Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee has just issued a Directive on implementing key tasks for the 2026-2027 school year.
The Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee requests the Department of Education and Training to coordinate with relevant units to ensure sufficient schools, classes, teachers, textbooks, minimum teaching equipment and school building safety for the new school year.
The city also requires ensuring school places for all children of age residing in the area, including children of workers and migrant workers who do not have permanent residence registration. "Resolutely prevent the situation where there are students but no teachers teaching classes and prevent students from not being able to go to school due to difficult circumstances" - the Directive stated.
Regarding textbooks, the Department of Education and Training is assigned to coordinate with the Department of Finance and related units to ensure sufficient supply of books for the new school year.
Regarding staff, the education sector is required to review, arrange teachers and recruit all assigned staff, prioritizing the increase of direct teaching teachers.
The Directive also requires innovation in inspection, evaluation, examination and admission in the direction of reducing pressure, ensuring fairness, transparency, and objectivity.
Notably, in the first semester, the Department of Education and Training was assigned to review and cut unnecessary exams and contests; at the same time, eliminate 100% of duplicate records and books and cut at least 50% of formal contests and movements.
Digital transformation in education must go hand in hand with the requirement not to increase the burden of paperwork and records for teachers.
Ho Chi Minh City is also promoting the application of controlled artificial intelligence in school governance, teaching, testing and evaluation; fostering digital capacity, AI application capacity for teachers and management staff.
The city continues to implement the roadmap to make English the second language in schools; build a 2-session/day teaching roadmap; deploy digital school records and online entrance exams on the network of schools and classrooms' digital map.
The Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee also requested to strictly control the activities of linking education, tutoring, and extra classes; publicize and transparently disclose collections and strictly handle cases of overcharging, tutoring, extra classes and linking education not in accordance with regulations.
Schools must strengthen moral education, lifestyle, life skills, patriotic tradition education, national defense - security; improve the effectiveness of school psychological counseling and student health care.
In particular, the city requires ensuring food safety at semi-boarding kitchens; preventing and combating school violence, drugs, e-cigarettes and risks to students in the online environment.
