Modify to suit reality

Teachers and students of Hai Van Kindergarten (Hai Hau district, Nam Dinh ) during corner activity time. Photo: Dinh Tue

The draft Decree on the roadmap for improving the training standards of preschool, primary and secondary school teachers has several new points that are attracting attention from teachers andeducation experts.

Clear benefits

The Ministry of Education and Training was assigned by the Government to draft a Decree amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 71/2020/ND-CP dated June 30, 2020, stipulating the roadmap for improving the training standards of preschool, primary and secondary school teachers.

Associate Professor, Dr. Dang Thi Thanh Huyen said that we need to temporarily accept the old standard training level and have a roadmap to upgrade the standards for preschool and primary school teachers, especially in mountainous and remote areas where it is difficult to recruit teachers. The Ministry of Education and Training needs to fully count the number of teachers lacking by level/subject, province/district/school to have a plan and roadmap for training to upgrade the teacher's qualifications appropriately.

The revised and supplemented content focuses on three policies to overcome difficulties in the implementation process.

Regarding training organization to upgrade standards: Eliminate the bidding method, retain the method of assigning tasks and ordering training facilities according to the approved plan. Add regulations that teachers can proactively choose and register to study to upgrade their qualifications directly with public training facilities when the industry or major that the teacher registered to train does not meet the conditions for the locality to open classes according to the method of assigning tasks or ordering.

Training to upgrade qualifications must have written consent from the principal or director of the educational institution where the teacher is working and reported to the direct educational management agency of the educational institution.

Regarding tuition fees: Supplementing regulations on payment of training tuition fees for teachers (subjects to training under Decree No. 71/2020/ND-CP) who have studied on their own and been granted a degree since July 1, 2020.

Regarding salary policy during the time of studying to upgrade qualifications: Supplementing regulations that during the implementation of the roadmap to upgrade qualifications, teachers who have not yet met the standard qualifications and are trained to work at private preschools in areas with industrial parks are entitled to policies according to regulations in Article 10 of Decree No. 105/2020/ND-CP.

From the perspective of an education manager, Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh - Principal of Thanh Xuan Secondary School (Soc Son District, Hanoi) assessed that the draft has many new points to create favorable conditions for teachers to participate in studying to improve their professional qualifications and skills. In particular, teachers can rest assured that when they go to school, they will be supported with funding, given favorable conditions in terms of time and work, and still receive 100% of their salary, thereby contributing to improving the quality of education.

Associate Professor, Dr. Dang Thi Thanh Huyen - former Director of the Institute for Educational Management Research, Academy of Educational Management. Photo: Dinh Tue

However, the draft requires schools to prepare financial budget documents not in the form of “bidding” but as “purchase orders” to settle training costs for teachers. This is a very new point in the use of school financial budgets, causing more or less difficulties for each school.

“At Thanh Xuan Secondary School, 100% of teachers have standard or above-standard qualifications, so the board of directors has a lot of flexibility in assigning work without having to worry about training costs to improve their qualifications,” Ms. Nguyen Thi Binh shared.

Thanh Xuan Secondary School, as well as the education sector in general, is still lacking teachers. Therefore, Ms. Binh said that the draft Decree amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree 71/2020/ND-CP makes it difficult for many managers to find sources to recruit teachers. Some teachers teach quite well but their qualifications do not meet the standards, making school leaders afraid to sign labor contracts.

Dr. Bui Hong Quan – Head of Preschool Education Department, Ho Chi Minh City University of Education. Photo: Ngo Chuyen

Towards the essence

Associate Professor, Dr. Dang Thi Thanh Huyen - former Director of the Institute of Educational Management Research (Academy of Educational Management) commented that the above amendments are completely suitable for the current context.

However, there are still some unresolved issues. Among them, ordering teacher training facilities needs to clearly state the quality assurance criteria so that the unit can place orders, avoiding the situation of formal association leading to unassured quality.

Second, raising standards must ensure training quality, it cannot be done in a formal way to get a degree, meeting standards but the quality does not meet practical teaching requirements. In reality, many teachers only have intermediate or college degrees but have been teaching for many years, accumulated a lot of experience and are teaching well, so raising standards is just a formality.

The female expert also pointed out that the country currently lacks about 113,000 teachers at all levels in most localities. However, it is still impossible to recruit teachers because most of them do not meet the standards. Therefore, it is necessary to have temporary measures, accept the recruitment of teachers who do not meet the standards and have a training roadmap to upgrade the standards to ensure enough teachers for all levels, especially preschool and primary schools.

“Even in many urban schools, some subjects are lacking teachers such as: Information Technology, English, Ethnic Minority Languages ​​(primary level), Foreign Language 2, Natural Sciences, History and Geography, Arts (Music, Fine Arts), Experiential Activities - Career Guidance, Local Education Content, Technology; Information Technology... Therefore, schools need to be flexible in recruiting teachers,” Associate Professor, Dr. Dang Thi Thanh Huyen suggested.

Having been in the profession for more than 10 years, Ms. Nguyen Thi Trang - a primary school teacher in Hanoi, believes that it is necessary to include support content for teachers in non-public schools in the draft amendment and supplement to Decree 71/2020/ND-CP because this will be a meaningful move and have a positive impact on the education system.

This is especially necessary in the context that non-public school teachers often face more difficulties than their colleagues working in public schools when accessing support resources.

“In fact, non-public school teachers play an important role in providing educational services, especially in large, densely populated urban areas. Supporting private school teachers affirms their role in improving the quality of comprehensive education. On the other hand, it helps reduce the gap in working conditions, opportunities for improving qualifications and other benefits compared to public school teachers, contributing to building a more equal educational environment,” said Ms. Trang.

Teachers and students of Yen Nghia Primary School (Ha Dong District, Hanoi) on the opening day of the 2024-2025 school year. Photo: Dinh Tue

Positive trend

According to Dr. Bui Hong Quan - Head of the Department of Preschool Education, Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, the draft to raise the qualifications for preschool, primary and secondary school teachers is a positive trend. Currently, many countries in the world require university and master's degrees for teachers. Therefore, the draft to raise the qualifications for teachers is also a trend to approach the world and innovate education.

At the same time, teachers who are upgraded will have more training time, at which time knowledge and skills will certainly be invested more. Particularly, young teachers who have just graduated will have more skills, knowledge and time to practice and accumulate experience when entering the real work.

At the same time, by raising teacher standards, we will shift from training teachers to educators - this is the current development trend because not only will we teach well but we will also have good foundational knowledge to implement the new General Education Program in the future, meeting the requirements of the program.

Having worked as a teacher, Ms. La Thu Trang - Vice Principal of An Son Kindergarten 1 (Van Quan district, Lang Son province) said that improving teacher standards is necessary to meet teaching requirements as well as social development trends.

The digital age requires teachers to change, update their knowledge, and apply technology to teaching. Therefore, upgrading standards will help teachers gain more knowledge and skills in teaching as well as new initiatives to improve the quality of lessons and lectures, instead of just teaching using traditional methods.

“Not to mention, knowledge is constantly changing, requiring teachers to update and supplement to meet requirements. Raising standards also helps teachers improve their spirit of self-study, creativity in supplementing knowledge, and keeping up with the development trends of society,” Ms. La Thu Trang cited.

From the implementation, Ms. Trang expressed: For those who are teaching, the Ministry of Education and Training should allow time for training to upgrade qualifications during the summer or weekends. This is to create favorable conditions as well as help the team feel secure in their work. On the other hand, the authorities need to develop a policy to support tuition fees for teachers participating in training to upgrade qualifications.

Sharing the same view, Dr. Bui Hong Quan affirmed that improving the standards of preschool, primary and secondary school teachers requires a suitable roadmap. Because in reality, studying to improve qualifications will not be easy because it is related to work, family and many other activities of the team. Therefore, when there is a roadmap, teachers will have time to prepare, be proactive in their work as well as arrange their study plans.

“Raising standards is good, but in the context of low income, paying tuition fees becomes a burden for many people. If there is a policy to support teachers to improve their qualifications, they will feel more secure,” Dr. Bui Hong Quan suggested.

For schools, it is important to understand that: Teachers who have completed their studies and improved their qualifications will contribute to improving the quality of education. Therefore, the school board should create conditions for the team to go to school, giving them more motivation so that they can feel secure and be assigned suitable jobs when they return to work.

Teachers need to see this as an opportunity to change, develop, and access positive, modern education in the country and around the world, thereby implementing the preschool program more effectively.

Training institutions need to be organized in a flexible and practical way to help teachers who are studying to upgrade their qualifications to be able to arrange between work and study conveniently. Building training activities that are suitable for practice will promote learners' capacity more, and the effectiveness of upgrading qualifications will be higher.

“There needs to be coordination between localities and training facilities, and flexibility. The constraints and procedures for implementation according to regulations sometimes make it difficult for teachers as well as training facilities because the ultimate goal is for teachers to improve their qualifications, and qualified facilities will certainly have the most effective way of organizing,” said Dr. Bui Hong Quan.

Source: https://danviet.vn/nang-chuan-giao-vien-sua-doi-de-phu-hop-thuc-tien-20241006114256478.htm