The policy of exempting tuition fees for high school students, preschool children and those studying general education programs is gradually becoming a reality when the Government submits to the National Assembly a draft Resolution to specify the policy that has been identified by the Central Government for a long time.
This is a big step forward, not only in education, but also a clear social policy message of reducing the burden on families, encouraging children to have children, raising children and going to school equally.
However, as National Assembly delegate Truong Xuan Cu (Hanoi delegation) stated at the discussion session on the afternoon of May 22, the tuition exemption policy will be difficult to fully promote its value if there is still a situation where schools collect more fees other than tuition fees.
uniform fees, extracurricular operating expenses, social housing fees, etc., even if each amount is not large, can become a significant burden, especially for low-income families in urban areas or near-poor rural areas.
The reality in many public schools today shows that although many parents do not have to pay tuition fees, they are still worried at the beginning of each school year when receiving a long list of voluntary and compulsory expenses.
A positive point is that the Ministry of Education and Training affirmed that it will organize secondary schools without collecting tuition fees from students, starting from the next school year.
And second classes must also be operated on the principle of not collecting money from students, to avoid the situation of legalizing additional disguise teaching.
Public general education is a pillar of social justice, so it cannot be operated according to market logic. It is understandable that schools have long "pushed" part of their costs to parents with voluntary fees and suggestions to compensate for investment shortages, but cannot be accepted as a long-term standard.
If tuition exemption has been identified as a universal policy, the State should also go all the way by limiting other revenues and increasing budget investment to ensure the basic right to education for all students.
The measure of the success of the policy in this case is not the amount of thousands of billions spent, but the people's responsibility is really lighter and the children can go to school with peace of mind or not?
Free tuition is a right step. However, it is necessary to go hand in hand with transparency, control and limit other revenues in a public and reasonable manner.
If parents still have to worry about "voluntary" fees but in fact are no different from compulsory fees, the tuition exemption policy will only partly promote the motivation to help people feel secure in giving birth, raising children, and sending them to school.
