A kindergarten in Hanoi on April 13, 2022, the first day of reopening after nearly a year of closure due to COVID-19. (Photo: VNA) During an online conference held by the ministry on the maintenance ofkindergarten operations amid COVID-19, it is said that due to thecharacteristic nature of the kindergarten-level education where online classesare not possible, kindergarten teachers – who still remained in the profession– would have made videos on caring for the kids and some lessons to provide forparents.
Some argue that the education sector needs to find solutions for children tohave access to preschool programmes, to ensure children’s rights, especiallyfor children aged five years old, to prepare them for Grade 1 in primaryschools, as many parents are still not confident about sending their kids toschools.
Experts also said that it is necessary to consult with the Government andpropose to the Ministry of Health to organise vaccination against COVID-19 forchildren under five years old.
To date, nearly 100 percent of the adult population in Vietnam has been fullyvaccinated against COVID-19 (with 55 percent receiving the booster shotalready), while 96.3 percent of the children aged 12-17 years have received thefull two doses.
Vietnam has just begun to inoculate the young children aged 5-12 years inmid-April, and nearly 900,000 first doses have been administered in this agegroup so far.
According to the report from 63 provincial/municipal education and trainingdepartments, by April 18, 2022, preschool educational institutions across Vietnamhave all reopened.
At this time, the number of teachers at this level has basically met the needsof children attending in-person activities. The rate of children's in-personparticipation in localities was quite low at first, but now the number hasstabilised.
Deputy education minister Ngo Thi Minh stressed that we must not let COVID-19disrupt the development of children, asking local governments to pay attentionto private kindergarten institutions that are still reeling from long periodsof shutdowns, to ensure children’s learning rights.
The Government has also approved a credit package of 1.4 trillion VND (60.9million USD) to support private kindergartens and primary schools, she noted./.
VNA
