Worry about the closure of extra classes
Article 4 of Circular 29/2024/TT-BGDDT of the Ministry of Education and Training stipulates that extra teaching is not organized for primary school students, except in the following cases: training in arts, physical education, life skills training. The Circular takes effect from February 14, 2025.
This is the reason why a series of centers, teachers, and schools have stopped extra teaching activities for primary school students.
Ms. Nguyen Quynh Hoa, whose child is in grade 3, Yen Hoa Primary School (Cau Giay District, Hanoi) has had to ask parents in the same class to pick up their child in the past few days.
"My wife and I came from our hometown to Hanoi to work, so we don't have any relatives here. Although it is a familiar place, I am still very shy about having to send my child to that parent's house in the past few days" - Ms. Hoa confided.
Previously, when she could not pick up her child at 4:30 p.m., Ms. Hoa registered for an extra class near the school and asked a center teacher to pick her up and drop her off. However, since Tet, the center has announced that it will not accept teaching primary school students. This caused her to have a huge headache, not knowing where to send her child.
"I have contacted many places but almost all of them said they no longer accept primary school classes. If there was a place to pick them up, they would not be near the school, so it would be inconvenient to pick them up and drop them off. On the other hand, I was not assured that the location was too far away" - Ms. Hoa expressed concern.
Sharing the same situation as Ms. Hoa, Ms. Nguyen Thi Mai, a parent of a 3rd grade student at Hong Ha Primary School (Dan Phuong District, Hanoi) shared: "My hairdressing work at the restaurant is not fixed, there are days when there are many customers and it lasts until 9,10 pm. Therefore, before, I often took the opportunity to pick up my child after school and take him to the classroom closer to home.
Currently, when the teachers announced that they would not accept extra classes, she sends her child to her grandparents. However, she was still worried because no one told her children to study.
"The grandparents are very impressed with the grandchild, every time I come to pick him up, I only see him watching TV. When I get home to take a shower, the rice and water are gone, it's too late, so I feel sorry for my child, I don't want to let him study too late" - Ms. Mai confided that she really wants to find a center in the area to accept primary school students to "go all the way".
According to her, although the tuition fee can be up to more than 2 million VND per month, she is still willing to pay. Because then, she can open more hair salons and feel secure about her child's education.
Replace cultural extra classes with exercise classes, talent development
Understanding the concerns of parents, Ms. Nguyen Thuy Dung, a primary school teacher in Dan Phuong district, Hanoi, advised parents to let their children participate in sports, art and life skills training classes.
Trying out skills development subjects such as drawing, martial arts, and playing the instrument will help them develop thinking or explore their own potential and passion. At the same time, parents do not need to worry about taking care of their children after school" - Ms. Thuy Dung shared.
In addition, when stopping extra classes, parents also have the opportunity to confide and accompany their children in their studies. In recent days, Ms. Thuy Dung has distributed study vouchers as games, encouraging parents and children to unlock obstacles as a way for students to review their own knowledge.
Ms. Dinh Hong Phuong, a Primary Fine Arts teacher, who is also teaching on a contract at a center in Bac Tu Liem district, said that the number of students participating in painting classes is increasing day by day.
"Although my parents only sent me here with the hope of having a place to look after me, I realized that many of them have talent and love for painting. Parents can turn dropping out of extra classes into time for their children to be creative and explore themselves. Because for me, every child has their own talent, Ms. Phuong added.
