VietNam Society: Education Training

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Friday, January 14, 2011

Educational institutions to be moved out of inner-cities

The Ministry of Education and Training is looking to compile a plan for Hanoi and HCM City in which educational institutions in the cities' inner areas would be relocated to the suburbs.

"The relocation is necessary and will contribute to the improvement of teaching," said Deputy Minister of Education and Training Bui Van Ga.

Universities located in Hanoi's inner urban areas would be partly or completely relocated to eight university-college zones in suburban areas.

The decision comes as part of the capital's construction master plan towards 2030 proposed by the Ministry of Construction.

Under the plan, zones would be opened in Hanoi in the dístricts of Gia Lam, Soc Son, Son Tay, Phu Xuyen and Chuong My.

Each zone would cover between 120-150ha to 1,200-1,500ha, with room to accommodate 3-7 universities/colleges and 650,000-700,000 students.

The ministry estimated that it will need around 4.9 billion USD for infrastructure and technical facilities.

The ministry also recommended criteria to decide which institutions would be moved including their sizes, fields of expertise and infrastructure.

HCM City would set up three zones including 660ha in Hoc Mon and Cu Chi districts, 735ha in District 7, Binh Chanh, Nha Be and 815 ha in District 9, Thu Duc and neighbouring Binh Duong province's Di An district.

The city first planned to relocate universities in 2006, but has struggled with the relocation process.

HCM City Banking University Principal Ngo Huong said that the university has land and money to build an alternative facility in Thu Duc district but hasn't been able to obtain a construction licence due to complicated procedures.

Van Hien University Principal Nguyen Mong Hung said that land clearance and compensation payment have prevented the relocation projects from getting off the ground.

Some universities including the HCM Architecture University and the Sports Training University are unable to implement the project due to financial constraints./.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Educational institutions to be moved out of inner-cities

Ha Noi University of Civil Engineering in the centre of Ha Noi. The Education Ministry is planning to shift univerisities in the inner areas of Ha Noi and HCM City to the suburbs. — VNS Photo Truong Vi

HA NOI — The Ministry of Education and Training is looking to compile a plan for Ha Noi and HCM City in which educational institutions in the cities' inner areas would be relocated to the suburbs.

"The relocation is necessary and will contribute to the improvement of teaching," said Deputy Minister of Education and Training Bui Van Ga.

Universities located in Ha Noi's inner urban areas would be partly or completely relocated to eight university-college zones in suburban areas.

The decision comes as part of the capital's construction master plan towards 2030 proposed by the Ministry of Construction.

Under the plan, zones would be opened in Ha Noi in the districts of Gia Lam, Soc Son, Son Tay, Phu Xuyen and Chuong My.

Each zone would cover between 120-150ha to 1,200-1,500ha, with room to accommodate 3-7 universities/colleges and 650,000-700,000 students.

The ministry estimated that it needed to allocate around $4.9 billion for infrastructure and technical facilities.

The ministry also recommended criteria to decide which institutions would be moved including their sizes, fields of expertise and infrastructure.

HCM City would set up three zones including 660ha in Hoc Mon and Cu Chi Districts, 735ha in District 7, Binh Chanh, Nha Be and 815 ha in District 9, Thu Duc and neighboring Binh Duong Province's Di An District.

The city first planned to relocate universities in 2006, but has struggled with the relocation process.

HCM City Banking University Principal Ngo Huong said that the university had land and money to build an alternative facility in Thu Duc District but hadn't been able to obtain a construction licence due to complicated procedures.

Van Hien University Principal Nguyen Mong Hung said that land clearance and compensation payment had prevented the relocation projects from getting off the ground.

Some universities including the HCM Architecture University and the Sports Training University were unable to implement the project due to financial constraints. — VNS

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Teachers pay for class materials from salaries

A kindergarten teacher plays with children at No 1 Primary School in Hai Phong City's Hong Bang District . Poorly paid kindergarten teachers are having to fork out for teaching aids because schools lack the necessary funds to properly equip classrooms. – VNS Photo Ngoc Mieng

HA NOI — Poorly paid kindergarten teachers are having to fork out on teaching aids because schools lack the funds to properly equip classrooms.

The Ministry of Education and Training believes it is a teacher's job to make classroom props, said Pham Thi Binh, a teacher at Mam Xanh Kindergarten in Dong Da District. However, she said she did not have the time to spend making teaching aids, and that funds should be made available to buy materials.

Binh said her school day started at about 6.30am and officially ends at 6pm.

"Then I make teaching materials in the evening – time I should be spending with my family," she said.

She said she often has to ask her husband and her children for help so that she can get the work done faster.

Depending on the subject, Binh said she makes paper flowers, animals and models of houses, trains and airplanes.

She said each year a teacher has to make dozens of classroom props, which are rarely re-used.

However, she said it was essential to use teaching aids in the classroom.

"Our lessons will only be successful if we make them fun and interesting."

The Education Ministry allocates just VND300,000 (US$15) per teacher per year for teaching aids, she said, adding: "It should be at least VND600,000 ($30)."

Meanwhile, Nguyen Thi Hang, who teaches at the Sunrise Kindergarten in Thanh Xuan District, said her husband was angry that she had to spend so much time on school.

"My husband isn't at all happy when I have to spend my evenings making teaching aids instead of taking care of our small daughter," she said.

However, Hang said it was not unreasonable to expect teachers to make their own props and that every term kindergartens awarded prizes to the most creative teachers. But she said teachers should not be expected to have to spend their own money on materials.

"By making teaching aids we demonstrate our love for the job and the children," she said.

She also said that pupils preferred home-made props to those sold in shops.

Hoang Hong Thuy, Lang Thuong Kindergarten's principal, said she would gladly reimburse teachers the cost of making classroom props if she had the money.

"We need more support from the Ministry of Education and Training," she said.

In the meantime, she advised teachers to only make simple inexpensive props.

"We need simple and colourful toys which will save teachers time, money and energy," she said.

Pham Ngoc Phuong, deputy director of the Department of School Materials and Equipment at the Ministry of Education and Training, said making handmade props promoted creativity among teachers.

He added that from next year the ministry planned to spend VND700 billion (US$36.8 million) on materials that teachers could use to make props.

The following year, he said the ministry would organise training courses for kindergarten teachers. — VNS

Friday, December 31, 2010

Decree aims to curb kindergarten overcrowding

Six-year-olds learn to draw at a kindergarten in the southern coastal city of Vung Tau. A decree drafted by the Ministry of Education and Training that aims to limit classroom sizes to 35 is said to be unfeasible. — VNA/VNS Photo Kim Phuong

HA NOI — There are growing public doubts about the Ministry of Education and Training's new draft decree stipulating that there should be no more than 35 children in each public kindergarten classroom.

Many people say the plan is unpractical and unfeasible, especially as students at schools are often divided into different age groups that share the one classroom.

While classrooms often have several teachers, the draft decree, which was released early this week, stipulates there be no more than between 25 and 35 children aged between three and six years old in each classroom.

The decree also stipulates that day-care centres must ensure each carer looking after children under one year of age has no more than four children to look after. Previously each carer could look after up to 15 children.

For children aged two to three years of age, each carer should have no more than 25 children to look after.

Apart from the required number of teachers and carers at kindergartens and day-care centres, the decree also regulates that one additional teacher was needed for four or more disabled children at public nursery schools.

The regulations aim to gradually ease the serious overload of pupils at pre-schools in major cities across the country, while also improving the quality of teaching.

However, the regulations have been criticised as being too difficult to reach.

Nguyen Thu Hang, mother of a three-year-old student enrolled at Ba Dinh A Public Nursery School in Ha Noi, said there were more than 50 children in her child's classroom and only three teachers to take care of them.

"Only private pre-schools can ensure no more than 35 students in each classroom," said Hang. "Public schools may have more than 50 students in a class and the better a school's reputation, the more crowded the classes."

Principal of Tuoi Hoa Public Nursery School Nguyen Thai Thuan said many students would be left with no place to go if schools were forced to limit class sizes.

"Parents do not have many choices," said Thuan. "Few feel secure about sending their children to small private child care centres, as the larger private child care centres that offer peace of mind are a lot more expensive.

"Not many parents can afford the VND2-3 million (US$95-142) in fees charged each month at good private schools."

School representatives also said the municipal Department of Education and Training's new regulation, which encouraged all children to enrol at pre-schools before starting primary school, would put nursery schools under pressure to receive more students and make classrooms even more crowded.

Statistics from Ha Noi Department of Education and Training shows that there are 667 State-owned pre-schools and 160 privately-operated schools. State-supported schools are reported to have an average of 50 to 60 students in each class.

Many parents have to queue up all night for a chance to register their children at one of these schools, which are often larger and better equipped, as well as less expensive than private schools.

Hoang Thi Kim Thuy, senior official from the ministry who is in charge of collecting feedback on the issue, admitted the target might be hard to achieve.

"But the ministry will collect feedback from the public on the issue during the next two months and adjust the regulations if necessary," said Thuy.

Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan called on the Ministry of Education and Training to complete proposals on construction and upgrades of schools and teacher-training facilities that used official development assistance.

The nation aims to spend more than VND14.6 trillion (US$736 million) on developing education facilities for five-year-olds during the 2010-11 period.

The programme, which will be submitted to the Government for approval, includes the construction of new schools and classrooms, purchase of study and teaching aids, training of teachers and support for poor students.

Also under the programme, 86 new kindergartens meeting national standards will be built in 62 poor districts, of which 24 are in six mountainous provinces bordering the Central Highlands. — VNS

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Vocational credit to be transferable to colleges

HCM CITY — Students at two-year vocational schools and colleges will be allowed to transfer to colleges and universities, according to a new policy from the Ministry of Education and Training and the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

In the past, only some colleges and universities in HCM City, Ha Noi and Hung Yen and Binh Duong provinces have opened their programmes to vocational-school students.

The students must have achieved good marks and have two-year work experience in order to apply to the bachelor degree programmes.

However, under the new policy, they do not need to have two years of work experience.

Students at two-year vocational schools must transfer within one and half to two years.

It will take them from three to four years to complete their bachelor's degree.

According to the draft, colleges and universities will have to develop criteria on the kind of training or coursework that can be transferred from vocational schools to colleges or universities.

In order to avoid overlap, it will have to be approved by the Ministry of Education and Training and based on curricula developed by the ministry.

Bui Van Ga, deputy minister of Education and Training, said colleges and universities must post information on the training that can be transferred on their websites. The ministry will give guidance to colleges and universities on curricula. —VNS

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

State-run preschools fail to keep teachers

State-owned preschools in Hanoi are having trouble retaining qualified teachers, losing them to privately operated schools that offer higher income.

Teachers in private kindergartens received an average salary of 2 million VND (100 USD) per month, while their colleagues in State-owned ones often needed to work about four years to achieve this level of salary, said Nguyen Thi Lan Huong, chief of the Hanoi Department of Education and Training's preschool education division

"Many teachers leave State schools to work in private ones," Huong said.

Nguyen Thanh Hang, a teacher at the Tuoi Hoa Private Kindergarten in Thanh Xuan district, said she left a State school after two years because she received no allowances and was unable live on the meagre salary.

"We were busy all day taking care of the children but received only a little over 1 million VND (50 USD) a month," said Hang.

Huong admitted that city regulations provided for allowances for primary and secondary school teachers but not for preschool teachers.

"But the school fees are low compared to the current standard of living and the State budget is limited, so if we want allowances for teachers, we need support from parents," she said.

But Ngo Thi Binh from the Soc Son district Department of Education and Training disagreed.

"We cannot encourage teachers in the district if we don't pay them more," she said.

However, few parents are able to afford to send their kids to private kindergartens because of high fees.

Le Mai Phuong, whose daughter is attending a private kindergarten in Hai Ba Trung district, said she reluctantly let her daughter study there while she was on a waiting list at a nearby State preschool.

"The school fees of 1.5 million VND (78 USD) a month here is too high for people on State workers' wages like my husband and me," Phuong said.

But the city is also suffering from a shortage of State-supported preschools.

Ha Noi has 667 State-owned preschools and 160 privately operated schools. Another 865 private kindergarten classes are offered, according to the Hanoi Department of Education and Training.

Huong said the number of children at preschool age had been increasing, with the result that State-supported schools were overloaded.

Many parents queued up all night for a chance to register their children in one of these schools, which are often larger and better equipped, as well as less expensive than private schools, Huong said.

Building new preschools was also problematic, said Huong, because of the shortage of available land. "We can't build preschools too high ," she added./.

Monday, November 1, 2010

State-run preschools fail to keep teachers

State-owned preschools in Hanoi are having trouble retaining qualified teachers, losing them to privately operated schools that offer higher income.

Teachers in private kindergartens received an average salary of VND2 million (US$100) per month, while their colleagues in state-owned ones often needed to work about four years to achieve this level of salary, said Nguyen Thi Lan Huong, chief of the Hanoi Department of Education and Training's preschool education division

"Many teachers leave state schools to work in private ones," Huong said.

Nguyen Thanh Hang, a teacher at the Tuoi Hoa Private Kindergarten in Thanh Xuan District, said she left a state school after two years because she received no allowances and was unable live on the meagre salary.

"We were busy all day taking care of the children but received only a little over VND1 million ($50) a month," said Hang.

Huong admitted that city regulations provided for allowances for primary and secondary school teachers but not for preschool teachers.

"But the school fees are low compared to the current standard of living and the state budget is limited, so if we want allowances for teachers, we need support from parents," she said.

But Ngo Thi Binh from the Soc Son District Department of Education and Training disagreed.

"We cannot encourage teachers in the district if we don't pay them more," she said.

However, few parents are able to afford to send their kids to private kindergartens because of high fees.

Le Mai Phuong, whose daughter is attending a private kindergarten in Hai Ba Trung District, said she reluctantly let her daughter study there while she was on a waiting list at a nearby state preschool.

"The school fees of VND1.5 million ($78) a month here is too high for people on state workers' wages like my husband and me," Phuong said.

But the city is also suffering from a shortage of state-supported preschools.

Hanoi has 667 state-owned preschools and 160 privately operated schools. Another 865 private kindergarten classes are offered, according to the Hanoi Department of Education and Training.

Huong said the number of children at preschool age had been increasing, with the result that state-supported schools were overloaded.

Building new preschools was also problematic, said Huong, because of the shortage of available land. "We can't build preschools too high," she added.

State-run preschools fail to keep teachers