Vietnam News Agency reporters spoke to experts about both the prospectsand challenges of a resolution on the fundamental and comprehensivereform of education and training adopted by the Communist Party ofVietnam's Central Committee earlier this month.
* Education and Training Minister Pham Vu Luan
The resolution covers a wide range of renovations relating to alleducation activities. The key measures cover education management,developing teaching staff and renovating testing and assessment methods.
Renovation of testing and assessments is considereda breakthrough measure because it will control and change all othereducational activities. It will not be costly, but is expected to helpchange both teaching and learning methods for teachers and students.
Previous education renovation programmes failed to eradicateshortcomings in creating a close link between high schools and educationuniversities which help produce different generations of teachers.
Therefore, this education reform master plan will help change thecurriculum of education universities in line with renovation at highschools. Teaching methods and forms of assessments at educationuniversities will also be renovated.
Many teachers,education managers and lecturers have been mobilised to become directlyinvolved in the construction of this master plan.
Among the issues to be renovated, renewing high school curricula andtextbooks seems to get the most attention from the public. After deeplyanalysing and assessing problems in the education and training sector,the Communist Party of Vietnam's Central Committee decided to changecurriculum design, textbook content and teaching methods towards thetarget of developing learners' ability and qualifications from thecurrent passive method of "the teacher dictates and students takenotes".
Also, the current curriculum for highschool education includes such subjects as maths, physics, chemistry,literature, history and geography, which are designed following themodel of concentric circles, causing overlapping and overload forstudents as they have to repetitively study the same subjects throughouttheir schooling.
Under the master plan, inaddition to a few compulsory subjects, high school students would beable to choose what they want to learn depending on their hobbies,abilities or career aspirations. Students will also learn skillsapplicable to real life, including teamwork, independent study andpresentation. Revamped exams would test their ability to apply knowledgerather than simply memorise facts.
The renovationand new design of education curricula and textbooks is based onassessments of the current education situation and lessons learned fromworld education achievements, thanks to assistance from both domesticand international experts and organisations.
* Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Learning Promotion Association Pham Tat Dong
It could be admitted that this master plan was carefully built andpresented a progressive approach to education as it touches on manyurgent issues such as renovations of curricula, textbook and methods ofteaching, testing and assessments.
Educationrenovation is needed to help train human resources to meetsocio-economic development as well as the country's industrialisationand modernisation demands.
However, it is better torenovate education and training resolutely, not comprehensively. It isessential to renovate the whole national education system in whichschool, family and society education must fit each other in terms ofboth content and method to help educate learners effectively. Ittherefore requires the whole of society to join hands with the educationand training sector to carry out the renovations.
During this renovation, developing the teaching staff is one among keyparts as they are entrusted to build qualified human resources. It isessential to reform the whole system of education universities, fromcurriculum and teaching methods right through to on-the-job training.
It's now their duties to not only impart knowledge tostudents but also develop their capacity, skills and personality, tohelp them apply newly-found knowledge to real life situations.
More preferential policies, particularly salary incentives, are needed to encourage teachers to stick with their career.
For long-term development, we should target free education for all toincrease participation, particularly poor people and those in remote andmountainous areas. Sweden serves as a good example to follow whereeveryone is offered opportunities to pursue education.
* Professor Dinh Quang Bao from the Steering Committee on renovating the education curricula and textbooks after 2015
The renovation requires a new design of curricula and textbooks based on different logic.
We used to compile textbooks based on the consensual logic of eachsubject. But now we will compile textbooks based on developing the logicof students as a primary factor.
The new curriculawill not focus on the amount of knowledge but on students' ability toapply knowledge, skills, attitudes, feelings and purposes in dealingwith real situations in their daily lives.
Therefore, the curricula will only choose some basic and practicaleducation contents instead of focusing too much on academic knowledge asis the case at present.
To achieve this target, weneed to first change the approach of education programme designers andtextbook compilers to help build curricula and textbooks meeting thedemands of the master plan.
However, it is not aneasy task as they are too familiar with "old" thinking of compilingbooks and building curricula based of the logic of a subject, not on thelogic of boosting students' capacity development. We need to learn fromother countries in dealing with this issue.
Renovated textbooks will focus on developing a learner's capacity, sotextbook compilers must act as not only educationalists, but also aspsychologists and geneticists.
The first revampedtextbooks are expected to be used on a trial basis by primary studentsduring the 2016-17 school year, with renewed textbooks for all educationlevels are expected to be ready by 2021.
* Nguyen Phuong Chi, teacher from Lang Thuong Primary School in Dong Da District
The project will reduce the workload for students as it will cut thenumber of subjects in the curriculum. However, it may create a lot ofdifficulties for teachers when organising a studying period.
A curriculum with practice periods is only suitable for small groupsof students, but at present, the number of students in each class isexcessive and the classrooms are too small.
Theteacher must try to suitably arrange the tables and students, but it'salways the that not every student is able to practice effectively.
Furthermore, each period is too short - only 40 minutes - and I thinkit is not enough time for teachers to cover the subject matter,especially when some complex issues will be added to the curriculum,such as climate change, living skills, population and reproductivehealth. We need around 60 minutes for each period to teach these topicseffectively.
Moreover, most schools in the countrylack essential teaching aids which are especially important with the newcurriculum of the project.
To help the project beeffective, the education sector should equip schools with pictures,posters, small boards and other teaching aids before conducting theproject.-VNA
* Education and Training Minister Pham Vu Luan
The resolution covers a wide range of renovations relating to alleducation activities. The key measures cover education management,developing teaching staff and renovating testing and assessment methods.
Renovation of testing and assessments is considereda breakthrough measure because it will control and change all othereducational activities. It will not be costly, but is expected to helpchange both teaching and learning methods for teachers and students.
Previous education renovation programmes failed to eradicateshortcomings in creating a close link between high schools and educationuniversities which help produce different generations of teachers.
Therefore, this education reform master plan will help change thecurriculum of education universities in line with renovation at highschools. Teaching methods and forms of assessments at educationuniversities will also be renovated.
Many teachers,education managers and lecturers have been mobilised to become directlyinvolved in the construction of this master plan.
Among the issues to be renovated, renewing high school curricula andtextbooks seems to get the most attention from the public. After deeplyanalysing and assessing problems in the education and training sector,the Communist Party of Vietnam's Central Committee decided to changecurriculum design, textbook content and teaching methods towards thetarget of developing learners' ability and qualifications from thecurrent passive method of "the teacher dictates and students takenotes".
Also, the current curriculum for highschool education includes such subjects as maths, physics, chemistry,literature, history and geography, which are designed following themodel of concentric circles, causing overlapping and overload forstudents as they have to repetitively study the same subjects throughouttheir schooling.
Under the master plan, inaddition to a few compulsory subjects, high school students would beable to choose what they want to learn depending on their hobbies,abilities or career aspirations. Students will also learn skillsapplicable to real life, including teamwork, independent study andpresentation. Revamped exams would test their ability to apply knowledgerather than simply memorise facts.
The renovationand new design of education curricula and textbooks is based onassessments of the current education situation and lessons learned fromworld education achievements, thanks to assistance from both domesticand international experts and organisations.
* Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Learning Promotion Association Pham Tat Dong
It could be admitted that this master plan was carefully built andpresented a progressive approach to education as it touches on manyurgent issues such as renovations of curricula, textbook and methods ofteaching, testing and assessments.
Educationrenovation is needed to help train human resources to meetsocio-economic development as well as the country's industrialisationand modernisation demands.
However, it is better torenovate education and training resolutely, not comprehensively. It isessential to renovate the whole national education system in whichschool, family and society education must fit each other in terms ofboth content and method to help educate learners effectively. Ittherefore requires the whole of society to join hands with the educationand training sector to carry out the renovations.
During this renovation, developing the teaching staff is one among keyparts as they are entrusted to build qualified human resources. It isessential to reform the whole system of education universities, fromcurriculum and teaching methods right through to on-the-job training.
It's now their duties to not only impart knowledge tostudents but also develop their capacity, skills and personality, tohelp them apply newly-found knowledge to real life situations.
More preferential policies, particularly salary incentives, are needed to encourage teachers to stick with their career.
For long-term development, we should target free education for all toincrease participation, particularly poor people and those in remote andmountainous areas. Sweden serves as a good example to follow whereeveryone is offered opportunities to pursue education.
* Professor Dinh Quang Bao from the Steering Committee on renovating the education curricula and textbooks after 2015
The renovation requires a new design of curricula and textbooks based on different logic.
We used to compile textbooks based on the consensual logic of eachsubject. But now we will compile textbooks based on developing the logicof students as a primary factor.
The new curriculawill not focus on the amount of knowledge but on students' ability toapply knowledge, skills, attitudes, feelings and purposes in dealingwith real situations in their daily lives.
Therefore, the curricula will only choose some basic and practicaleducation contents instead of focusing too much on academic knowledge asis the case at present.
To achieve this target, weneed to first change the approach of education programme designers andtextbook compilers to help build curricula and textbooks meeting thedemands of the master plan.
However, it is not aneasy task as they are too familiar with "old" thinking of compilingbooks and building curricula based of the logic of a subject, not on thelogic of boosting students' capacity development. We need to learn fromother countries in dealing with this issue.
Renovated textbooks will focus on developing a learner's capacity, sotextbook compilers must act as not only educationalists, but also aspsychologists and geneticists.
The first revampedtextbooks are expected to be used on a trial basis by primary studentsduring the 2016-17 school year, with renewed textbooks for all educationlevels are expected to be ready by 2021.
* Nguyen Phuong Chi, teacher from Lang Thuong Primary School in Dong Da District
The project will reduce the workload for students as it will cut thenumber of subjects in the curriculum. However, it may create a lot ofdifficulties for teachers when organising a studying period.
A curriculum with practice periods is only suitable for small groupsof students, but at present, the number of students in each class isexcessive and the classrooms are too small.
Theteacher must try to suitably arrange the tables and students, but it'salways the that not every student is able to practice effectively.
Furthermore, each period is too short - only 40 minutes - and I thinkit is not enough time for teachers to cover the subject matter,especially when some complex issues will be added to the curriculum,such as climate change, living skills, population and reproductivehealth. We need around 60 minutes for each period to teach these topicseffectively.
Moreover, most schools in the countrylack essential teaching aids which are especially important with the newcurriculum of the project.
To help the project beeffective, the education sector should equip schools with pictures,posters, small boards and other teaching aids before conducting theproject.-VNA
