Society

Belief and expectations welcome the new school year...

Content: My Ha - Design: Nam Phong • September 5, 2026 06:00

Today, approximately 900,000 students from nearly 800 schools across Nghe An province officially begin the new school year 2026-2027. This is a special school year as the province's education sector has just merged more than 600 schools across the province, creating a major shift in the school network. At the same time, it places new demands on the management and utilization of teachers, and on improving the quality of education.

Content:My Ha- Design:Nam Phong

Today, approximately 900,000 students from nearly 800 schools across Nghe An province officially begin the new school year 2026-2027. This is a special school year as the province's education sector has just merged more than 600 schools across the province, creating a major shift in the school network. At the same time, it places new demands on the management and utilization of teachers, and on improving the quality of education.

Nearly a week before the start of the new school year, teacher Nguyen Thi Bich Nga was assigned a new role as Principal of Vinh Phu 2 Kindergarten, following the merger of Nghi An Kindergarten and Nghi Phu Kindergarten.

With over 30 years of experience in early childhood education, including more than half of that time in management, Ms. Nga said she wasn't too surprised by the new responsibility. However, the merger being close to the start of the new school year significantly increased the school's workload. From reviewing and organizing the staff, preparing facilities, arranging classrooms, to developing a plan for the opening ceremony and welcoming students, everything had to be done within a very short period of time.

Overcoming initial difficulties, in less than a week, the appearance of the new school was basically completed. The school gate was changed and given a new name; classrooms were arranged, decorated, and supplemented with necessary supplies, toys, and equipment for the school year. Taking advantage of the holidays, the young teachers also actively practiced performing arts to prepare for the Opening Ceremony with the theme "Children's Back-to-School Day".

Besides the changes in appearance, entering the new school year, teacher Bich Nga also felt the initial advantages from the school's reorganization and merger. While in previous years Nghi Phu Kindergarten often lacked 4 teachers, after the merger, these teachers were transferred from the Nghi An branch, helping the school basically solve the problem of teacher shortage. In addition, the school's staff was also streamlined according to the new school's structure. Therefore, although the number of staff was reduced, the personnel were rearranged to better suit the school's scale and tasks, so Vinh Phu 2 Kindergarten did not need to recruit or hire additional staff this school year. Another advantage is that immediately after the establishment of the new unit, the Vinh Phu ward government paid attention to developing a plan to invest in and supplement the school's facilities. In this plan, the local authorities intend to build additional classrooms and other necessary facilities to gradually integrate the remaining satellite school into the main campus.

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“Initially, the merger will certainly cause some disruption, but we believe that with the consensus of the teaching staff and the support of the local authorities, the new school will become increasingly stable, impressive, and developed. Most importantly, we want to ensure that when students return to school, they still feel a familiar, safe, and joyful learning environment.”

Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Nga - Principal of Vinh Phu 2 Kindergarten

Instead of its old name, starting this school year, Nghi Lam Junior High School will have a new name: Nghi Loc 5 Junior and Senior High School. This is also one of 12 junior high schools that have been merged with senior high schools this school year, transferring management from the commune government to the Department of Education and Training.

The day before the opening ceremony, during the school-wide assembly, the school's management team spent about 10 minutes introducing the new school name and building to the students. They also emphasized that the merger was not simply a change in name or management, but rather opened up a new learning environment with more opportunities. Specifically, junior high school students would have closer access to the high school environment, fostering stronger connections in educational activities, while the school would have better opportunities to utilize its existing teaching staff and facilities effectively.

Mr. Nguyen Anh Duong, the school principal, said: "After the merger, each school will have its own unique characteristics and many tasks will need to be implemented. Initially, we will focus on developing teaching plans, assigning responsibilities, stabilizing the organizational structure, and ensuring that teaching and learning activities proceed normally, so that teachers and students can work and study with peace of mind. In the future, based on the existing conditions of the two levels of education, the school will effectively utilize its staff and facilities, while also developing the unique strengths of each unit. This is also an opportunity for us to reorganize educational activities in a more synchronized and effective way."

The 2026-2027 school year will be a special one for the education sector in Nghe An province. Just two weeks before the start of the school year, the Provincial People's Committee approved a plan to reorganize educational institutions throughout the province, from preschools to vocational training centers, colleges, and vocational secondary schools. Accordingly, more than 600 schools will be reorganized and merged, leading to many changes in scale, organizational models, and administrative structure.

In recent days, immediately after completing the reorganization of the school network, localities have been urgently implementing the placement and assignment of management staff at the merged schools. This is considered one of the important steps that determines the effectiveness of the schools' operation after the merger. The goal is to select and assign a team of management staff that meets the new requirements, ensuring the stability of the school while maximizing the abilities and strengths of each staff member in an organizational model undergoing many changes.

In Hanh Lam commune, the Hanh Lam Ethnic Boarding Primary and Secondary School will be inaugurated and put into operation this year. Due to the unique characteristics of the locality, with a large area, scattered population, and many students living far from the center, the commune's plan is to merge all students from the two primary schools and two secondary schools into one integrated school.

However, after the new school is put into operation, students will still be able to study at three locations: the main school and two branches at the former Hanh Lam Secondary School and Thanh Duc Secondary School. Therefore, the management and operation will be more demanding, placing a greater responsibility on the principal. Based on this reality, Mr. Le Van Giang, Chairman of the Hanh Lam Commune People's Committee, stated that the locality carefully considered the selection of the head of the new school and decided to appoint a principal with many years of experience in school management and who previously worked at the Thanh Chuong District Education and Training Department. “We want to choose someone with sufficient experience, management skills, and leadership abilities to undertake the task at a large-scale school with multiple teaching locations. We also expect the principal to utilize their experience and abilities to quickly stabilize the organization, build unity among the staff, and bring the school's activities into order,” Mr. Giang added.

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"Innovative thinking, powerful transformation, tangible results"

Nghe An Department of Education and Training
Determine the theme for the 2026-2027 school year.

With many changes in place for the new school year, the Nghe An Department of Education has identified the theme for the 2026-2027 school year as "Innovative thinking, strong transformation, tangible results." Sharing his thoughts on this, Mr. Nguyen Van Khoa, Director of the Department of Education and Training, stated that in the 2026-2027 school year, the Nghe An education sector will continue to implement strategic breakthrough goals according to Action Program No. 13-CTr/TU of the Provincial Party Committee and Plan No. 399/KH-UBND of the Provincial People's Committee. The key requirements include a strong reform of management practices, efficient utilization of teachers and facilities after restructuring, and a substantial improvement in educational quality. To successfully accomplish the tasks of the academic year, the education sector will accelerate the implementation of new policies and guidelines, using digital transformation and the application of artificial intelligence as the driving force, the teaching staff as the decisive factor, learners as the center, and learners' progress as the measure of management effectiveness. This also serves as the basis for schools to proactively adapt to the new organizational model after mergers, leverage resources, reduce administrative layers without compromising the quality of education.