The hardships of combined classes in Western Nghe An
(Baonghean.vn) - The combined classes located at remote schools in the western region of Nghe An are mostly facing many difficulties. Teachers are struggling to teach two classes at the same time, while students are disadvantaged because they do not have many opportunities to learn subjects such as Information Technology and English.
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| Nghe An still has more than 1,000 separate schools, mainly in mountainous and border villages. The number of students in each class can be counted on the fingers, and teaching cannot follow the usual curriculum.Photo: Duc Anh |
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| Cha Lo village is 15km away from Mai Son Primary School (Tuong Duong district, Nghe An). Up to now, this place still has no solid classrooms, but only 5 prefabricated houses located in the valley. This 2020-2021 school year, teacher Nguyen Duy Thang is in charge of a combined class of 4-5 with a total of 21 students. In the cramped classroom, there are 2 boards mounted opposite each other, students sit with their backs to each other. Photo: Duc Anh |
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| Teaching in a combined class doubles the teacher's workload compared to normal. However, this is a solution at a time when primary schools in the province are currently lacking many teachers. Photo: Duc Anh |
 In combined classes, due to the close distance between them, it is inevitable that older students will turn to remind younger students or talk and joke. Normally, to facilitate teaching, schools often combine classes 2-3 because the amount of knowledge is simple, or 3-4, 3-5 to reduce the burden on teachers. However, there are times when due to uneven student numbers, schools may combine classes 4-5, which affects the quality of teaching. Photo: Duc Anh |
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| Because they are located in remote schools, many classrooms have deteriorated. Students in remote schools are also at a disadvantage because they do not have many opportunities to study subjects such as IT and English. Photo: Duc Anh |
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| At Muong Noc Primary School (Que Phong), due to the distance from the villages to the main school, the school still maintains satellite schools even though each class has only a few students. Photo: Duc Anh |
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| Ha Son school of Muong Noc Primary School has 5 primary grades but only has nearly 40 students. This separate school has 2 combined classes of 2-3 and 4-5. However, there are still 5 independent classrooms. Ms. Sam Thi Lam - Principal said: In reality, combined classes will affect the quality of teaching and learning. Therefore, for the past 2 years, we have contracted 2 young teachers to strengthen the Ha Son school. The budget for contract teachers is taken from the budget for teachers teaching combined classes. Photo: Duc Anh |
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| Sharing in teaching combined classes brings efficiency to teaching and learning at school. In particular, students are the ones who benefit the most. The remaining teachers, although having to share "class money", in return have time to improve their expertise and train and tutor students. Photo: Duc Anh |
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In recent years, in order to improve the quality of education, the education sector and localities have developed plans to consolidate or remove satellite schools into main schools. However, due to the specific characteristics of geographical distance, inadequate physical facilities, and lack of classrooms at main schools, the merger is still very difficult. For example, at the primary level, in the 2020-2021 school year, the entire sector was only able to remove 16 satellite schools. At the preschool level, with over 600 satellite schools, the organization of teaching and boarding is still facing many difficulties and requires the participation of the whole society. Photo: Duc Anh |
