reality. Instead of just memorizing theories and formulas of Physics and Technology, students need to understand what phenomena those formulas describe and how that technology is applied in daily life.
“2K8 students need to change the way they study and review from now on.” Emphasizing this, according to teacher Trang Minh Thien, the first thing is to get used to the new format. Specifically, the 2025 graduation exam will have additional true/false and short answer questions, requiring a high degree of certainty and accuracy.
With elective subjects, instead of studying widely, students should choose subjects that they are strong in and invest in studying deeply, understanding thoroughly, and linking interdisciplinary knowledge to solve real-life problems that require comprehensive knowledge. For example, an environmental problem may involve Biology, Chemistry, and Geography...
Ms. Do Thi Quynh Ngoc - Math teacher, Tran Quang Khai High School (Trieu Viet Vuong, Hung Yen ) shares the same opinion: The high school graduation exam from 2025 will change significantly towards comprehensive assessment of capacity. Preparation cannot only start from grade 12, but needs to start early from grades 10 and 11. Students' initiative in self-study and proper orientation from the school will be the deciding factor for them to pass the exam confidently and effectively.
On the teachers' side, Ms. Do Thi Quynh Ngoc believes that teachers need to guide and orient students to grasp basic knowledge and develop comprehensive capacity. The high school graduation exam according to the 2018 General Education Program aims to assess the ability to apply knowledge into practice, not just test mechanical memorization. Therefore, students must have a solid foundation of basic knowledge, understand the nature, practice analytical, synthetic, logical thinking and problem-solving skills.
In Math, the test consists of many practical problems, so the sentences are long and have many words, making it difficult for students to remember, to ramble, and to summarize the problem. Therefore, students need to practice the skills of reading quickly, reading comprehension, and summarizing the content of the problem; from there, they can think, orient the solution and save time.
“From grade 10, teachers should gradually let students approach sample test questions or illustrative test questions in the direction of assessing capacity, especially interdisciplinary and practical integrated questions.
It should be noted that rote learning, memorization, and trick learning are no longer appropriate. Students are required to be proactive, learn all parts of the program comprehensively, and not skip any part because the exam covers a wide range of knowledge and does not follow the question format in the sample exam.
Exploiting online resources, reference books; registering for online courses from reputable institutions... are also things teachers should encourage students to do," Ms. Do Thi Quynh Ngoc added.
Prepare early, from afar
The 2025 high school graduation exam includes many real-life situations (communication, society, environment, culture...). Students need to practice reading comprehension, analysis, and connection skills (especially in Literature).
Giving the above comment, Mr. Tran Huy Hoang - Principal of Dien Bien District High School (Thanh An, Dien Bien) said that to prepare students for next year's exam, the school proactively implemented 5 solutions: Developing teaching and review plans early; training teachers on teaching methods to develop capacity; organizing innovative tests and assessments; developing multi-stage review plans; and providing guidance and counseling to students and parents.
Specifically, at the beginning of the school year, the school organizes a review of the program, instructs professional groups to adjust teaching content according to the exam orientation; from there, there is a teaching plan that is close to the target audience and program. At the same time, organizes seminars and workshops to share teaching experiences according to the new program to exchange and learn from experiences. Teachers are trained in the skills of designing new questions and exercises, open-ended questions, and interdisciplinary questions.
Teachers are also required to have a firm grasp of the exam matrix, structure, and cognitive levels (recognition, understanding, application, high-level application); create many questions based on the high school graduation exam structure for students in grades 10, 11, and 12 so that they can get acquainted and practice. The mid-term and final exams for all three grades will follow the new exam format, helping students not to be confused. Organize mock exams and semester tests in the direction of application, avoiding mechanical memorization.
“Dien Bien District High School builds a plan and organizes high school graduation exam review in many stages, starting from grade 11 (basic knowledge); grade 12 (practice questions, classify each subject, review according to students' abilities). Pay attention to organizing counseling, career orientation and choosing subject combinations suitable for students' abilities, avoiding emotional choices. This step must be done well right from when students enter grade 10,” Mr. Tran Huy Hoang shared.
At Vinh Xuan High School (Vinh Xuan, Vinh Long), Principal Tran Quang Huy informed that preparations had been made early and from a distance so that students would not be surprised or passive with the new exam questions. Accordingly, the school organized for students to register for 2 elective exams from the end of grade 11, so that they could prepare for their studies for the following year. Priority was given to assigning teachers with good professional qualifications to teach classes with many students registering for graduation exams. Training was organized for teachers on the new exam program, helping teachers update appropriate teaching methods.
The school will organize a conference to review the high school graduation exam to evaluate the experience of the 2025 exam and propose a review direction for next year's exam in accordance with the actual situation. Review work is implemented early so that students have time to familiarize themselves with the content and structure of the exam. Students are encouraged to participate in discussions, group study, knowledge exchange and problem solving, creating a positive learning environment.
Students will also be guided on how to study effectively on their own, using learning materials and technology. Through regular tests and mock exams, the school can accurately assess students' abilities and then develop improvement plans for each student.
Students are also provided with sample exams to familiarize themselves with the question format and test time; participate in psychological counseling sessions to relieve pressure and confusion before the exam; and are provided with information about majors and universities to choose subjects that are appropriate to their abilities and university and college admission needs. These comprehensive measures will help students be confident and prepared for the 2026 High School Graduation Exam.
From the beginning of grade 12, even the end of grade 11, schools need to organize entrance exams, classify students to build personalized review plans, closely following the new exam orientation; build review programs and review materials suitable for the 2028 General Education Program. Teachers need to be trained in depth on the characteristics of the exam according to the new program, not only in content but also in teaching methods oriented towards developing qualities and abilities.
Organize mock exams and periodic assessments to help students get used to the pressure of the exam room and practice test-taking skills; provide detailed analysis for students to learn from experience. With major changes in the curriculum and exam questions, many students may be worried and confused. Therefore, psychological support, creating confidence and motivation are important factors in addition to academics. - Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha - English teacher, Tran Quang Khai High School (Trieu Viet Vuong, Hung Yen)
Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/tu-de-thi-tot-nghiep-thpt-nam-2025-doi-hoi-doi-moi-phuong-phap-day-va-hoc-post738979.html
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