Circular No. 06/GD-ĐT guiding the implementation of Decision No. 1252/GD-ĐT dated April 11, 1997 of the Minister of Education and Training on amending and supplementing certain regulations regarding examinations and graduation assessments for secondary general education, specialized secondary education, and junior secondary education.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for implementing Decision No. 1252/GD-ĐT dated April 11, 1997 of the Minister of Education and Training on amending and supplementing certain regulations regarding examinations and graduation assessments for secondary schools, specialized secondary schools, and junior high schools.

On April 11, 1997, the Ministry of Education and Training issued Decision No. 1252/GD-ĐT to amend and supplement certain regulations regarding examinations and graduation assessments for secondary schools, specialized secondary schools, and junior high schools starting from the graduation examination period of the 1996-1997 academic year.

This Decision concerns secondary schools, specialized secondary schools, and junior high schools.

On April 11, 1997, the Ministry of Education and Training issued Decision No. 1252/GD-ĐT concerning the amendment and supplementation of certain regulations regarding examinations and graduation assessments for secondary schools, specialized secondary schools, and junior high schools starting from the 1996-1997 academic year's graduation examination period.

This Circular provides additional guidance on the following specific points:

1. Regarding the duration of examination papers:

Starting from the 1996-1997 academic year, the time allocated for each subject examination (excluding the time for distributing questions) is as follows:

1.1. Graduation Examination for Junior High School:

Literature - Vietnamese Language and Mathematics: 120 minutes;

Other subjects: 60 minutes;

1.2. Graduation Examination for Secondary Schools:

Literature and Mathematics: 150 minutes;

Other subjects: 90 minutes;

1.3. Graduation Examination for Specialized Secondary Schools:

Science Department and Science and Technology Department:

Mathematics: 150 minutes;

Other subjects: 90 minutes;

Social Science Department:

Literature: 150 minutes;

Other subjects: 90 minutes;

2. Regarding the organization of examination boards:

2.1. Establishing inter-school examination boards: Each examination board consists of candidates from at least two secondary schools or junior high schools. Candidates' names are listed in alphabetical order (a, b, c...). Each examination room shall not exceed 25 candidates. In difficult areas such as islands, mountainous regions, remote areas..., the Department of Education and Training reports to the People's Committee of the province for their proposal, and only upon approval by the Ministry can the inter-school examination board be waived.

The Department of Education and Training has the authority to consider and resolve requests from district People's Committees regarding the waiver of inter-school examination boards for junior high school examinations.

2.2. All examination boards (including non-inter-school examination boards): The Chairperson, half of the Vice-Chairpersons, and the Secretary must be from schools without students taking the examination at that board, and they are assigned by superiors. For very small boards, only one Vice-Chairperson and one Secretary are arranged, with the Vice-Chairperson being from the local school. The Vice-Chairperson from the local school is responsible for receiving examination registration forms from students and preparing for the examination (allocating examination rooms, compiling lists of registered students and name sheets...), which will then be handed over to the Chairperson of the examination board. The examination board is responsible for verifying the examination registration forms and confirming the eligibility of candidates.

3. Regarding the organization of marking examinations:

3.1. Establishment of Boards: Each province or city (for secondary school and specialized secondary school examinations); each district or county (for junior high school examinations) establishes one examination marking board. Depending on the number of examination papers, the Department of Education and Training stipulates and arranges the number of examiners to ensure the completion of tasks within the specified timeframe.

3.2. For two examiners to independently mark one examination paper, the following provisions must be followed:

a. The marked examination papers are grouped into sets of 50 papers, accompanied by the marking sheet of the examiner. The team leader distributes these sets to each examiner.

b. Examiners mark using red ink. Marks and comments (if any) are recorded only on the marking sheet. On the candidate's examination paper, marks may be noted in the margins or underlined in significant places. Absolutely no corrections or additions should be made to the candidate's work. After completing the set of papers, the examiner submits them to the team leader for handover to the secretary.

c. Once two examiners have marked the set of papers, the secretary returns it to the team leader so that both examiners can review and agree on the scores, recording them on each individual paper:

If agreement is reached: record the score in both numerical and written form in the designated space and sign.

If no agreement is reached: Review and focus on discussing parts of the paper where there is disagreement; if necessary, request the team leader to discuss and reach consensus.

If consensus still cannot be reached: Record each person's opinion in the minutes and report to the Chairperson of the Board. The Chairperson, based on the minutes, consults the Vice-Chairperson responsible for the subject and decides on the score. This situation must be recorded in the Board's minutes and announced at the final meeting summarizing the marking process.

4. Regarding the organization of the second graduation examination for secondary schools and specialized secondary schools:

To provide more opportunities for graduation, starting from the 1996-1997 academic year, the Ministry of Education and Training organizes a second graduation examination for secondary schools and specialized secondary schools each year.

4.1 Objectives, Conditions, and Procedures for Registration:

Students who took the first examination but did not graduate and those who were unable to take the first examination due to unforeseen circumstances.

Students who did not meet the conditions for the first examination and now wish to take the second examination must register and be considered by the Department of Education and Training according to previous procedures for retaking the examination.

At least 30 days before the examination date, students must register for the examination with the Department of Education and Training or at the secondary school or specialized secondary school authorized by the Department.

4.2 Examination Date - Subjects and Number of Subjects:

The date of the second examination is determined and announced in the annual plan.

The subjects and examination times for the second examination are the same as those for the first examination of that academic year. Students who did not pass the first examination only need to take subjects with scores below average. The scores from the retake, combined with scores above average, serve as the basis for assessing graduation in the second examination.

4.3 Organization of Examination Boards:

Depending on the number of students registering for the examination and the conditions in each locality, the Department of Transportation and Training decides to establish one or more examination boards.

4.4 Regulations regarding the allocation of examination rooms, invigilation, marking, and graduation criteria for the second examination are implemented as for the first examination.

5. Regarding Appeals on Examination Scores:

Starting from the 1996-1997 academic year, appeals on examination scores are handled according to the following provisions:

5.1 Students may appeal if their examination score is three points or more lower than their average score for the entire year in that subject. Each student may only appeal one examination score.

5.2 Re-marked examination papers are re-phrased so that two examiners can independently re-mark them.

5.3 If the re-marked score differs from the original score by one point or more, a dialogue must be held between the re-marking pair and the original marking pair, and the new agreed score replaces the old one for graduation assessment. If the re-marked score only differs by 0.5 points, the original score remains unchanged.

5.4. In cases where changing the score leads to a change in the graduation result (from fail to pass or vice versa) or a change in the graduation classification (from good to excellent or vice versa), the Department of Education and Training (for junior high school graduation exams) or the Provincial Department of Education and Training (for high school graduation exams) must prepare a list to report to the Provincial Department (for junior high school graduation exams) or report to the Ministry (for high school graduation exams) for approval before publication. The re-evaluated papers in these cases must be kept separately for higher authorities to check when necessary.

6. Regarding disciplinary actions (supplementing the following provisions):

If a candidate has someone else take the exam on their behalf or complete the exam paper on their behalf, and the Examination Board, subject marking team, or the Provincial Department of Education and Training verifies this fact, the following actions shall be taken:

For the candidate:

If currently taking the exam: terminate the exam and invalidate the results for all remaining subjects;

If the exam has been completed: invalidate the exam results or recover any temporary graduation certificates or diplomas that have already been issued;

For the person who took the exam or completed the exam paper on behalf of another:

If still enrolled in school (secondary, college, university...): notify the school to apply a suspension from studies for one year;

If no longer enrolled: transfer to the local authority or police for administrative handling.

The Provincial Departments of Education and Training need to be familiar with the amended provisions in Decision No. 1252/GD-ĐT dated April 11, 1997, and the additional provisions mentioned above to implement them starting from the 1996-1997 academic year's high school, vocational, and junior high school graduation exams. During implementation, if new issues arise, the Provincial Departments of Education and Training should prepare reports for the Ministry to be aware and take unified measures to address them./.