Minister Nguyen Kim Son explains about free tuition for preschool and primary school students

TPO - "While our country's potential is still difficult, there are many tasks to invest in, and our income is not high, the Politburo, the Secretariat, the Government, and the National Assembly are very united in implementing free tuition," Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son shared.

All forms of overcharging under the name of volunteering are strictly prohibited.

Continuing the session agenda, on the morning of June 16, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the draft Resolution on tuition exemption and support for preschool children, general education students, and those studying generaleducation programs at educational institutions in the national education system; the National Assembly Resolution on universalizing preschool education for preschool children from 3 to 5 years old.

Delegate Nguyen Thi Viet Nga. Photo: Nhu Y

At the meeting, delegate Nguyen Thi Viet Nga ( Hai Duong ) said that exempting tuition fees for preschool and primary school students not only helps reduce the financial burden on families, ensuring the right to access education for all children, but also creates more motivation for society to join hands in investing in education, contributing to building a learning society and sustainable development.

Regarding the form of tuition support for non-public students, Ms. Nga suggested that direct support should be provided to educational institutions to ensure accuracy, speed, simplicity, and convenience in procedures. “The support funds are used for the right purposes rather than supporting learners, the statistics and payment procedures will be much more complicated!”, Ms. Nga said.

Delegate Trinh Thi Tu Anh ( Lam Dong ) also said that this tuition exemption policy is a big step forward for Vietnam in building a fair and sustainable education system. However, she wondered whether tuition exemption will reduce the quality of training? Will the heavy financial pressure reduce expenses for professional activities, facilities, equipment, or even affect the treatment of teachers?

In addition, Ms. Trinh Thi Tu Anh is also concerned about the emergence of "voluntary fees" that are not in accordance with regulations. Because when an official fee is eliminated, other forms of fees may appear to compensate through voluntary funds, or non-transparent contributions. This not only causes frustration for parents but also destroys the good meaning of the tuition-free policy.

Delegate Trinh Thi Tu Anh. Photo: Nhu Y

Therefore, to overcome the above concerns, the female delegate recommended that there should be a comprehensive and long-term financial strategy, focusing not only on compensating tuition fees but also ensuring resources for investment in developing educational infrastructure.

Along with that, the delegates also noted that there should be clear and transparent regulations on non-tuition fees (if any), strict control of voluntary fees, strictly prohibiting all forms of over-collection under the name of voluntary fees; and applying the principle of publicity and transparency in all school revenue and expenditure activities for parents and society to monitor.

Spirits "very high"

Receiving and explaining at the meeting, Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son said that the construction of these two resolutions was done with a spirit of "high enthusiasm", because the process received support and consensus from the people, even urging them to do it quickly.

Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son. Photo: Nhu Y.

Mr. Son cited the experience of 38 countries in the world that are implementing complete tuition exemption for preschool students. Most of these countries have high incomes. In addition, there are 90 countries that implement partial exemption, or support with different policies.

“While our country’s potential is still limited, there are many tasks to invest in, and our income is not high, the Politburo, the Secretariat, the Government, and the National Assembly are very united in implementing free tuition. This demonstrates the concern and efforts in developing education and creating conditions for children to access education, reducing the burden on parents,” said Mr. Son.

Regarding the payment method for non-public subjects, according to Mr. Son, each method has certain advantages and disadvantages, and the Government will regulate this in detail. He emphasized that because the tuition fee for non-public subjects is higher, the support for non-public subjects is "partial compensation" for parents who have paid tuition for their children. The implementation of this policy is also feasible, because the database is also complete.

“When calculating the 30 trillion VND in total expenditure, it is all budget, either central or local. This figure takes into account the fact that currently there are 10 provinces and cities that have implemented tuition exemption and implemented it using local budget sources,” Mr. Son emphasized.

Luan Dung

Source: https://tienphong.vn/bo-truong-nguyen-kim-son-ly-giai-ve-mien-hoc-phi-cho-hoc-sinh-mam-non-pho-thong-post1751586.tpo