Chinanews.com, Beijing, November 26 (Lang Lang) "The difficulty coefficient of each subject examination shall be no less than 0.95 in elementary schools (that is, the average score shall not be less than 95% of the full marks), and no less than 0.85 in junior high schools."

　　Recently, the Sichuan Provincial Department of Education issued a document that made further requirements for homework and examinations in elementary and junior high schools. Among them, the rules for reducing the difficulty of examinations aroused heated discussions among netizens: the average score of elementary school students is not less than 95% of the perfect score. .

　　"Parents don't know the true level of their children will be more anxious", "Blind Box Entrance Examinations", "What to do if children lack competitiveness in the future"... Faced with the local burden-reduction measures, netizens quarreled again.

Source: Screenshot of the official website of the Sichuan Education Department

Sichuan: Reduce the difficulty of primary school exams and implement subject rotation assignments

　　In order to reduce the burden of students' examinations and homework, the Sichuan Provincial Department of Education recently issued the "Notice on Further Doing a Good Job in Examination and Homework Management in Compulsory Education Schools" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice").

　　In terms of examinations, the "Notice" clarified that non-junior high school graduation grade examinations should accurately judge the students' learning level and effectively reduce the difficulty of the examination.

The difficulty coefficient of each subject examination is not less than 0.95 in elementary school (that is, the average score is not less than 95% of the full score), not less than 0.85 in junior high school, and not less than 0.70 in the junior high school level test.

　　In terms of homework, the subject rotation system is implemented, and written homework is assigned every day: the first and second grades of elementary school can arrange written homework for 1-2 subjects, which can be completed in class and after class, and no subject-based written homework is allowed. ; Three to six grades, the written assignments are controlled within 2 subjects, the seventh and eighth grades are controlled within 4 subjects, and the ninth grade is controlled within 5 subjects.

　　In addition, in the weekly homework, the subject assignments should not exceed 70%, and the practice exploration assignments should not be less than 30%.

Explore and implement one day a week as a "no-work day" to reduce written work on weekends and statutory holidays.

Data map: On November 17, at the gate of Huixing Primary School in Yubei, Chongqing, students wearing masks entered the campus in an orderly manner to resume school.

Photo by Chen Chao

Netizen: 95 points "starting price" for primary school grades?

　　What has attracted widespread attention is the detailed rules for reducing the difficulty of the exam.

Netizens put the topic of #Sichuan requiring elementary school exams with an average score of not less than 95% of full marks# on the hot search.

　　Some netizens said that this standard is actually reasonable, but the difficulty of the test cannot be reduced, and the teaching ability must keep up.

　　Some people think that this is embarrassing the teacher and the person who made the question.

　　More people have expressed their inner anxiety: Normally the exam is simple, and the difficulty of the entrance exam is not reduced. Is this going to "open the blind box" to enter a higher school?

In this way, the pressure of "double reduction" has been transferred to the parents?

Some netizens said, "I don't want my children to ask me in the future: Why can't I get to high school after 95 points?"

　　There are many similar concerns and doubts: Would it be easy to get high scores, will some children mistakenly think that they do not need much effort to achieve excellent results?

Data map: Students learning roller skating in the playground after school.

Photo by Xu Jing

Questioning: Does reducing the difficulty of the exam mean reducing the burden?

　　Since the "double reduction", the Ministry of Education has made an explanation for the difficulty of the test questions.

　　In August this year, the Ministry of Education issued the "Notice on Strengthening the Management of Examinations in Compulsory Education Schools", which mentioned that, except for the entrance examination for junior high school graduates (academic level examination), other examinations do not have screening and selection functions.

　　At the same time, some localities and compulsory education schools have prominent problems such as excessive examination times, difficulty, low quality, and improper use of results, which violate the orientation of quality education, cause students to be overburdened and pressured to take exams, and harm their bodies and minds. Health must be corrected.

　　This document also proposes to standardize the management of test propositions, avoid partial and strange questions, reduce mechanical memorable test questions, and prevent test questions from becoming too difficult.

　　However, to prevent the test questions from becoming too difficult, does it mean to promote high scores for all employees?

　　"If the difficulty of the key test such as the college entrance examination or the high school entrance examination does not drop, then the usual test difficulty will not reduce the anxiety of parents." Chu Zhaohui, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Educational Sciences, believes that only the mode of total score queuing can be changed. It is possible to fundamentally alleviate the anxiety of parents.

　　He said that simply changing the difficulty of the exam cannot solve the problem, but the total score model for admission to higher education is to be changed.

If it is said that it must be changed, what may eventually need to be changed is the difficulty of the high school entrance examination and the college entrance examination.

Data map: The students entered the campus in an orderly manner wearing masks.

Photo by Chen Chao

Expert: The most important thing is to improve efficiency rather than reduce learning knowledge

　　Some netizens said that the burden reduction should be to reduce what students have to do at a very high marginal cost for one-sided high scores after they have mastered the knowledge, and to reduce the difficulty of the exam "one size fits all". Does this go against the original intention of reducing the burden? ?

　　Chu Zhaohui believes that this can only mean that the measures in this document have not solved the key problems. As for its effect, it will take time to test.

　　"The academic difficulty of Chinese students is in an intermediate state in the world. It is not the most difficult, but it is not simple. In the past, we mainly required students' knowledge and test level. The requirements for other aspects were too low. It is required by a standard, instead of teaching students according to their actual situation.” Chu Zhaohui said that the most important thing for “double reduction” is to improve efficiency, not simply reduce the knowledge learned.

　　Experts suggest that a more effective solution is to not select children for the senior high school entrance examination. The focus is on examining the children’s level of knowledge in the compulsory education stage. As long as the standards are met, they will be eligible to continue attending high school.

As for how high schools should choose students, consider a two-way choice between the school and the students. In this way, the overall academic burden of primary and middle school students can be more effectively reduced.

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