'The education sector is not allowed to decide on teacher recruitment, it's like trying to catch a thief with bare hands'

In the draft Law on Teachers submitted to the 15th National Assembly, Session 8, the Ministry of Education and Training proposed to change the authority to recruit teachers to be the responsibility of the direct educational management agency of that institution. The recruitment of teachers must be based on the job position project; teacher standards; education and training programs; and salary funds to ensure sufficient quantity and structure of teachers for teaching and education.

According to education managers and experts, if the education sector is given the authority to recruit teachers instead of having to go through the Home Affairs sector, it will help reduce overlap and improve management efficiency.

'The education sector cannot decide on teacher recruitment like trying to catch a thief with bare hands'. (Illustration photo)

The principal of a secondary school in Dong Da district, Hanoi, agreed with the proposal in the draft Law on Teachers. If the education sector is given the right to recruit teachers, it would be in line with reality, solving many major problems in recruiting, using and mobilizing teachers, and most importantly, solving the problem of teacher shortage.

According to this principal, if the Department of Education and Training or the Board of Directors of schools are allowed to directly participate in recruiting teachers, it will help screen and select talented people who are suitable for the education sector. Based on the assessment of the actual teaching and working capacity of each teacher, we will not be able to recruit wrongly, avoiding the current overlapping phenomenon.

The principal analyzed that the current problem is that the Home Affairs sector plays a role in recruiting but does not employ teachers, while the employer, the Education sector, does not have the right to recruit, leading to the situation of recruiting teachers who do not have the appropriate professional qualifications.

"The education sector is the unit that directly employs teachers but is not given the right to recruit, transfer, and allocate work between places with surplus and places with shortage... it is like trying to catch a thief with bare hands. This is also one of the bottlenecks that has prevented the situation of teacher surplus and shortage for many years from being completely resolved," he emphasized. It is time to give autonomy to schools and units that directly manage education.

Sharing about the current state management of teachers in the locality, National Assembly delegate Thai Van Thanh, Director of the Nghe An Department of Education and Training, said that based on the annual school network development plan approved by the Provincial People's Committee, the Department will coordinate with the Department of Home Affairs to guide units in determining the need for admission, recruitment of staff and contracts. After the units complete, they will send information to the Department of Home Affairs for appraisal and submit to the Provincial People's Committee for approval of the teacher admission and recruitment plan.

With the specific characteristics of the education sector, this process reveals some difficulties and limitations in planning staff development, selecting, using, and implementing remuneration policies for teachers.

In addition, Decree 37 of 2014 of the Government stipulates that the function of the Department of Home Affairs is “human resource management”, so most of the People's Committees of districts assign the Department of Home Affairs to advise on the recruitment, reception, transfer and appointment of teachers. This limits the advisory role of the Department of Education and Training in terms of expertise, leading to local surpluses and shortages.

Current Laws and Decrees do not regulate the transfer of civil servants between subordinate units; when transferring civil servants from a surplus unit to a deficient unit, they must be seconded; seconded civil servants receiving salaries from the sending unit have problems when there are differences in policies between units (preferential treatment, region, contributions to obligations at the destination unit...).

Mr. Thai Van Thanh, Director of Nghe An Department of Education and Training.

According to National Assembly delegate Thai Van Thanh, the decentralization of management has led to the inability to transfer teachers from one district to another to ensure quantity, quality, and structure; and difficulties in receiving teachers from one district to another, from one province to another to create conditions for teachers to work with peace of mind and rationalize their families.

The current number of teachers at all levels is still insufficient compared to the standards set by the Ministry of Education and Training; the structure is unreasonable, and there is a local surplus or shortage in some subjects at primary, secondary and high school levels due to the implementation of the new general education program.

In addition, some policies for teachers have not been implemented fully, promptly, and consistently, such as the policy of paying teachers for overtime teaching, extra grading fees, etc. The organization of promotion exams for teachers in some districts has not been timely, affecting the rights of teachers.

"From the current situation, I propose decentralizing the school to proactively carry out recruitment if it meets the requirements. In case it does not meet the requirements, the education management agency will directly carry out recruitment," emphasized the Director of the Nghe An Department of Education and Training.

When teachers are appointed as educational administrators, they must have the opinion of the agency directly managing the teacher. In addition, it is also necessary to calculate and regulate the retention of some policies for teachers appointed as educational administrators.

According to him, the arrangement, assignment, and transfer of teachers between educational institutions occurs in two cases: due to the needs and wishes of teachers (transfer) or due to the regulation of educational management agencies to solve the surplus/shortage of teachers or improve the quality of education, meeting the specific tasks of the industry at a certain time (secondment/mobilization).

To effectively use teachers, the above cases need to clarify the standards, conditions/processes/authorities. In particular, regarding authority, it is necessary to assign responsibility and initiative to educational management agencies at all levels.

It is necessary to build a working environment for teachers that ensures conditions of facilities, pedagogical environment, educational environment, and safety for teachers in performing their duties.

Expecting that the draft Law on Teachers will be submitted to the 15th National Assembly for its first comments at the 8th Session, Mr. Thanh believes that this will be the basis for enhancing the position and role of teachers, creating motivation for them to work with peace of mind, making many contributions and dedication to the cause of educating people. The draft Law on Teachers has initially created an exciting atmosphere for more than 1.6 million teachers; receiving consensus and support from parents and the people.

Ha Cuong

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/nganh-giao-duc-khong-duoc-tu-quyet-tuyen-giao-vien-khac-nao-tay-khong-bat-giac-ar906237.html