Currently, the small number of teachers at the center still hope to receive timely attention from authorities at all levels to create motivation to strive and stick with the profession.
Teaching in makeshift homes
Having been in operation for nearly two decades, the Dak Song District Vocational Education and Continuing Education Center is still facing many difficulties every day.
Mr. Nguyen Van Quoc - Teacher of the Dak Song District Vocational Education and Continuing Education Center - said that the most prominent situation of the center is the lack of facilities and teachers.
“The center has a total of 4 classrooms. Of which, 1 room is for IT and 3 rooms are for teaching. With such a number of rooms, we have a lot of difficulties in arranging classes. Currently, high school students and vocational students have to take turns studying,” Mr. Quoc shared.
According to Mr. Quoc, because the center reuses the facilities of a kindergarten, the classrooms are quite small and the desks and chairs are not uniform. With classes with many students, the learning space is even narrower, making the learning process difficult.
In addition to the classrooms, the center’s teaching office is also made of temporary corrugated iron sheets. In the middle of the room are a couple of old tables for teachers to work and rest. “On days of heavy rain and strong winds, we cannot sit in this room because the water splashes all over the place,” Mr. Quoc said.
Besides the lack of facilities, the lack of permanent teachers is also a difficult problem that the Dak Song District Vocational Education - Continuing Education Center is facing.
“The center must cooperate with vocational colleges and secondary schools in the area to carry out teaching work. However, with the “hot” professions that many students register for such as beauty, makeup, cooking... we have difficulty finding teachers to teach,” Mr. Quoc added.
Strive to overcome difficulties, accompany students
Overcoming difficulties, the staff and teachers of the Dak Song District Vocational Education - Continuing Education Center are still very enthusiastic about their work.
Having been a teacher at the center for 2 years, Ms. Hoang Thi Viet Trinh said that she encountered many difficulties but was still determined to accompany the students.
“When teaching vocational training locally, every time there is a class, we have to go to the place to do management work, take attendance, and urge students to attend classes. The distance to each locality is quite far, the road is bad, it is difficult to travel when it rains, the ground is as muddy as a plowed field.
Moreover, many ethnic minorities cannot write or speak the common language, so the transmission of lessons faces many barriers. However, students are very proactive in arranging their time to come to study. That is the encouragement for me to complete my work well," Ms. Trinh added.
Teaching in a difficult border area and having to take on many jobs, Ms. Nguyen Thi My Hang - Head of the Natural and Vocational Department - felt a bit sad when her and her colleagues' benefits were not taken care of.
"We have to be responsible for recruiting local students and managing classes while still ensuring teaching for high school students. However, the teachers' remuneration is still quite low. This is a disadvantage for our teaching staff," Ms. Hang said.
Ms. Hang and her colleagues all hope that in the future, the Dak Song District Vocational Education - Continuing Education Center will receive due attention, improve facilities, supplement the teaching staff as well as improve the allowance regime for those working to improve the quality of human resources.
