Preschool Teacher Lunch: The Forgotten Meal

A series of photos of the lunches allegedly given to teachers at Anh Duong Kindergarten (Chau Duc District, Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province) were posted on social media. These meals only include rice, 1 soup dish and 1 main dish with a quantity equivalent to a lunch meal for preschool children.

Specifically, the savory part is 2 slices of pork roll, or 3 small pieces of fatty meat the size of a thumb braised with 2 pieces of bamboo shoots, or a pinch of braised pork with coconut with very thinly sliced ​​meat, or 1 piece of egg with meat.

A simple lunch taken by a kindergarten teacher at Anh Duong school (Photo: NVCC).

Looking at the meal, no one would believe this is the teachers' lunch.

On the afternoon of September 17, during a conversation with the Chairman of the Chau Duc District People's Committee, the teachers burst into tears and confirmed that the pictures of the meal were real. They said they had to pay 30,000 VND for each meal like this.

Last year, also at this school, a catering staff was fired after reporting that the school had reduced the number of meals provided to students.

The incident at Anh Duong Kindergarten has not yet had an official conclusion from the local authorities, but it partly shows the reality that, for a long time, what the teachers eat is something that few people care about.

Among the myriad of information related to school meals, from kindergarten to high school, meals for teachers are almost forgotten.

Sharing with Dan Tri reporter, Ms. NHT - a preschool teacher in Hanoi - said: "According to regulations, teachers' meals must be independent from children's meals, but in the groups of children I taught before, some complied and some did not.

In establishments with good income, teachers get to eat more and better food, and vice versa. However, the price of a meal for teachers is usually not more than 20,000 VND. If the kitchen is skillful, with this amount of money, the teachers can eat their fill.

I once quit a job at a facility after a 3-month probation period because the owner let the teachers eat the same food as the children, most of the salty food was ground or chopped.

Ms. T. also added that the extra meals and fruit for dessert for preschool teachers are "luxuries". Meanwhile, their working hours usually last from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. for public school teachers and 6 p.m. for private school teachers and independent nursery groups. Lunch break is no more than one hour.

"As I teach at a private school, I have to prepare snacks myself, especially sweets and candies to prevent hunger and low blood pressure, especially in the afternoon," said Ms. T.

Sharing the same sentiment, Ms. NHC, a preschool teacher in Lang Son, said that her lunch was only about 15,000 VND, very simple.

"In my 15 years of working, I have never had a proper lunch at school. We have to take shifts, some eat first, some eat later to make sure the children are always in her sight. We have to eat quickly so we can quickly go back to change shifts for the remaining people to eat.

Since the introduction of camera technology, parents monitor every move of teachers. If teachers are out of frame for more than 5 minutes, we will receive feedback the next day. Therefore, our meals usually only last 20 minutes for the two of us.

Because we eat in such a state of mind, we don't feel like eating. Many times we eat without knowing what we are eating.

Therefore, when I saw the poor lunch with 2-3 pieces of meat of my colleagues, I was moved to tears. Raising children is such a hard job but the salary is lower than that of a housekeeper and the food is the same as that of a preschool child, I wonder if we are respected or not?

According to Ms. C., the reason teachers often stay silent instead of speaking up and demanding their legitimate rights is because they are afraid of losing their jobs. "My friend who teaches in Hanoi, witnessed children having to eat poor-nutritious food every day, complained to the school principal and was fired immediately after.

Another friend of mine demanded children's rights by secretly taking pictures of their meals with her phone, sending them to their parents, and then proactively quitting her job before the parents could denounce the school on social media.

She also had to ask her parents to hide her identity. Because she was afraid she wouldn't be able to find a job anywhere," said Ms. C.

Ms. C. added that the profession of preschool teacher requires good health. Stressful working conditions wear down the body very quickly. However, there are no regulations on compensation for preschool teachers through meals.

Currently, the government has no regulations on lunch support policies for preschool teachers, except for the noon duty regime applied by some provinces.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/suat-an-trua-cua-giao-vien-mam-non-bua-an-bi-lang-quen-20240918162156057.htm