Attending the ceremony were comrades: General Secretary To Lam, President Luong Cuong, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and leaders and former leaders of the Party and State; leaders and former leaders of the Ministry of Education and Training through the periods; representatives of leaders of ministries, departments, branches, agencies, and central organizations; members of the National Council for Education and Human Resources Development, the State Council of Professors; ambassadors and representatives of countries and international organizations in Vietnam.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, General Secretary To Lam emphasized that this is an opportunity to review the glorious tradition and express gratitude for the contributions of generations of teachers and educational managers. This is also an opportunity to affirm the determination to strongly innovate to make education truly a top national policy, a key driving force for national development and the future of the nation.
The General Secretary assessed that over the past 80 years, Vietnamese revolutionary education has always been at the forefront: Creating human resources, nurturing talents, contributing to the decisive victory of the cause of national liberation, national reunification and development.
However, it is necessary to seriously recognize that the quality of education is not yet uniform, the regional gap is still large. Basic and comprehensive innovation is not yet synchronous, and there is still confusion in both awareness and action. Higher education is slow to innovate, the linkage of training - research - labor market is not tight. Teaching methods in many places have not encouraged creativity and self-study ability. Facilities, digital transformation and international integration are still limited and inadequate. There is a period when education has not fully promoted its role as a driving force for development. These are problems that require us to be determined to overcome.
Our country is entering a new stage of development, with the goal of becoming a modern industrialized country by 2030, and becoming a developed country with high income by 2045. Recently, the Politburo issued Resolution 71 on breakthroughs in education and training development. To quickly put the Resolution into practice, the General Secretary suggested:
The entire Party must strongly innovate the leadership thinking for education, not imposing old standards for a modern education system, but needing to direct closely, substantially, organize drastic, effective implementation, consistently considering education as the top national policy.
The National Assembly needs to continue to improve the legal system, creating a smooth, stable and advanced legal corridor for the cause of education and training innovation.
The Government increases investment, ensures financial resources, facilities, and staff; at the same time, resolutely removes bottlenecks in mechanisms and policies to unblock and mobilize all social resources for education.
The Fatherland Front, unions, and social organizations need to promote the strength of great solidarity, encourage and spread the movement of the whole people to care for the cause of educating people.
The education sector needs to pioneer in innovating thinking, methods, and governance; building a team of teachers who have both knowledge, ethics, and the desire to contribute. Teachers must be shining examples, a source of inspiration for their students. Students must nurture great ambitions and aspirations, study and practice to become global citizens, gradually integrate into international standards while always maintaining Vietnamese identity and soul.
The General Secretary emphasized a number of major orientations:
First, strongly innovate thinking and action. Shifting from "reformed" reform to creative thinking - leading national development through education; taking quality - fairness - integration - efficiency as a measure; tightening enforcement discipline.
Second, ensure equal access to education, improve the educational level. No children are left behind; prioritize remote areas, border areas, islands, and disadvantaged areas; increase investment in schools - school nutrition - teachers' team - digital infrastructure.
Third, comprehensively innovate general education. Not only imparting knowledge, but also nurturing personality - physical training - spiritual training, arousing the spirit of citizenship, awareness of discipline and social responsibility; forming a class of people "both good at being just, kind and resilient".
Fourth, create a breakthrough in higher education and vocational education. Universities must become a center for knowledge and technology production, a core for innovation - entrepreneurship; closely link training - research - transfer with the needs of national development. It is necessary to form large universities of regional and international stature, modern vocational training institutions, to train a team of high-quality human resources, contributing to the country's breakthrough in science - technology, industrialization and digital transformation.
Fifth, promote international integration in education. Integrating to learn from the elite, narrowing gaps, spreading standards; encouraging co-training, linking programs, recognizing credits, exchanging lecturers - students, attracting international scholars; thereby enhancing the position of Vietnamese education.
Sixth, take care of building a team of teachers and educational managers. Teachers are the soul of education, the decisive factor for the success or failure of innovation. Teachers not only impart knowledge, but also sow seeds of aspiration, foster personality, and light up the belief of students. The Law on Teachers has been passed by the National Assembly as a foundation to ensure improving the material life, legitimate rights and interests, while improving professional standards, ethics, responsibility and social status of teachers.
Seventh, promoting digital transformation and artificial intelligence (AI) in education. Turning technology into a driving force for fundamental and comprehensive innovation: flexible teaching and learning, open learning materials, safe and humane digital platforms; improving digital capacity for teachers and students; ensuring data security and safety.
Eighth, prioritize investment in education. Overall planning, arranging the system (especially public universities) to form a training - research - innovation center at regional level, reaching international level; using public spending effectively, not spreading; strengthening public-private cooperation, strongly mobilizing social resources to join hands for the cause of educating people.
Ninth, build a learning society, lifelong learning. At any age, field or profession, everyone must study to avoid falling behind, study to master knowledge and technology, study to develop themselves and contribute to building a strong and prosperous country.
Building a learning society and encouraging lifelong learning is the most solid foundation for a self-reliant nation.
For students, the General Secretary advised: The generation of our ancestors made victory with blood and bones. Today, in peace, integration and the desire to rise up, the responsibility of the young generation is to make a new victory with knowledge - courage - creativity. He hopes that the younger generation will set clear goals; practice self-discipline; nurture a passion for discovery; Improve capacity, master digital technology and artificial intelligence in a smart, safe and humane way; Know how to love, share, and live responsibly with yourself, family and the community.
"Young students should do well the 5 things that Uncle Ho taught; high school students need to cultivate personality, citizen awareness, knowledge and nurture aspirations; students should nurture greatness, dare to think, dare to do, take the lead in science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, green economy and international integration, study and practice to become useful workers for the family and society", said the General Secretary.
For teachers, the General Secretary assessed them as a team of silent but persistent, sacrificing, and making great contributions to the cause of "growing people". He expressed his deep gratitude and sincere gratitude to generations of teachers. In the new period, the General Secretary hopes that teachers will continue to set an example, innovate methods, lead students on the path of knowledge and personality; Pioneering digital transformation, guiding students to use technology (especially artificial intelligence) creatively, effectively, safely and humanely; Actively participating in policy contributions, improving quality and fairness in education.
Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son delivered a speech to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the education sector and open the 2025 - 2026 school year; representatives of students nationwide expressed their opinions.
Also within the framework of the ceremony, Party and State leaders will award the First Class Labor Medal to the Ministry of Education and Training, give speeches and play the opening drum for the 2025 - 2026 school year.
Responding to the press before the new school year, Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son emphasized the special context of the Opening Ceremony of the 2025-2026 school year: the whole country celebrates the 80th anniversary of National Day; conducts the historic "arrangement of the rainbow"; organizes Party Congresses at all levels... For the education sector, the new school year begins as an occasion to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the tradition of the education sector, also the 80th anniversary of the establishment of the National Ministry of Education.
The Minister shared that this is not only an opportunity for us to look back on the 8-year journey of education and national development, but also an opportunity to be more aware of the mission and responsibility of education in creating people, building and developing the country, and integrating in the new era.
In the 2024 - 2025 school year, with the spirit of efforts to overcome all difficulties, the entire education sector has performed well the tasks assigned by the Party, National Assembly, Government, and Prime Minister, completed the tacitional plan and key solutions for the school year, and achieved many important results.
The 2025-2026 school year is the first school year to implement the Resolution of the 14th National Party Congress; Resolution of the National Assembly on the 5-year Socio-Economic Development Plan 2026-2030.
This is also the school year in which the whole country implements the Politburo's Resolution on breakthroughs in education and training development; the Law on Teachers; the Resolution of the National Assembly on tuition exemption and support for preschool children, primary school students, and those studying educational programs in the national education system; the Resolution of the National Assembly on popularizing preschool education for children from 3 to 5 years old.
In order to effectively implement the policies and guidelines of the Party and State on education and training, and successfully implement the set goals, the education sector identifies the theme for the 2025 - 2026 school year as: "discipline - Creativity - Breakthrough - Development" with 10 key tasks and solutions.
