The government proposed to allocate land for building schools, not to let people feel frustrated.

Illustration photo

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam has just signed Directive 14/CT-TTg dated August 31, 2022 of the Prime Minister on strengthening conditions to ensure effective and quality implementation of preschool and general education.

The Directive clearly states that education and training is the top national policy, the cause of the Party, the State and the entire people. Investment in education is investment in development, given priority in socio-economic development programs and plans.

However, the work of ensuring the conditions of facilities and teachers in some localities still has many limitations. The planning of the network of educational facilities has not been focused on in socio-economic development plans. The situation of overloaded classrooms is still quite common, especially in large cities and areas with many industrial parks, export processing zones as well as in remote areas. The situation of local surplus and shortage of teachers is slow to be resolved.

Review planning and development of educational facilities network

To strengthen conditions to ensure effective implementation and quality of preschool and general education, the Prime Minister requests the Ministry of Education and Training, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities to focus on implementing the following key tasks:

The Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) presides over and coordinates with ministries, branches, and localities to guide localities in reviewing planning and developing the network of preschool and general education facilities to ensure compliance with reality; ensuring the principle of facilitating students' learning associated with conditions to ensure quality, meeting the requirements of educational innovation; strengthening inspection and examination work, organizing preliminary summaries, evaluating and reporting to the Government on the results of the implementation of rearrangement and reorganization of educational facilities in localities.

Improve the quality of education and teacher training, have policies to encourage excellent students to enter the teaching profession, create a healthy, equal, creative educational environment and ecosystem, encourage innovation in accordance with the characteristics of each locality and region. Research and propose priority policies for teachers in remote areas, areas with difficult and especially difficult socio-economic conditions, ensuring reasonableness and not spreading.

There is a plan to support textbooks for poor students and students in difficult circumstances.

The Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Education and Training to preside over and coordinate with ministries, branches and localities to direct localities to strengthen their responsibility in state management of the selection, supply and use of textbooks, local educational materials and reference materials in accordance with regulations; have plans to support textbooks for poor students, students in difficult circumstances, remote areas, ethnic minorities, ensuring full and convenient provision for students before the new school year begins.

Direct localities to guide educational institutions to strengthen coordination between family - school - society to organize care, nurturing, management, and education of children and students to ensure safety and effectiveness, especially in preventing accidents, injuries, drowning, strengthening mental health education, school psychological counseling, and life skills education for children and students.

Research, pilot and replicate autonomous and partially autonomous educational institutions to reduce the number of people receiving salaries from the state budget, while promoting the socialization of education in areas with favorable economic conditions.

Urgently recruit teachers to overcome teacher shortage

The Ministry of Education and Training coordinates with the Ministry of Home Affairs to direct, inspect and urge localities to promptly recruit teachers according to the annual allocated staff quota to ensure quantity and quality; at the same time, have appropriate solutions to overcome the shortage of teachers, especially for new subjects according to the 2018 General Education Program.

Direct localities to implement Decree No. 116/2020/ND-CP dated September 25, 2020 of the Government regulating policies to support tuition fees and living expenses for pedagogical students. Review and calculate the demand for teachers at all levels, especially for new subjects, to have a plan to arrange resources and place training orders with teacher training institutions to ensure the locality's annual teacher recruitment source.

The Ministry of Home Affairs, based on the proposal of the Ministry of Education and Training on the surplus or shortage of teachers in each school, each level of education, and each subject, shall review the mechanism and policy for allocating appropriate and effective teacher staff; recruit according to a practical roadmap, with priority given to areas with difficult socio-economic conditions, remote and isolated areas.

The Prime Minister requested ministries and ministerial-level agencies, based on their assigned scope, functions, tasks and authority, to closely coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training and localities to develop mechanisms, policies and solutions, and propose to the Government, the Prime Minister and competent agencies to resolve difficulties in education; prioritize resources for education and training development, and properly implement the viewpoint that "education is the top national policy".

Arranging land fund to build schools and classrooms

The People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities shall proactively review the planning and development of the network of preschool and general education facilities to ensure that they are consistent with reality, and have specific measures and plans to solve the problem of schools and classes in each locality, meeting the schooling needs of children and students, avoiding situations that cause resentment among the people; ensuring that preschool children and primary school students study two sessions per day.

At the same time, strengthen planning and land allocation to build and develop preschool and general education schools according to regulations, meeting the schooling needs of preschool and general education students; implement solutions to solve the problem of preschool and general education schools in areas with industrial parks and export processing zones; review and inspect new urban area projects, take measures to require investors to reserve land and build educational facilities according to approved plans; continue to promote the development of non-public preschool and general education facilities to reduce pressure on public preschool and general education schools, especially in industrial parks, export processing zones and densely populated areas.

Develop a plan and implement recruitment of the assigned but unfilled positions and the additional assigned positions according to Decision No. 72-QD/TW dated July 18, 2022 of the Central Executive Committee. Implement flexibly, arrange and organize to ensure sufficient quantity and synchronous structure. In case it is not possible to arrange enough teachers according to the norms, there must be solutions for teacher contracts according to Resolution No. 102/NQ-CP dated July 3, 2020 of the Government on solutions for education and health career positions, suitable to the characteristics of each educational institution and each locality.

Ensure a minimum spending of 20% of the local budget on education

The People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities shall strengthen direction and guidance for educational institutions to properly implement regulations on financial revenue and expenditure management, publicize revenues at the beginning of the school year; promote inspection and examination of textbook selection according to the 2018 General Education Program, and manage and use reference books at educational institutions. Have plans to support textbooks for poor students, those in difficult circumstances, in remote areas, and ethnic minority students, ensuring full and convenient access for students when entering the new school year.

Ensure conditions on teaching staff, finance, facilities, libraries and teaching equipment of educational institutions suitable to local conditions; ensure a minimum expenditure of 20% of the local budget for education according to the provisions of the 2019 Education Law and Decision No. 30/2021/QD-TTg dated October 10, 2021 of the Prime Minister; prioritize local budget allocation, effectively integrate national target programs and approved projects and plans to strengthen facilities and teaching equipment to effectively implement the general education program according to the prescribed roadmap to maintain and improve the quality of universal education and implement educational goals according to the provisions of the 2019 Education Law.

Direct educational institutions to closely coordinate with the health sector and local authorities to fully prepare conditions to proactively prevent, combat and effectively respond to natural disasters and epidemics; effectively organize COVID-19 vaccination in accordance with the Ministry of Health's instructions to ensure the goals and progress assigned by the Government and Prime Minister.