Recently, the Politburo issued Conclusion No. 91 on continuing to implement Resolution No. 29, dated November 4, 2013 of the 11th Party Central Committee on fundamental and comprehensive innovation of education and training, meeting the requirements of industrialization and modernization in the conditions of a socialist-oriented market economy and international integration.
One of the tasks the Politburo requires all levels to focus on improving foreign language skills of students, gradually making English the second language in schools.
The objectives of the English General Education Program issued with Circular 32/2018/TT-BGDDT, also stipulate the objectives for high school level, summarized as follows:
- Use English as a communication tool through 4 skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing.
- Continue to form and develop basic knowledge of English, including phonetics, vocabulary, grammar; through English, gain a deeper understanding of the countries, people, and cultures of English-speaking countries and other countries in the world.
- Use English to improve the quality of other subjects, pursue higher education or go to work right after finishing high school.
- Form a habit of lifelong learning.
The set goals are quite large. What is the current picture of English teaching in high schools? Although the teaching staff and equipment for English teaching have improved, the changes are slow and have not met the set goals. Most students study for tests and exams, so teachers and students are very different in Reading and Writing (according to the format of the high school graduation exam in English). Many students study English "moderately". For these students, it is okay to have a score in the safe zone, while the rest... "cram" to avoid failing grades.
I have a friend who, when taking his child to an English center (outside of school), said: "Listening to the teachers teach... is fun, but at school, teaching English is... boring."
I explained that high schools teach English according to textbooks, while outside they teach according to syllabuses for students to take English certificate exams. This has led to many differences. To teach English as a second language, I have 5 recommendations for the education sector:
One is to reset the goals of the general education program for English in particular for high school. First of all, students learn English to be able to listen and speak. Only a few students have the desire to specialize, choose English at university level, they need to be supported with additional topics, teachers' guidance, and self-study. If English is taught only for exams, the teaching and learning of this subject will be perfunctory, superficial, and ineffective. This leads to a waste of money while the results of teaching and learning English in high school are still "the old way we return to"...
Second, the amount of time spent teaching English during the week, testing, and exams for this subject need to change. To allow students to practice regularly, increase the number of English lessons to 4 periods/week; at the same time, English is a compulsory subject in the entrance exams for first-grade classes and the high school graduation exam. Since the 1990s, English has been a major subject in the Netherlands. To graduate from high school, Dutch students must pass a national exam in English.
Third, many countries are in the group of very high English proficiency such as the Netherlands, Singapore, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Belgium, Portugal, South Africa, Germany, Croatia, Greece. We need to learn how they have been, are and will be teaching English? Study the English programs and textbooks used by these countries. With good and suitable textbooks, we can negotiate to buy copyrights.
Fourth, teaching English as a second language is a major challenge for teachers and the distance between localities. I once witnessed a high school English teacher stuttering and then remaining silent during an exchange with an American colleague. Talking to some English group leaders in high schools, I learned that this is not an isolated case.
In addition to long-term investment and training solutions, in the immediate future, we need to increase online teaching so that students can study with good teachers and teachers themselves need to try to have the opportunity to interact with skilled colleagues.
As an English teacher, students learn and apply English every day, according to a correct - solid - durable - repetitive educational plan.
For example, students can read books, newspapers, watch movies, listen to English music in class, in the library, through clubs, build a model of the whole school communicating in English every hour/day, use English documents to study other subjects, practice teaching in English, organize competitions aimed at learning English well...
Our country is entering a new era, education and training contribute important resources and teaching English as a second language in schools will accumulate energy for that journey. It is inevitable, requiring constant efforts with feasible, flexible, creative and innovative plans!
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/giao-vien-day-tieng-anh-lap-bap-khi-giao-tiep-voi-nguoi-nuoc-ngoai-2325317.html
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