Surplus preschool teachers: 'Humanitarian' but flawed?
(Baonghean) - As Baonghean Newspaper has reported in a special feature.'Solving the problem of surplus teachers.To alleviate the localized teacher shortages and surpluses, the education sector prioritizes recruiting primary and secondary school teachers to work as childcare providers. This solution continues to face challenges.
>>> Nghe An: Despite having a surplus of 1,500 teachers, new contracts are still being signed.
Heartfelt feelings
Although the province still has a surplus of 1,500 teachers and is allowed to recruit up to 900 positions for preschool education, only 450 primary and secondary school teachers have voluntarily submitted applications to work in preschools. Furthermore, most of those teachers who were "invited to teach in preschools" were "promised" to return when permanent positions become available (especially for secondary school teachers) and to receive a more favorable salary.
As a locality that is fully implementing Inter-agency Guidance 288/HDLN-SGD&ĐT-SNV-STC to address the surplus of teachers, Con Cuong district this year has recruited 21 teachers to teach in preschools out of 40 surplus teachers. Mr. Dam Van Minh, an official from the Con Cuong District Department of Internal Affairs, said that the 21 teachers include female teachers and 6 male teachers from the surplus. The remaining teachers could not work in preschools because they are all older male teachers who are not capable of caring for young children. According to the official from the Con Cuong District Department of Internal Affairs, this is a bold step but appropriate to the local conditions. Among these 6 male teachers, some have 14 years of experience but are still not on the payroll and only receive a salary of around 2,000,000 VND per person per month.
Among the six male teachers recruited in Con Cuong this time, Mr. Nguyen Van Hai is an excellent history teacher at Tra Lan Specialized Secondary School. Mr. Hai previously worked as a teacher stationed at remote outposts in Mon Son commune and was commended for his outstanding achievements in encouraging children to attend school.
Teacher Hai shared: “I have 14 years of experience in the profession, a deep passion for History, and a university degree, but due to low income and the inability to secure a permanent teaching position, after many sleepless nights of thinking, I decided to apply to teach at a kindergarten, even though I knew it would be difficult to integrate and stand in front of the class like other female teachers.” Less than a week after arriving at the school, and without a kindergarten teaching certificate, Teacher Hai was assigned as a “second teacher” at a remote branch of Chi Khe Kindergarten.
Ms. Chu Thi Minh Ly, the deputy principal of Chi Khe Kindergarten, said that Mr. Hai tries his best to do tasks such as combing and tying children's hair, dressing them, and feeding them. "Seeing him try so hard to take care of the children makes us feel sorry for him, because we know that male kindergarten teachers are rare, not only in the province but also nationwide," Ms. Ly said.
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| A preschool teacher and a classroom at Chi Khe Preschool. |
In Quynh Luu district, which previously recruited 30 preschool teachers from junior and elementary schools but they were unable to teach due to a lack of training certificates, this school year they have recruited an additional 15 teachers to fill the surplus positions, out of a total of 76 allocated preschool teacher positions. According to Mr. Kieu Van Thanh, Head of the Internal Affairs Department of Quynh Luu district: “All of these teachers are competent and experienced. The district's policy is to reassign them if there is a shortage of teachers in elementary and junior high schools in the area in the future.”
In October, Quynh Hong Kindergarten (Quynh Luu district) simultaneously received three teachers from primary and secondary schools in the area, including a history teacher, a chemistry teacher, and an art teacher. The school principal, Ms. Trinh Thi Thuy, is very understanding of the new teachers' circumstances and tries to create opportunities for experienced teachers to mentor them. However, from a professional standpoint, Ms. Thuy is quite concerned because kindergarten teaching is a specialized profession; teachers without experience or formal training will face many difficulties.
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| Teachers and students at Hung Dung Secondary School, Vinh City. |
The teachers themselves expressed anxiety about having to adapt to a new environment and new work. Ms. Dang Thi Thu Phuong, who has over 10 years of experience teaching Chemistry at Quynh Giang Secondary School, shared that after nearly two months of observing preschool teachers in the classroom, she was extremely confused, believing that she would not be able to grasp the preschool lesson plan.
Ms. Phuong also frankly stated: After many years as a contract teacher with low and unstable salaries, she decided to switch to being a preschool teacher. Even so, she still feels regret because at her old school, she was the only chemistry teacher and had consistently achieved the title of excellent teacher at the district level for many years... When asked about their future aspirations, all the transferred teachers hoped to return to their old jobs, as that was their main area of expertise, their forte, and their passion in their teaching careers.
Shortcomings in training
To recruit primary and secondary school teachers for preschool education, the Department of Education and Training has "generously" allowed localities to independently contract and collaborate with vocational schools and colleges that offer preschool education programs. The districts of Quỳnh Lưu, Anh Sơn, Thanh Chương, and Diễn Châu have partnered with Việt Anh Vocational School; the districts of Nghi Lộc, Yên Thành, and Đô Lương have partnered with Nghệ An College of Education…
As the first school to collaborate in training preschool teachers through a part-time study program, Viet Anh Vocational College has provided certificates to 500 teachers. Currently, the school is continuing to train nearly 600 surplus teachers from partner districts. Of these, two classes are taught at the school's main campus, while the remaining four classes are offered locally through collaboration with continuing education centers in the districts.
Commenting on these "special" students, Mr. Pham Huy Hoang - Principal of Viet Anh Vocational School - said: Due to many years of teaching experience, the teachers' awareness and pedagogical skills are quite good. However, because they are from a different profession, they face many difficulties with subjects that require talent.
To overcome these limitations, the school has allocated more practical sessions in its curriculum than stipulated by the Ministry of Education and Training. The school principal also affirmed that the school is very fortunate in this regard because it has preschool classes already running on-site, allowing teachers to practice on-site.
That's the theory, but in reality, things haven't lived up to expectations. Because most classes are held at continuing education centers, the main lessons are primarily theoretical. Practical sessions at the main campus are condensed into weekends. The allocation of highly specialized subjects like Dance and Music, with 30-40 lessons (equivalent to 3-4 sessions per subject), also makes it difficult to achieve quality.
In Con Cuong, 21 teachers who recently received transfer decisions are also attending a preschool teacher training course. The teachers stated that they have studied some subjects for seven months at the District Continuing Education Center, but the remaining subjects must be studied at the Provincial Continuing Education Center and the Cua Lo Vocational Tourism School. However, according to Ms. Nguyen Thi Que, Director of the District Continuing Education Center: The Center only handles student recruitment and referrals to the Dong Do General Vocational School (Hanoi). Students who pass the entrance exam will then study at the Cua Lo Vocational Tourism School (?).
Regarding this matter, Mr. Nguyen Manh Ha, Head of the Professional Education Department (Department of Education and Training), stated: Since June 2016, the Provincial People's Committee has issued a document requesting the Ministry of Education and Training to consider allowing Dong Do General Vocational College to train 100 students in the preschool teacher training program, in a concentrated format. According to this document, the classes must be held at the Central Vietnam Private Tourism Vocational College. Any Continuing Education Center that "circumvents the law" by opening classes on-site is acting contrary to regulations.
The training of surplus preschool teachers is also facing criticism from the very teachers involved in the training. A PhD holder and lecturer in the Faculty of Education at Vinh University stated: "In reality, if nearly 1,000 surplus teachers are assigned to teach in preschools with qualifications that do not meet quality standards, it will not only affect the care, education, and safety of children, but also impact the long-term educational development strategy in 10 or 20 years. Imagine the consequences for an entire generation of thousands of children being cared for by teachers who lack the necessary qualifications and competence."
"Personally, I believe that the Department of Education and Training, as well as local authorities, need to recognize that teaching at the preschool level cannot be taken lightly. Instead of sending teachers to accelerated courses or courses just to obtain certificates, they should be given opportunities to pursue in-depth training," the aforementioned doctor stated.
The current training methods raise serious questions for surplus teachers being sent for "early childhood education skills" training, as well as for the receiving institutions themselves – this is a fundamental issue stemming from a supposedly humane solution.
Reporters' Team
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