Establishing a National Scholarship Fund, expanding learning opportunities for students
The Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Education was voted by the National Assembly on the morning of December 10 and took effect from January 1, 2026.
In addition to breakthroughs such as: Unifying shared textbooks, Not granting junior high school graduation certificates from 2026... another important new point is the establishment of a National Scholarship Fund.
This is a completely new mechanism to expand learning opportunities for learners and promote talent development. In addition to the annual state budget, the Fund receives sponsorships, voluntary contributions, and legal donations from organizations and individuals.
With a similar model to science and technology funds, the Ministry of Education and Training said that the National Scholarship Fund will be a strong channel to mobilize social resources, contributing to overcoming the situation where scholarship sources are still limited and do not meet the needs of learners, especially talented students or those in difficult circumstances.
A big step forward in scientific governance and innovation
Regarding science, technology and innovation, if the 2019 Education Law only stops at affirming that scientific and technological activities are a task of educational institutions but does not fully reflect the development requirements in the new context, does not clarify the specific mechanisms, responsibilities and powers of educational institutions in organizing and managing this activity, the newly amended Law has added a series of new mechanisms, demonstrating a major step forward in policy thinking.
Accordingly, for the first time, concepts such as innovation, application of controlled artificial intelligence, digital transformation in education, or national databases have been established with full legal value.
These new regulations contribute to creating a legal corridor for the education sector to deploy modern governance methods, enhance training quality, ensure transparency and efficiency of management work, and at the same time improve scientific research capacity in educational institutions.
Identifying "educational support personnel", forming appropriate treatment policies
Another notable policy highlight is the identification of "educational support personnel" in the national education system. According to the Ministry of Education and Training, practice shows that over the years, in many educational institutions, positions such as library staff, equipment, social work, school psychological counseling, etc. have played a very important role but have not been fully regulated, and salary and allowance regimes and policies are not commensurate.
Therefore, educational institutions face difficulties in lacking legal mechanisms for supporting staff, causing teachers to concurrently hold many tasks outside of their expertise. The amended Law has officially identified "educational support personnel", creating a basis for determining job positions, standardizing tasks and forming appropriate remuneration policies.
At the same time, the Law allows localities and educational institutions to develop additional specific policies according to actual conditions to attract and retain human resources, thereby improving the quality of support for learners.
