The parent-teacher association operates based on Circular No. 55/2011/TT-BGDDT of the Ministry of Education and Training, with the main goal of connecting schools and parents. According to regulations, the association is not allowed to collect fees such as: security fees, facility repairs, classroom cleaning, equipment purchases, etc. Contributions must be completely voluntary and serve the interests of students.

However, in reality, there have been many cases where the representative board has overcharged or transformed this function into a tool to ask parents to contribute various fees. This has caused resentment in the parent community and led many to express their desire to "eliminate" the parent association.

Pressure from closing the fund

Mr. Luu Van (Hanoi) shared his "shock" feeling with the school fund and class fund of up to nearly 2 million VND per semester when his child entered a public high school. Previously, his child studied at a private school, although the class did not elect a parent-teacher association, there were full cultural activities and parties, with a total cost of about 500-600 thousand VND/semester.

“In the class’s Zalo group, when I suggested reconsidering the amount of money collected, not only the president but many parents reacted strongly, saying that such a contribution was for the children, and that the amount of several million was actually only equivalent to a drinking party for the father or a cosmetic set for the mother. I found the reasoning unreasonable but in the end, I had to pay the money to avoid trouble for myself and my children,” Mr. Van shared.

He believes that the parent-teacher association in many public schools has been transformed, and if parents do not contribute to the fund, their children may be discriminated against or isolated in class.

Not only parents like Mr. Van, but also some who used to hold the role of president are not very interested in maintaining the representative board. A reader named Manh Duc (Hanoi) - who was president of his child's parent association for a year, shared that taking this position only brought him more work and a bad reputation, and he could not show any role.

“In my opinion, we should abolish the parent representative committee, and hand over all class funds to the homeroom teacher so that she can photocopy documents, print, and hold parties for the students. If the school wants to ask for donations for something, there should be a separate account for donors to deposit into, with transparent inspection and verification. Wealthy families who want their children to have better conditions can go to private schools, international schools, or can voluntarily support the school. Don't ask all parents to contribute to the fund,” Duc said.

Ms. Bich Tra (HCMC) also agreed that although the nature of the parent association is not bad, the current way of operation creates many negative effects. The inequality between classes, stemming from the amount of money raised, increases the gap and pressure between parents.

"Classes with more funds often have more vibrant movements and activities, while classes with less funds are at a disadvantage. This not only affects parents but also the psychology of students," Ms. Tra shared.

In addition, according to her, the so-called representative committee's main task should be to speak up on behalf of parents to the school, but in reality, it is often the opposite; the parent committee only disseminates the school's policies and then calls for contributions to the school and teachers' fund.

Another parent shared that although he could afford to contribute to his child's classroom facilities, and was even willing to provide additional funding outside of the fund, he still supported the dissolution of the representative board.

"This association mainly reflects the will of the principal - which is not in accordance with the regulations. My child's class fund is contributed by each family of 4 million VND/year and is mainly spent on gifts for teachers and the principal on many occasions, from November 20 to the opening ceremony, parent meetings and a series of holidays, but at the end of the year, the expenses are not made public. If anyone has any questions, please contact us privately.

If the task of raising contributions is handed over to the school, the role of the parents' representative committee will only be to organize small activities such as parties, giving birthday gifts or rewarding students - things that parents can coordinate with each other without the need for the association," he said.

There are still positive aspects of parent-teacher associations.

However, not everyone agrees with the complete elimination of the parents' association. Mr. Pham Toan (Hanoi) said that the problem does not lie in the existence of this association but in the way the fund is operated and managed.

"Just by eliminating compulsory fund collection, negative factors will naturally decrease. The parents' association still has an important role in monitoring and supporting school activities," he said.

A teacher in Dong Thap also expressed that in difficult localities, the Parents' Association is the place to call for funding to help students in disadvantaged circumstances, creating equal learning opportunities.

Ms. Bich, a mother of two children studying at a public school in Ho Chi Minh City, expressed her support for maintaining the parent association. According to her, many opponents only focus on the negative aspects and ignore the positive values ​​of the association.

"In my child's class, the contributions called for by the parents' association are completely voluntary and parents who do not participate are not complained about. When the board of representatives proposed installing air conditioners because the classroom was too hot, some people did not support it, but no one was forced. Those who have the means contribute more to support poor families, the remaining money is used for activities such as photocopying documents, year-end parties... Recently, when a school violence incident occurred, thanks to the supervision of the parents' association, the incident was handled promptly, avoiding serious developments," she said.

According to Ms. Bich, the parents' association should operate on a voluntary basis and classes that do not have a need may not need to be established.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Trung Hieu said that at his child’s school, the parent-teacher association monitors school activities, ensures that commitments to parents are fulfilled, and protects the rights of students. The association often conducts surprise inspections of the kitchen, canteen, school bus, and medical room, and then makes suggestions for improvement.

The parent fund is only used to support students, not teachers or schools.

Pressure from rich people 'manipulating' the class parent committee At the first parent meeting of the school year, I sat next to a lady who looked quite rich. When the teacher suggested setting up a scholarship fund to reward children every month, calling on each parent to contribute 50,000-100,000 VND/term, she shouted "pay 200,000 VND for comfort" and handed over the money.