On the afternoon of May 11, Tri Duc High School (Hanoi) held a seminar "Selecting a school for children: A right start, a safe journey".
With only about a month left, grade 9 students will take the entrance exam for grade 10. This year's exam has many new points in terms of exam preparation, knowledge as well as exam regulations. Therefore, the current concern of parents and students is choosing the right school.
According to Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thanh Nam - Vice Principal of the University of Education, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, high school is one of the important stages for students to form personality and develop abilities. Therefore, a learning environment is very important to help students develop their own abilities. However, in reality, choosing the right school for children is a headache for many parents.
Mr. Nam said that the training program, reputation, ranking position, number of students passing the university entrance exam, ... are all qualitative criteria for parents to consider and choose. However, the above criteria are only a part, the important thing is that the value of a school depends on the awareness of parents themselves.
"Parents need to pay attention to the educational philosophy of each school, along with conditions such as facilities to ensure the operation of that philosophy. Consider the relationship between teachers and students, culture in schools, the ability of teachers to orient and inspire" - Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thanh Nam said.
Experts say that students often tend to like things that are not good and suitable for their sustainable development. Therefore, after choosing a suitable environment, parents also need to be skillful in convincing their children to follow the direction, avoid imposing pressure on children.
"We need to convince them through their learning experiences in the new environment, to acknowledge their children's changes and accept that failure in the learning process is the way parents accompany and orient their children's learning" - Mr. Nam advised.
With many years of experience in consulting and enrollment, Ms. Chu Thi Hien, Principal of Tri Duc High School, realizes that high school is a pivotal stage to shape future careers. This is also the time when many students start to want to assert themselves, but lack a clear direction. Therefore, choosing a school with a suitable educational environment becomes a top concern for many parents.
At this age, they often like and want to prove their abilities, but are not clearly oriented or do not have mature thinking and are easily affected by external factors. Therefore, the educational environment is very important to help children have clear and correct orientations" - Ms. Hien said.
At the seminar, the issue that many parents were concerned about was whether to choose a school according to their children's preferences or according to their parents' wishes and aspirations. Regarding this question, Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thanh Nam said that the most important thing is that parents need to find a way to convey what they want to become understanding of their children, that the purpose is to form good abilities for their children in the future.
"It is best to let the child decide which school to choose after experiencing it, under guidance and explanation, instead of the parents being the one to decide" - Mr. Nam said.
Ms. Chu Thi Hien emphasized that the companionship and coordination between schools and parents is extremely important. Therefore, Ms. Hien advises parents, even when choosing a school, to always accompany the school in educating students.
