Investing in material facilities at new education program’s requirements

The 2018 general education program marks an important turning point in the Vietnamese education system with the goal of promoting practicality, developing learners’ capacity and qualities. To realize this goal, in addition to innovating teaching and assessment methods, investing in material facilities plays a key role in creating a modern learning environment, arousing potential and excitement among students.

More spacious schools

In the early days of 2024, Nguyen Trai Secondary School in Phu Giao district was built on a campus of 17,000m2. The three-storey school was put into use with full classrooms and function rooms with modern equipment...Vu Thanh Duong, Principal of the school said that the school and classrooms are spacious and modern, so its teachers, students and parents are very happy and excited. This has motivated the school to continuously strive for teaching and learning. The school will try to promote efficiency and well serve teaching work under the new education program.

Additional spacious schools are completed and put into use. In picture: Nguyen Trai Secondary School in Phu Giao district is completed and put into use in early 2024

In the 2023-2024 school year, Trinh Hoai Duc High School in Thuan An city is also more spacious thanks to being invested and upgraded in some items. The school has built a 7-storey boarding block; a multi-purpose gymnasium...In addition, the school has also had all the floor tiles replaced and electricity, water, and road systems renovated. Putting new construction and renovation items into use has partially ensured material facilities at the school’s teaching and learning needs.

In addition to projects put into use, many other projects to upgrade and build schools across the province have continued being implemented, gradually modernizing the local education and training facilities. According to a report from provincial Department of Education and Training, in the period of 2016-2023, localities in the province paid attention to investing in building schools, ensuring enough learning places for students and improving the quality of education. So far, 325 out of 396 school buildings in the province have been renovated, or 82.07% of total. By December 2023, the whole province had 19 school buildings upgraded, expanded and newly built to serve the new school year with total investment of more than VND 2.2trillion.

Efforts to overcome difficulties

The 2018 general educational program will be implemented in all grades at all levels from the 2024-2025 school year. In addition to investing in building a spacious school system to meet the teaching and learning requirements under this program, the province’s education and training sector has also coordinated with local authorities to invest in a number of smart classrooms with many useful equipment such as large interactive screens, computers, projectors, standard tables and chairs...at educational facilities.

The  local education and training sector has invested in advanced and modern teaching equipment systems for educational institutions at the teaching and learning requirements under the 2018 general education program

However, many schools in the province are also facing difficulties in implementing the 2018 general education program because material facilities  cannot meet all the requirements of the new education program. For example, due to the rapid increase in the number of students, many localities have resolved the issue of learning places for students, but have not been able to ensure the arrangement of the number of students per class under the standards prescribed by the Ministry of Education and Training. Most schools were built under the old design, so their area is not guaranteed to arrange additional tables and chairs under the new 2-seat/table format. Some schools have not yet been able to teach 2 sessions a day under the new program...

According to leaders of provincial Department of Education and Training, in order to solve difficulties in material facilities in implementing the 2018 general education program, provincial Department of Education and Training has also promptly noted, advised provincial People's Committee on solutions. The Department has also advised provincial People's Committee on a project to consolidate, strengthen and develop human resources and facilities of the local education and training sector in the period of 2024-2025, with an orientation to 2030, including 2 main contents: developing human resources and building schools and classrooms, purchasing teaching equipment under the standards of the 2018 general education program. If this project is approved, the problem of lack of teachers and material facilities when implementing the new general education program will be partially resolved.

As of now, educational facilities have also taken advantage of existing material facilities and equipment to flexibly set up appropriate teaching plans, ensuring the new general education program. In addition, the education sector has coordinated with localities to mobilize socialization resources to strengthen material facilities and equipment for teaching and learning at teaching and learning needs. Possibly speaking, solving difficulties in terms of material facilities when implementing the new general education program is an important task, requiring the cooperation and contribution of all-level authorities, sectors and the whole society. Investment in material facilities will contribute to improving the quality of teaching and learning, contributing to successfully implementing the 2018 general education program.

Reported by Hong Phuong-Translated by Kim Tin