The Ministry of Education and Training is seeking comments on the Draft Circular replacing Circular No. 55/2011/TT-BGDĐT dated November 22, 2011 of the Minister of Education and Training promulgating the Charter of the Parents' Representative Board.
Through synthesis, the drafting agency has received 37 comments, including opinions from 22 Departments of Education and Training.
Clarify what the Representative Board and members are not allowed to do
Regarding the position, role, tasks, powers and operating limits of the Parents' Representative Board, the Departments of Education and Training of An Giang, Hai Phong, Dong Nai and some localities proposed to clearly define the position, role and scope of powers of the Parents' Representative Board; affirming that the Representative Board does not participate in management, administration, professional activities or evaluating teachers.
The drafting agency said that it has researched and absorbed to review and comprehensively revise the regulations on the position and activities of the Parents' Representative Board. The draft clarifies the position, role, tasks, and powers of the Representative Board; and specifically stipulates what the Representative Board and members of the Representative Board are not allowed to do.
Accordingly, the Representative Board plays the role of representing, connecting, gathering, reflecting opinions and coordinating with educational institutions; does not interfere in the governance, management, administration and professional activities of educational institutions. The adjustment aims to clearly define responsibilities between the Representative Board, parents and educational institutions, overcoming the inconsistent understanding and organization of implementation in practice.
Regarding the organization and operation of the Representative Board and the Parents' Conference, Cao Bang, An Giang, Bac Ninh, and Hai Phong provinces proposed to adjust the number of members of the Class Representative Board. Meanwhile, Bac Ninh province proposed to stipulate the structure of the Representative Board of educational institutions in accordance with the scale; Da Nang proposed to clarify the election, supplementation, replacement, consolidation and handover; Cao Bang, Hai Phong, and Dong Nai contributed opinions on the frequency and form of organizing the Parents' Conference.
Regarding this content, the drafting agency has comprehensively studied the opinions and revised the regulations on the organization, consolidation and operation of the Representative Board in the direction of streamlining, flexibility, increasing representativeness and being suitable to reality. The draft stipulates that the Group and Class Representative Board has 3 to 5 members; the structure of the Representative Board of educational institutions is regulated in a direction suitable to the scale, number of levels of education and cases of educational institutions operating in many locations.
For the Parents' Conference, based on considering different proposals on the number of times to be organized, the draft is revised in the direction of not rigidly setting the number of times to be organized, ensuring compliance with coordination requirements and actual conditions; and at the same time allowing direct, online or combined organization. This regulation method both ensures coordination requirements, increases flexibility and limits formalization of activities.
Activity support must be voluntary, public, and transparent
Regarding the mechanism of voluntary support and prevention of overcharging, the Departments of Education and Training of Da Nang, Dong Nai, Ca Mau, Hai Phong, Lai Chau, Ho Chi Minh City and some localities proposed to clarify the boundaries between voluntary support for the activities of the Representative Board and collections and sponsorships for educational institutions; not to let the Representative Board become the subject to mobilize, collect or manage money.
The drafting agency said that it has seriously studied and absorbed this group of opinions and fundamentally revised the mechanism to ensure the operation of the Parents' Representative Board. The draft does not continue to stipulate the mechanism for forming operating expenses directly collected and managed by the Representative Board as before; clearly stipulating that the Representative Board does not directly mobilize, collect, receive or manage support money.
Support for the activities of the Representative Board is regulated according to the principle of voluntariness, associated with specific, public, and transparent activities; it is carried out by goods, services, direct payment or other legal forms as prescribed, without forming a fund of the Representative Board.
The draft also clearly distinguishes voluntary support for the activities of the Representative Board from sponsorship for educational institutions. Sponsorship for educational institutions is carried out in accordance with relevant legal regulations, not under the mechanism of voluntary support for the activities of the Representative Board.
This is one of the contents that has been significantly revised based on the summary of practice and comments, in order to prevent overcharging, ensure voluntariness, publicity, transparency and bring the activities of the Representative Board to the right position, representative function, connection and coordination" - the Ministry of Education and Training stated.
