'Teachers must have a license to practice'

Teacher Le Van Chuong speaks at the workshop to contribute ideas to the draft Law on Teachers - Photo: MY DUNG

The content of teachers' practice licenses remains a hot topic in the workshop to provide comments on the draft Law on Teachers, organized by the Ministry of Education and Training in coordination with the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City.

Need to digitize licensing procedures to avoid red tape

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Le Van Chuong - Chu Van An Continuing Education Center, Ho Chi Minh City - raised concerns when granting practice licenses to teachers, especially those who have been teaching for a long time.

"The biggest concern is that teachers who have been teaching for decades now have to take the exam to get a professional license. They will be worried. For young teachers who have just graduated, taking the exam to get a professional license will be easier than for older teachers. I suggest that there should be a roadmap for granting professional licenses," Mr. Chuong suggested.

Mr. Le Duy Tan - Head of Secondary Education Department, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training - gave comments at the workshop - Photo: MY DUNG

At the workshop, Mr. Pham Dang Khoa - Head of the Department of Education and Training of District 3, Ho Chi Minh City - expressed his opinion that in the submission of the Ministry of Education and Training, there was a suggestion that other groups of educational personnel such as librarians, library equipment, student counselors, support for disabled education, etc. should be uniformly called teachers or not?

"Our opinion is to agree that these personnel should also be called "teachers". All of these teachers, although not standing in the classroom to teach, still have the demeanor of educators, contributing with the school's pedagogical council to educate students, so we agree that these are called "teachers".

Of course, there will be more specific details in each teacher's practice certificate," said Mr. Khoa.

Also at the workshop, a teacher from Le Quy Don Secondary School, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, commented that granting practice licenses to teachers will increase the prestige of the teaching profession, increase the position of each teacher, as well as ensure the standards of the teaching profession, ensure the quality of education, and the rights of teachers.

The best thing is that the draft suggests that teachers who have reached retirement age but are still healthy and have good capacity will still be granted a practice certificate to take advantage of the highly educated workforce for education.

"However, to facilitate the issuance of licenses, it is necessary to digitize the practice procedures. The procedures need to be concise to avoid teachers being pressured by cumbersome licensing procedures. There needs to be clearer regulations on the reasonable use of practice licenses.

Not everyone can have a practice license, ensuring the standard practice license" - this teacher commented.

Teachers must have a professional certificate.

With many opinions related to the granting of practice certificates, Mr. Pham Do Nhat Tien - former assistant to the Minister of Education and Training, a member participating in drafting the Law on Teachers - explained the construction of the Law on Teachers according to a constructivist approach.

Therefore, it is inevitable that there will be conflicts. However, according to him, granting this practice license is purely for the benefit of teachers.

Mr. Pham Do Nhat Tien - former assistant to the Minister of Education and Training, a member of the drafting committee of the Law on Teachers - spoke at the consultation workshop - Photo: MY DUNG

"We are integrating internationally, we cannot do without a license to practice. We absolutely must have one. This is a common trend in countries around the world, teachers must have a license to practice. The reason is that teaching is a very special profession related to human development. Therefore, people in this profession must have a license to practice" - Mr. Tien affirmed.

It is absolutely necessary to have a license to practice to ensure that teachers are truly the ones who bring the necessary qualities and abilities to the subjects they teach. This is what the Law on Teachers desires.

According to Mr. Tien, all teachers who are teaching will of course have a license to practice, there is no more complicated procedure.

A license to practice is only required for those starting out in the teaching profession.

The issue of a practice license only arises for those who have just graduated from a university of education and are working in schools.

Previously, after graduating from a university of education, those who joined the teaching profession had to undergo a 12-month internship. After 12 months, if they were accepted, there would be a decision from the educational institution's leadership.

Now, according to the draft law, when a teacher is accepted into a school, the ministry will grant him a license to practice after 12 months of probation.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nha-giao-dut-khoat-phai-co-giay-phep-hanh-nghe-20240621175618531.htm