Vietnamese 5th graders achieve good results in Southeast Asia

Vietnamese 5th graders achieved the highest rank in terms of learning outcome assessment in the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) for the 2018-2021 period, according to the Ministry of Education and Training.

A class at Chu Van An Primary School in the northern province of Nam Dinh

The SEA-PLM is a regional programme to assess learning outcomes of Grade 5 students to inform policy-making and ensure all children achieve meaningful learning outcomes.

About 30,000 students from six countries of Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam participated in the first assessment round of SEA-PLM which was implemented in 2019.

This first round focused on the 5th grade students and on three learning domains of reading, writing and mathematics.

In the subject of mathematics, the average score of Vietnamese students was 341.55 points while the average score of students of the six countries was 304.79 points.

In reading, the Vietnamese students got an average score of 336.46 points compared to the average score of the six countries’ students of 300 points.

And in the field of writing, the average score of Vietnamese students was 328.01 points while the average score of students of the six countries was 304.92 points.

Although achieving high scores compared to other countries, the results showed that learning outcomes of the students in remote areas were still behind those in other areas of Vietnam.

Female students' academic performance in mathematics was similar to that of male students, but in reading and writing, female students achieved higher results than male students.

The students from high and medium-income families achieved higher scores and proficiency levels compared to those from low-income families.

The higher the parent's education level, the better the children's academic performance.

In addition, the occupation of parents and the study conditions at home also had a great influence on the learning outcomes of students.

SEA-PLM aims at improving the quality of education through systematic monitoring of student learning outcomes and assisting the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation (SEAMEO) member countries to better measure and understand student achievements as a whole and for individual groups by applying culturally appropriate metrics to learning outcomes in domains of reading, writing, mathematics and global citizenship.

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, along with participating in SEA-PLM as a common goal of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Vietnam aimed for some specific goals such as integrating with other countries in the region in education; measuring the educational level of Vietnam compared to other countries in the region; analysing the current state of education and recommending changes in education policy to improve the quality of education in Vietnam.

Besides, through the SEA-PLM, Vietnam demonstrated its responsibility for the construction and development of the common home of Southeast Asian countries.

SEA-PLM's assessment also served Vietnam’s general education innovation.

From the assessment of the 2018-2021 period, departments of education and training said that the ministry needed to standardise the preparation process for national and international assessment programmes which includes detailed guidance and will be periodically and regularly implemented.

In particular, it was necessary to strengthen the learning assessments for management staff, teachers and parents.

To prepare for the SEA-PLM assessment round of 2021-2024, Deputy Minister Nguyen Huu Do asked education and training departments and schools to pay more attention to standardising the assessment process and inform beneficiaries to understand the evaluation process in the best way./.

VNA