What are the guidelines regarding the presentation of letters sent for the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition in 2025? What are the core objectives of lower secondary education in Vietnam?

What are the guidelines regarding the presentation of letters sent for the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition in 2025?

Under the rules of the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition in 2025, published on the official Fanpage of the competition: 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition of Vietnam, the rules concerning the letter are as follows:

- The letter is a creative product of individual students, written in prose according to the competition's theme (not yet published in newspapers or books), not exceeding 800 words.

- Any letter written in a foreign language must be accompanied by a Vietnamese translation. The judging panel will evaluate the Vietnamese version.

- The letter must be presented, neatly, and handwritten on one side of the paper (note not to write on the back, multiple pages can be used, page numbers should be used, and pages stapled to avoid confusion). Typed or photocopied letters are invalid.

- The upper left corner of the letter must include complete information: Full name, date of birth, ethnicity, school address, class, district (town), province (city), and phone number. A letter lacking all of the above information is invalid.

The theme for the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition in 2025 is: "IMAGINE YOU ARE THE OCEAN. Write a letter to someone to explain why and how they should take care of and protect you properly."

Below are some guidelines on presenting the letter for the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition in 2025:

(1) Writing Techniques

To have a conformable letter for the UPU International Letter Writing Competition, first, students should thoroughly read the rules of the competition. The rules are documents officially published by the Competition Organizing Committee in Vietnam, drafted with the cooperation of the Ministry of Information and Communications, the Ministry of Education and Training, the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Vietnam Writers' Association, the Vietnam Post Corporation along with the Young Pioneer and Children's newspaper. From there, the competition rules are relayed to schools and students. The rules highlight important notes:

- The letter must be written in prose and follow the correct format of a letter:

+ The beginning of the letter must include the date, place of writing, the addressee, and the reason for writing;

+ The letter's content must convey the entire theme; the end of the letter delivers the messages the writer aims to express. The last line on the right side of the letter should have the writer's signature.

- The letter must be no more than 800 words and contain the complete address in the upper left corner of the letter.

Note: Do not write your name or address (i.e., do not include personal information) in the letter's content.

- Before sending, the letter must be placed in an envelope, affixed with a postage stamp, and the code 11611 must be written on the envelope. This is the postal code of the Young Pioneer and Children's newspaper - the receiver of the students' letters.

- Write your letter with clear, coherent, and emotionally rich sentences. Avoid presenting the letter as data discussion, listing or general recounting. Including lively details, comparisons, relations, and reasonable metaphors will make the letter engaging, appealing, and convincing for readers.

In addition to the rules, the Organizing Committee compiles a "Q&A Manual" to address and explain the participants' concerns when joining the competition. This manual is published on the official information channels of the competition and the Young Pioneer and Children's newspaper.

A letter for the UPU International Letter Writing Competition is not an ordinary letter but a literary letter written by the creativity and distinct emotions of the letter writer. Contestants will be the authors of the letter, and they should be proactive in presenting their thoughts, emotions, and issues most convincingly. High-winning letters usually possess unique ideas and exhibit clear reasoning with writing that is both simple and richly expressive.

(2) About the Theme

Each year, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) selects an outstanding, global issue for the competition's theme. Therefore, when participating in the competition, students not only practice their writing skills but also have the opportunity to express their understanding, thoughts, and responsibilities on major issues of the era.

This year's competition theme: “IMAGINE YOU ARE THE OCEAN. Write a letter to someone to explain why and how they should take care of and protect you properly.” From this, the "keywords" to tackle in the letter become quite clear:

This year’s theme states very clearly: “Imagine you are the ocean”, hence before writing the letter, contestants must have a basic understanding of the ocean. At the very least, they should understand what an ocean is, the position and role of the ocean in the Earth’s ecosystem, whether the ocean is the same as a sea, and what common and distinct characteristics oceans and seas have. Alternatively, contestants might embody a creature living within the ocean to voice the Ocean's messages to mankind.

Once having clearly identified the subject and gained a basic understanding of the Ocean, the next step involves clarifying the keyword "someone" - the person who will receive the letter. Choosing the letter recipient requires a lot of creativity. The letter recipient will accompany the writer from start to finish in the letter. This is the person who listens to the students’ shares and can actively engage in practical actions to help resolve their personal story, filled with beautiful hopes and aspirations for humanity’s future. Finally, in the phrase "explain why and how they should care for and protect you properly" - once you have understood and addressed the bold words, you will have completed one of the most important tasks.

In this phrase, presenting reasons compelling enough to make you write the letter (by highlighting the benefits and current situation of the ocean) and how (through specific actions, proposed solutions, and effective creativity) means you have thoroughly addressed the critical issue of ocean protection concerning the planet's survival and humanity's existence. Contestants must remember that the keyword “You” here refers to the ocean.

Within the letter, it is crucial to show the letter recipient, in particular, and the readers, in general, that, besides contributing to the survival of the entire Earth's ecosystem like climate regulation, producing 50% of the oxygen humans breathe, providing protein and essential nutrients to billions of people daily, supplying us with important medicines, providing a habitat for numerous flora and fauna systems… The ocean is also an endless source of inspiration for art, poetry, music, film, and human spiritual life. At the same time, the ocean also serves as a cradle nurturing and preserving culture and beliefs, helping humanity acknowledge the endless connection of each individual with the universe.

But what is the current situation— the health condition of the ocean? How have plastic waste, greenhouse effects, and uncontrolled exploitation of ocean resources deteriorated the ocean's health? What will be the future of this earth when the ocean's health continues to decline? Answering such questions will guide contestants to channel their message towards the mission of protecting, and caring for the health and safety of the ocean in a way that the ocean has cared for us over thousands of years is immensely crucial.

Contestants can refer to the following sample letters sent for the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition:

Note: The information is for reference purposes only!

What are the guidelines regarding the presentation of letters sent for the 54th UPU International Letter-Writing Competition in 2025? What are the core objectives of lower secondary education in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

What are the core objectives of lower secondary education in Vietnam?

Under Clause 3, Article 29 of the Education Law 2019, the core objectives of lower secondary education in Vietnam are regulated as follows:

Objectives of general education

1. The objectives of general education are to help learners develop comprehensively by acquiring morals, knowledge, physical health, aesthetic values and other basic skills, develop personal abilities, flexibility and creativeness, with a view to forming the socialist Vietnamese personality and the civic duty, to preparing them for further studies of higher education, vocational education or entering the workforce, participating in the building and defending of the Fatherland.

2. Primary education aims to help students form initial foundations for moral, intellectual, physical and aesthetic development and capacity, preparing them for entering lower secondary education.

3. Lower secondary education is directed towards students' consolidation and development of the outcomes of primary education, provision of general and basic knowledge along with introductory understanding on techniques and career orientation to enter upper secondary education or vocational education.

4. Upper secondary education is directed towards the provision of civic knowledge; students' consolidation and development of the outcomes of lower secondary education; completion of general education and acquisition of common understanding on techniques and career orientation; provision of opportunities for students to develop their personal abilities in order to choose their development direction, to enter higher education, vocational education or the workforce, contributing to the building and defending of the Fatherland.

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Thus, according to the provisions mentioned above, the core objectives of lower secondary education in Vietnam are as follows:

Lower secondary education is directed towards students' consolidation and development of the outcomes of primary education, provision of general and basic knowledge along with introductory understanding on techniques and career orientation to enter upper secondary education or vocational education.

What is the basis for assessing the training results of lower secondary school students in Vietnam?

Under Clause 1, Article 8 of Circular 22/2021/TT-BGDDT, the basis for assessing the training results of lower secondary school students in Vietnam is as follows:

1) Assess training results of students based on requirements for traits and general capacity by subjects and education level under general programs and requirements for specific capacity under subject program in formal education program.

2) Subject teachers shall rely on (1) to provide feedback and assess training results, improvement, advantages, and disadvantages of students during training and learning process of the subjects.

3) Class advisors shall rely on (1) to monitor training and learning process of students; consult feedback and assessment of subject teachers and feedback of students’ parents, relevant, agencies, organizations, and individuals in educating students; instruct students on What are the guidelines for perform self-assessment; provide feedback and assess training results of students based on categories under (2).