Nghe An province is considering issuing policies to support students and schools at ethnic minority boarding schools.
(Baonghean.vn) - The policies being considered for support focus on two groups: boarding students attending general schools and ethnic boarding schools, as well as general schools that provide centralized accommodation and meals for boarding students in ethnic minority and mountainous areas.
Accordingly, for students studying at 53 ethnic boarding schools, Nghe An province is considering providing support, with each student at each grade level receiving a one-time provision of blankets, mosquito nets, and other personal items at a cost of 864,000 VND per student;
At the same time, each school year, students are provided with two sets of school uniforms and school supplies including notebooks, paper, pens, and other learning tools, at a cost of 864,000 VND per student per school year.
This policy proposal aims to create opportunities for students to attend school, study with peace of mind, and reduce the rate of students dropping out due to family economic difficulties.
This will increase the student enrollment rate in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions, contributing to the balanced development of general education across regions, and maintaining and improving the results of universal primary and lower secondary education.
As for schools that provide centralized accommodation and meals for boarding students in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, the province is considering supporting five main policy groups, including:
Financial support will be provided to ethnic minority boarding schools and general schools that provide centralized meals and accommodation for boarding students, with a maximum of 6 lessons per class per week and no more than 35 weeks per school year, at a rate of 180,000 VND per lesson.
Financial support will be provided for the purchase and repair of additional dining hall and kitchen equipment, at a rate of 144,000 VND per student per school year.
Financial support is provided for purchasing textbooks so that each student can borrow a complete set of textbooks for their grade level. Annually, the school receives 200,000 VND per student per school year to purchase an additional 10% of the total number of textbooks in the school library.
Financial support for student ID cards and personal badges, enrollment at the beginning of the school year, and final exams is provided at a rate of 144,000 VND/student/school year.
Subsidies for electricity and water for studying and living expenses of boarding students are provided at a rate of 15KW of electricity/month/student and 3m3 of water/month/student according to local regulations, for 9 months/school year.
Currently, ethnic boarding schools are receiving financial support from the Provincial People's Committee to organize two-session-per-day teaching, and the quality of education in these schools has significantly improved since the implementation of this policy.
At the same time, ethnic boarding schools also receive support for electricity and water costs according to Circular 109/2009/TTLT/BTC-BGDĐT dated May 29, 2009, issued jointly by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education and Training. Accordingly, the schools receive support for electricity costs averaging 25KW/month/student for lighting and support for water costs averaging 4m³.3Water/month/student at the locally regulated price, provided with in-kind items such as: blankets, mosquito nets, cotton jackets, mats, long-sleeved uniforms, etc., and supported with school supplies (12 types).
As for ethnic minority boarding schools, although they are called ethnic minority boarding schools, their organization and operation are no different from ethnic minority residential schools. Ethnic minority boarding students also live and eat at the school's dormitory.
Therefore, if schools with ethnic minority boarding students receive support for electricity and water bills; additional purchases and repairs of dining hall and kitchen equipment; and additional textbooks for the school library so that each student can borrow them, it will alleviate the difficulties faced by schools.
In addition, Decision 3279/QD-UBND dated October 24, 2022, of the People's Committee of Nghe An province, approving the project "Development of education in ethnic minority and mountainous areas in Nghe An province for the period 2022-2025, with orientation to 2030," allows for the pilot implementation of a new model of ethnic boarding schools, which includes enhanced programs in: foreign languages, information technology, STEM education, life skills, and life values.
In more developed areas, these enhanced programs are implemented through a socialized approach, with schools collecting fees from students according to the rates stipulated in Resolution No. 31/2021/NQ-HĐND dated December 13, 2021, of the Provincial People's Council. However, in particularly disadvantaged areas, collecting fees from parents is very difficult, and many lack the funds to pay for these programs. They can only be implemented with financial support from the state budget.
Currently, the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee is soliciting feedback on these policies before finalizing them for submission to the Provincial People's Council for consideration and promulgation, expected at the mid-year 2024 session.
As of December 31, 2023, Nghe An province had 1,507 schools with 26,536 classes and 894,351 students.
In ethnic minority and mountainous regions, there are 655 schools with 9,836 classes and 302,962 students; of which the system of ethnic boarding schools and general schools with boarding students comprises 143 schools with 2,434 classes and 75,229 students.
The proportion of ethnic minority boarding schools and schools with boarding students accounts for 14.79% of the total number of schools in the province; and 33.18% of the total number of schools in ethnic minority and mountainous areas.
