Hanoi (VNA)𓂃 - The Ministry of Education and Training has amended various points in the regulations on primary school to make them match the new requirement in the new general education programme.

With very many amendments such as no criticising of school children in the class along with the increase of autonomy in the professional plans, the just-issued Circular 28 of the Ministry of Education and Training is drawing considerable attention from the public. Mr. Thai Van Tai, Director of the Primary Education Department, talked to the Vietnam News Agency on the matter.

For the learners’ progress

- Sir, one of the new and noteworthy points of Circular 28 is the provision that teachers must not criticise school children in front of the class, the school or the joint meeting with their parents. Why is there such an amendment and will the new provision cause any hurdle to teachers and school managers in managing the school children?

Mr. Thai Van Tai:ꦏ The amendment of the provision on disciplining school children in the circular on the circulation of the new regulations on primary schools is aimed at dealing with limitations of the previous disciplinary forms, in the spirit of respecting to the maximum the interests of the learners, for their progress, and being suitable to children’s psychology and the modern viewpoint on education.

Accordingly, teachers are not allowed to criticise school children in front of the class, the school or the joint meeting with their parents. The new provision by no means causes hurdles to teachers and school managers in managing the school children but, on the contrary, helps improve the efficiency as it will make them recognise that they are respected and their privacy ensured. As a result, they will see their school as a safe place.   

Handing autonomy to teachers, schools

- The application of the new general education programme is started in this school year. How are the new regulations amended from the old ones to become suitable to the new programme?

Mr. Thai Van Tai: ꦗThe new programme and textbooks are prepared in a way of openness to encourage the proactiveness and creativeness of the teachers. The programme provides on the number of periods each year, not each week, and the textbooks do not build the lessons according to each period. This provides schools with proactiveness in arranging their curricula, building and implementing their plans to make them suitable to the school children and the teach conditions of the education establishments.

Circular 28 focuses on the reform of the school governance in the direction of giving more automnomy and responsibility to the education establishments. Primary schools can apply advanced education methodology and forms inside and outside the country, suitable their conditions and the learners. Conclusively speaking, Circular 28 will help the schools effectively realise the education work, thus meeting the requirement of the new general education programme.  

Headmasters to take responsibility

- One of the focuses of attention is the supply of the textbooks mixed with reference books. Will the new regulations deal with this problem?

Mr. Thai Van Tai: 𓆉Article 28 of the old circular clearly states that textbooks are compulsory and no organisations or individuals are allowed to force the school children to buy reference documents.

Persisting this viewpoint, in the new circular, the ministry re-stresses and concretises a number of requirements to ensure the accurate implementation by the schools. Accordingly, the primary schools must use the textbooks approved by the Minister of Education and Training and selected by the provincial People’s Committees, and primary education establishments must provide timely and sufficient information on the textbooks used at schools. The schools will select and provide reference publications in service of the teaching and study by the teachers. However, the first requirement is that every organisation or individual must not force school children to buy reference documents. Circular 28 also clearly says that the responsibility on managing, using and selecting reference publications to be used at primary schools is of the headmasters. That is to say if any wrongdoing is committed in the provision and use of textbooks and reference documents at primary education establishments, the headmasters will be dealt with.

- Thank you./.