Circular 29 makes it difficult for primary schools to teach 2 sessions/day
Since February 14, teaching two sessions a day at primary level has been interrupted in many localities due to a lack of teachers. Meanwhile, collecting additional money to increase the number of periods and pay for schools is not in accordance with Circular 29.
Many schools have afternoon breaks.
Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Primary School is one of the few schools in Hung Nguyen district that organizes boarding. This makes it convenient for students and parents when the school organizes 2 sessions/day with 32 periods/week. Previously, with this number of periods, the school organized classes from Monday to Friday and had a day off on Wednesday afternoon. However, currently, students will have a full day off on Wednesday to make it easier for the school to organize boarding. The number of periods for each class also changes with grades 1 and 2 being 28 periods/week, grade 3 being 29 periods/week and grades 4 and 5 being 30 periods/week.
As a homeroom teacher of grade 1, teacher Cao Thi Lan and many parents of the class shared the feeling of "disappointment" when the program changed. Most regrettably, since last week, grade 1 and grade 2 students of Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Primary School have no longer been able to study English because the school no longer has the funds to hire teachers.
We feel disappointed. Every day parents ask, can we pay for our children's education? I don't know how to answer, although that is what we want so that our children's education is not interrupted.
Teacher Cao Thi Lan - Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Primary School
Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Primary School currently has 29 classes with 39 teachers, including 1 Team Leader and 1 teacher on maternity leave, the current teacher ratio is 1.31 teachers/class.
In the past, to have enough teachers to teach 2 sessions/day, the school contracted 3 more teachers, including 2 English teachers and 1 Literature teacher. Since February 14, following Circular 29, temporarily stopping collecting fees for teaching the 2nd session, the school has also terminated the contracts with the contract teachers.
Teacher Phan Xuan Loi - Principal of the school said: This is not what the school wants, but if we contract more teachers, we do not have the budget to pay.
Since the beginning of last week, instead of teaching 2 sessions/day, Hoang Tru Primary School (Nam Dan) has adjusted the school schedule when students in grades 1, 2, and 3 only study in the morning; students in grades 4 and 5 also only have some 2 sessions/day.
Sharing this, teacher Vuong Hong Lien - Principal of the school said: Currently, the teacher ratio of our school (including the Team Leader teacher) is 1.37 teachers/class. If there are enough teachers to teach 2 sessions/day (including the part-time classes), the school needs to add 2 more teachers. Because there are not enough teachers, we are forced to let students take some classes off and require teachers to increase their responsibility in giving more exercises, guiding students to do at home and supplementing self-study knowledge at home. The school also hopes that the district will soon have an alternative plan so that the school's teaching and learning can return to normal.
Do not collect money against regulations
Due to the shortage of teachers at the primary level, in previous years, Nam Dan district was one of the localities that proactively supported funding for schools to ensure a minimum of 1.33 teachers/class. The remaining teachers, to be enough to teach 2 sessions/day, depending on the ratio of each grade and each school, schools will mobilize contributions from parents with funding for each student fluctuating around a few tens of thousands of VND/month.
In accordance with Circular 29, Nam Dan district has directed schools to return the additional fees collected from parents to maintain teaching 2 sessions/day (in case of collecting fees for the second semester). At the same time, the district is also temporarily directing schools to organize teaching according to the actual number of teachers available. At the same time, it is planning to advise the district to allocate additional budget.
The current average teacher ratio of Nam Dan district is 1.36 teachers/class and compared to the guidance of the Department of Education and Training, the number of teachers lacking is not much. We are currently estimating that if we provide compensation to schools, we will need about 1.6 billion VND. However, this is only partial support to encourage teachers.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Thai Huyen - Head of Education and Training Department of Nam Dan district
Many localities are considering the option of providing funding to maintain two sessions per day in primary schools amid a shortage of teachers. Meanwhile, due to the implementation of Circular 29, the collection of additional money to pay for extra classes or hire more contract teachers as before must stop because it is not in accordance with regulations.
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The implementation also shows that the calculation to compensate for the shortage of teachers is also facing many difficulties and it is difficult to pay the full amount of extra hours for teachers according to regulations. Therefore, many localities have been considering to adjust the teaching plan.
Mr. Tran Xuan Nhuong - Head of the Department of Education and Training of Quynh Luu district said: Previously, the source of social mobilization to pay for extra classes for teachers was nearly ten billion VND each year. In the current conditions, it is difficult for the district to compensate for the equivalent amount. Therefore, for now, we are encouraging schools to maintain teaching 2 sessions/day and rebalance the number of classes according to the number of teachers available. The district is also having to rebalance teachers between schools to ensure fairness for students. It is impossible to have a situation where some schools have enough classes, while others have less classes because the number of teachers among schools is not equal.
31/33 primary schools in Do Luong district are implementing semi-boarding and if we stop teaching 2 sessions/day, it will be disadvantageous for students and difficult for parents. Therefore, we have asked teachers to increase the number of periods (25 periods/week, 2 more than the regulation). If they teach more than this number of periods, the department will advise the district to support teachers with some financial costs. In addition, we have implemented the extension of the number of periods in the sessions and increased the number of experiential periods. Thus, students can still maintain 2 sessions/day.
Mr. Nguyen Tat Tay - Head of Education and Training Department of Do Luong district
Regarding teaching 2 sessions/day, after the difficulties caused by implementing Circular 29, the Department of Education and Training has issued 2 documents requesting the Departments of Education and Training to promptly advise the District People's Committees to support funding to continue implementing the education plan with a duration of 32 periods/week with 9 sessions/week in all grades.
In case of insufficient funding, schools shall adjust their teaching plans flexibly on the basis of ensuring adequate content and duration of compulsory subjects as prescribed, completing the objectives and requirements of the 2018 General Education Program in accordance with the characteristics, students, and conditions of the school and locality.
The Department has also asked schools to recalculate the teacher ratio to 1.39 teachers/class and teachers will teach 23 periods/week (not including part-time periods). The main purpose is to prioritize number 1 to ensure enough cultural teachers for schools and not interrupt the organization of teaching 2 sessions/day.
Mr. Nguyen Hong Hoa - Head of Primary Education Department, Department of Education and Training
Circular 29/2024/TT-BGDĐT (Circular 29) of the Ministry of Education and Training regulating extra teaching and learning takes effect from February 14, 2025.
Circular 29 has 3 outstanding new points, including:
No extra teaching or learning for primary school students, except for training in arts, physical education, sports, and life skills; no extra teaching for students whose school has organized 2 sessions/day;
Extra teaching and learning in schools must not collect money from students and is only for 3 subjects under the responsibility of the school;
Teachers who are teaching at schools are not allowed to teach extra classes outside of school for money from their students; organizations and individuals who organize extra classes for money from students must do so openly, transparently, and in accordance with the provisions of law.
