The seminar was organized by the Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences - Ministry of Education and Training.
The greater the expectation, the more pressure children are under
Sharing at the seminar, Prof. Dr. Le Anh Vinh - Director of the Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences shared that he has 10 years of experience leading delegations to participate in the International Mathematical Competition of the Olympics.
"In the evening before the Olympic competition, I often take students to eat and sit down at the cafe to talk. That year, a very tense friend told me: "Teacher, in two days, I will never have to take the exam again".
This story is very normal if it were an ordinary student. But this is one of 6 students on the Vietnam International Admissions Team - you have gone through countless exams.
I often jokingly say that they are like warriors, competing professionally, and I always think that they have to be very strong.
However, when students tell their teachers that after only two days, they will never have to take the exam again, teachers understand how much pressure it is" - Prof. Dr. Le Anh Vinh recalled.
According to this expert, after many years of leading the group, he found that the parents of the students taking the exam were always very happy, as long as the achievements they achieved here were wonderful. Friends and all relatives are very proud of the students.
"Why is the pressure to learn for children so great? Where does this pressure come from, from parents, society or from the students themselves?" - Mr. Vinh asked and informed that the boy that year had completed his doctorate degree at a leading university in the US.
This expert said that the reason he told the above story was to see that the destination of the exam was only a very small part. The results of whether that student is a champion or not are also very small.
"Sometimes, it just gives us a sense of security. And finally, the journey we take and how we go is the most important thing" - Prof. Dr. Le Anh Vinh said.
Scores are not everything
At the seminar, many experts acknowledged that pressure is inevitable in life. The problem is, how can students not be pressured but still maximize their abilities? If we do not put pressure, are we being too lenient, making children not try?
Sharing his views, the Director of the Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences said that the scores and achievements through the exams are always the most obvious results.
Many parents think that wanting their children to have a full score of 10 is a high expectation, achieving solving problems, STEM awards, English..., which is too high an expectation. However, Mr. Vinh said that this is not too high an expectation.
"If parents consider it the biggest goal for education, especially primary education, I think it is a low expectation. The high expectation is that children develop confidently, have the best foundation for them to take the long way, not the fastest step possible in the first steps.
We also have students who do not get very good scores, but are very successful in the future. Therefore, the real score is not everything," said Prof. Dr. Le Anh Vinh, affirming that primary school is extremely important. This is the foundation for a child's development, but it is not the level to stuff as much knowledge as possible.
Sharing the same view, Mr. Ha Dinh Bon, Vice President of the Vietnam Association for the Protection of Children's Rights, said that an carefree childhood will be the foundation for a bright and successful future.
"Let your children live in love and grow up with an carefree, innocent childhood, without pressure before placing expectations of success or becoming champions on their shoulders" - Mr. Bon said.
Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thanh Nam, Vice Principal of the University of Education, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, acknowledged that pressure is an inevitable thing in life. Therefore, children need to be equipped with problem-solving skills and improve their ability to withstand pressure to develop.
"To build a happy school, the responsibility is not only for teachers, but also for parents" - Mr. Nam said.
Delegates attending the seminar also recommended that families and parents should take the principle of the goal of "Taking children as the center, giving the best to children". From there, there is a way to raise children scientifically, not following the trend, following distant wishes, not putting pressure on children.
