An incorrect physics formula printed on the entrance exam for grade 10 specialized physics at Ho Chi Minh City is not exactly breaking news. But the way this incident occurred — and the way the system has responded — reflects a much deeper problem than a typo or a confused formula in the exam preparation room.
The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training (HCMC Department of Education) has confirmed that in the entrance examination for grade 10 specialized physics for the 2026-2027 school year, one question contained an inaccurate physics formula. The immediate response was to extend the exam time by an additional 15 minutes for all test-takers. The Department committed to announcing its official handling approach within several days. That is all that has been disclosed publicly — and the absence of detailed information is precisely what deserves the most discussion.
Specialized exams are not ordinary exams — the pressure is fundamentally different
To understand why a single exam error could cause such a shock, one must look at the broader picture of the grade 10 entrance examination system in Ho Chi Minh City.
The grade 10 entrance examination in this country has always been one of the most stressful milestones in a Vietnamese student's educational journey. Unlike many countries, where advancement to high school is nearly automatic, in Vietnam — particularly in major cities like Saigon and Hanoi — it is genuine competition, with available spots at quality public schools always far fewer than the number of test-takers. According to data from the HCMC Department of Education, tens of thousands of students take the grade 10 entrance exam in the city each year.
Specialized classes are far more rigorous. These are classes reserved for students with special talents in individual subjects, located at renowned specialized schools such as Lê Hồng Phong, Trần Đại Nghĩa, or the Gifted High School under the National University of Ho Chi Minh City. The competition ratio for these specialized classes is typically extremely high — according to information from these schools in recent years, some specialized subjects only admit tens of students while the number of registered test-takers can reach thousands.
In other words, this is not a midterm exam that can be retaken. For many families, this represents years of investment — tutoring fees, practice time, family sacrifice. An incorrect formula in the exam is not only unfair in terms of points; it could destroy an entire educational pathway that a child and their parents have spent years building.
What does the "add 15 minutes" solution solve — and what doesn't it?
The immediate response by the organizing committee — extending exam time by 15 minutes — is an administratively feasible measure under urgent circumstances. But in essence, it does not address the core problem.
The problem is the incorrect formula, not lack of time. If a student spent the entire exam time based on the wrong formula printed in the exam, adding 15 minutes does not help much — that student has already gone in a completely wrong direction. Conversely, students who immediately realized there was an issue with the formula — typically those with stronger physics knowledge — would have minimal benefit from the extra 15 minutes compared to what was already lost in terms of psychological impact and concentration during the exam.
The fact that the HCMC Department of Education announced it would "disclose its handling approach in several days" shows that even the organizing authority does not yet have a clear answer about how to handle the erroneous question during grading. This is the most important part — and it is also where the current silence creates the most anxiety for families whose children just finished the exam.
There are several handling approaches that international examination systems typically apply in similar situations: invalidate the erroneous question and redistribute points; accept all reasonably presented solutions regardless of which formula was used; or in more serious cases, reorganize the exam for that subject. Each approach has its own consequences and none is perfect. What the Department needs to do — and needs to do soon — is be transparent about which approach it has chosen, the reasoning behind it, and the mechanism ensuring fairness.
Where are the gaps in the exam preparation and review process?
The question that few raise but is perhaps most important: how did an incorrect physics formula slip through the entire exam preparation and review process to appear in the official exam?
Grade 10 specialized entrance exams — particularly physics, which demands high precision — typically go through multiple review layers: from the exam writer, subject matter committee review, to the Department's verification board. This is not an exam prepared in the morning and printed in the afternoon. This process takes weeks, even months, and involves many experts.
The fact that such an error "escaped" all these layers raises two possibilities, and both are concerning: either the review process is not substantive — the steps are performed as administrative procedures rather than rigorous expert verification; or there is an issue with the professional competence of those involved in the review. We cannot exclude either possibility.
This is not the first time this has happened in Vietnam. In previous national exams, there have been cases of exam leaks, questions with multiple correct answers, or content exceeding the required curriculum — and each time, the managing authority has provided explanations but rarely implemented systematic changes to the exam preparation and review process.
Families abroad are also watching
The Vietnamese diaspora community in America — particularly families who still have children studying in Vietnam, or are considering sending their children back to study there to maintain their roots — will follow this story with a different perspective.
Among Vietnamese communities in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Houston, not a few Vietnamese-origin parents still view the Vietnamese education system — particularly the specialized track — as a rigorous, demanding educational pathway that can help their children build a solid academic foundation before pursuing higher education in America. But when such a system encounters such fundamental errors, and the managing authority's response is vague and slow, that trust is tested.
What families in the overseas Vietnamese community care about is not a specific wrong physics question. They care about transparency, about the capacity to handle crises, and about whether the system has the ability to protect students' interests when problems occur. These are criteria that any education system — whether in Vietnam, America, or elsewhere — must be able to meet.
The real test is in the coming days
The handling approach that the HCMC Department of Education announces in the coming days will reveal how much this system can self-correct.
If the Department chooses to invalidate the erroneous question and adjust the score scale transparently, with clear notification sent to each test-taker and family — that would be a professional response, albeit belated. If the Department chooses silence about details and only announces a general statement, this will not only cause further frustration but also set a bad precedent: that exam incidents can be "handled" through administrative decisions lacking explanation.
One thing is nearly certain: this incident will not lead to retesting the entire specialized physics exam. The logistical costs and psychological pressure of reorganizing a specialized exam are too great, and this country has no precedent for handling this way for a city-level exam. The most likely — and most realistic — scenario is invalidating the erroneous question, adjusting the maximum corresponding points, and accepting any solution demonstrating correct physics reasoning, regardless of whether test-takers used the formula printed in the exam or not.
But whatever approach the Department chooses, it still does not answer the fundamental question: why did the review process fail, and who is responsible? If there are no answers to these questions, similar incidents can easily occur again at next year's exam.
An incorrect formula printed on paper can be erased by an official announcement. But the flaw in the system that created that incorrect formula — that requires much more than 15 additional minutes and a promise to announce something later.