In many localities, last weekend, at the first parent meeting of the year, even though it was only grade 1, parents received a notice of "agreement" on a series of fees for enhanced teaching, such as: enhanced foreign languages, foreign languages with foreigners, life skills, STEM education,... without any accompanying educational content or plan.
The requirement for parents to register their children for English-enhanced primary school in Hung Ha District (Thai Binh) has made parents angry.
Just after the new school year started, parents of some primary schools in Hung Ha District (Thai Binh) received registration forms to attend the "enhanced English" class with foreign teachers that the school cooperated with a company outside the school to deploy for all students. The class location is in the school's classroom with a duration of 1 period/week and the tuition fee is 130,000 VND/student/month.
A series of questions have been raised about the English teaching partnership, including concerns about the "voluntary" nature of this partnership. If there are only a few students in the class who do not register to participate, what will they learn in English lessons with foreigners?
Immediately after the parents' reasonable questions and many disagreements from the public when this issue was posted on social networks, on September 15, the People's Committee of Hung Ha District (Thai Binh) issued a document "requesting to immediately stop collaborating with companies and foreign language centers to open intensive English classes with foreigners for students".
The incident in Hung Ha District (Thai Binh) also contributed to "alarming" localities that have models of linking teaching English, life skills and other educational activities in schools and collecting tuition fees from students when "inserting" additional subjects into regular school hours.
The Nam Dinh Department of Education and Training has just sent a document to high schools and affiliated education and training departments to rectify extra teaching and learning in the 2023-2024 school year. Accordingly, schools are required to strictly comply with regulations on time, duration, and general requirements for extra teaching and learning in schools. Absolutely do not give extra teaching and learning to students who have been organized by the school to teach 2 sessions/day; do not give extra teaching to primary school students.
In addition, the Nam Dinh Department of Education and Training requires schools not to arbitrarily lend or rent school facilities or assets to teachers in the school to organize extra classes or learning. If school facilities or assets are lent or rented to individuals or organizations to organize extra classes or learning, the school must develop a project to report to the competent authority according to regulations.
Nghe An Department of Education and Training has just held a conference to deploy the enhanced English program and life skills in educational institutions in the province. Speaking at the conference, Mr. Thai Van Thanh, Director of Nghe An Department of Education and Training, announced that the Department has decided to temporarily suspend the association of centers to teach life skills in public educational institutions. At the same time, the centers will be reviewed, the life skills program will be evaluated and implemented when all conditions are met and regulations are met.
The An Giang Department of Education and Training has just sent a document to educational institutions, directing them to strictly and correctly implement regulations on student care and custody activities outside of regular school hours; it is not allowed to organize extra teaching and learning in any form at student care and custody facilities.
Schools and teachers absolutely do not use direct or indirect measures to suggest or force students to participate.
Many outdated regulations on extra teaching and learning need to be revised.
Inadequacies and confusion in the management of extra teaching and learning activities due to lack of legal framework have been frequently petitioned to the Ministry of Education and Training by voters and local education and training sectors recently.
Responding to voters on this issue, the Minister of Education and Training said that after the law amending the Investment Law removed tutoring and learning activities from the list of conditional investment and business sectors, a number of provisions on conditions and licensing for tutoring and learning organizations in Circular No. 17 on management of tutoring and learning activities inside and outside schools are no longer effective.
However, other provisions of Circular No. 17 are still in effect, such as regulations on principles of extra teaching and learning, cases where extra teaching and learning are not allowed, and responsibilities for managing extra teaching and learning activities of localities and educational institutions.
Circular 17 also clearly states: do not organize extra classes or study classes according to regular classes; do not cut down on the content of the regular general education program to include it in extra classes; do not use any form to force students to take extra classes... This Circular also stipulates: "Do not teach extra classes for students who have been organized by the school to study 2 sessions/day...".
However, some regulations of Circular 17 have also been pointed out by education experts as outdated when applying the new general education program. Among them, there is a regulation: "No extra teaching for primary school students, except for cases of training in arts, sports, life skills training"...
Many opinions say that experiential activities, physical education, local education, English, information technology; music, fine arts, etc. have been included as compulsory subjects and educational activities in the new general education program. In addition, the new program also designs compulsory teaching of 2 sessions/day for primary school students.
Therefore, there is no reason why extra classes in elementary schools such as life skills, arts, physical education, and sports should be allowed.
In response to the need to amend and replace Circular No. 17, the Ministry of Education and Training said that in the coming time, it will continue to advise the Government to propose to the National Assembly to include extra teaching and learning activities in the list of conditional business lines.
After being included in the list of conditional business lines, the Ministry of Education and Training will study and amend Circular No. 17 to ensure suitability and convenience for the management of extra teaching and learning activities inside and outside schools.
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