Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Le Hoang Quan has requested the Friendly School, Active Student programme be carried out basing on the condition of each district in order to ensure its stability.

The programme was launched to raise the learning atmosphere in schools, promote effective teaching methods, increase soft skills among students, and encourage teamwork.

At the workshop reviewing the city's five-year implement of the programme held on February 26, Quan appreciated the close co-operation between the Department of Education and Training and other authorities and oragnisations in the city to effectively carry out the programme.

Tran Thi Kim Thanh, deputy head of the department, said that close cooperation has enriched activities in schools.

The department, for example, has cooperated with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism to teach traditional music such as tuong (classical drama), cheo (traditional opera), and cai luong (folk song) for students.

They have also organised entertainment and sport programmes, attracting the attendance of large number of students to help them relax and improve their physical health.

Many scholarship programmes for disadvantaged students to continue going to school have also been carried out.

Thanh said that through the programme, more attention hs been paid to the investment in building and upgrading kindergartens and schools and equipping with modern teaching aids.

The city has counted 1,788 schools, kindergartens, and education centres for night classes since September 2008, all of them have had a green campus, standard playground, classrooms, toilets and water supplying works, Thanh said.

The city has seen an increasing number of schools meeting the national standards, she said. To date, there have been 149 national standard schools in the city.

They also have applied IT in teaching and managing, she said, adding that teaching methodologies and curricula have been improved. Many international programmes have been applied to improve students' thinking and creativity, she said.-VNA