On December 30, 2024, the Ministry of Education and Training issued Circular No. 29/2024/TT-BGDDT stipulating the tutoring and tutoring (Circular 29). This Circular takes effect from February 14, 2025.
Talking to Lao Dong on the afternoon of February 10, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Pham Ngoc Thuong said that Circular 29 stipulates that extra teaching and learning will not be provided by primary school students, except for cases of training in arts, physical education, and life skills training; no extra teaching for students who have been organized by the school to teach 2 sessions/day.
Extra teaching and extra learning in schools are not allowed to collect money from students and only for 3 subjects, those who are responsible for the school: Students with the results of studying subjects at the end of the semester are not yet achieved; students selected by the school to train excellent students and students in the final grade voluntarily register to review for entrance exams and review for graduation exams according to the school's education plan.
"The current high schools are applying the 2018 general education program, the Ministry of Education and Training has specified the number of periods/subjects, making the requirements to meet each subject to fit students. Assigning the school's autonomy to develop an educational plan of the school to ensure efficiency and teachers focus on innovating teaching methods to achieve the goal of the program is to develop student capacity.
Thus, in principle, schools and teachers who follow regulations have ensured the number of knowledge students and meet the requirements required by the program" - the Deputy Minister said and affirmed that the Ministry of Education and Training's viewpoint is to aim for schools that do not have extra classes or extra classes.
Instead, after studying subjects according to the program, students have time and space to participate in recreational activities, sports, fine arts, music..., so that time in general schools is not only the time for learning but also the time for students to develop comprehensively in personality, lifestyle, sense of responsibility and ability to integrate with society, and practice problem-solving skills.
"Students do not have to take extra classes that cause unnecessary pressure and fatigue, so that every day they go to school is a happy day" - the Deputy Minister expressed his opinion.
Deputy Minister Pham Ngoc Thuong acknowledged that up to this point, through monitoring public opinion, the Circular's regulations have received social consensus. However, for Circular 29 to truly come into life, the Deputy Minister mentioned the responsibilities of the following parties: Ministry of Education and Training, People's Committees of the provinces; Departments of Education and Training; schools, teachers and the whole society.
"The Ministry of Education and Training will continue to have further documents urging and directing the Departments of Education and Training to advise and issue implementation instructions in the locality.
Currently, many Departments of Education and Training have issued guidelines for the implementation of Circular 29 and advised the locality to issue appropriate support policies for education and training development. It is recommended that the Department of Education and Training continue to pay attention and promulgate guidance and advice appropriately with the locality.
For schools and teachers, our responsibility is to teach students to form qualities and abilities, meeting output standards; the issuance of inspections and evaluations is also in accordance with the requirements required by the program.
For students who are still seriously weak and are still confused about preparing for transfer exams and high school graduation exams, the responsibility of the school and teachers is to complement them. When we have identified such responsibilities, other issues will no longer be serious," the Deputy Minister analyzed.
Recognizing that extra teaching and learning are the real needs of both learners and teachers, the Deputy Minister said that in the coming time, there will be immediate and long-term solutions to manage extra teaching and learning more effectively, including: Issue Circulars, specific regulations; Improve teachers' teaching skills and methods, promote students' self-study capacity; Innovate inspection and evaluation; Strengthen inspection and examination; continue to advise on policies for teachers.
"For the education sector in general and the problem we are discussing is extra teaching and learning in particular, the efforts of the education sector alone are not enough, and we also need understanding, supervision by parents and society. When parents are still burdened with their children's academic achievements, they are not yet assured just because their children do not attend extra classes, they have not yet seen the full role of family education outside of school education... then extra teaching and learning still exists at a negative perspective.
The supervision of society in implementing the Circular regulating extra teaching and learning is also very important to ensure effective regulations" - the Deputy Minister expressed his wish.
