Teaching English is compulsory from grade 1: Need a systematic solution and suitable roadmap

A notable point in the Project is that from 2030, all general schools nationwide will teach English as a compulsory subject from grade 1 instead of grade 3 as at present. Many opinions say that this is a goal that demonstrates the great determination of the State in improving the capacity of the young generation, but it is also necessary to have methodical solutions and a suitable roadmap for effective and feasible implementation.

The policy of making English a second language from grade 1 demonstrates the legitimate ambition and long-term vision of the State in improving foreign language skills for the young generation of Vietnam, serving the goal of integration and sustainable development. Many teachers and education managers expressed their agreement with this policy, especially when realizing that learning English from grade 1 will create opportunities to improve the capacity and foundation for students because the children are like blank sheets of paper so the absorption will be very fast. However, what managers worry about is how to recruit enough teachers to do this, especially in the context of the current low income of teachers, not attractive enough for young people who are really good at English, and the quality and teaching methods so that learning English from grade 1 does not become a burden for students.

According to the calculations of the Ministry of Education and Training , the Project to make English the second language in schools will be applied in all educational institutions and will impact about 50,000 educational institutions with nearly 30 million children, students and about 1 million managers and teachers at all levels, fields of study and training. The implementation period of the Project is 20 years, from 2025 to 2045, deployed in 3 main phases. In particular, for primary school level, to have a solid foundation, ensuring the success of the Project's goal of teaching English as a compulsory subject from grade 1 according to the 2018 General Education Program, it is expected that there will be an additional staff of English teachers in primary schools across the country of about 10,000 people.

Sharing with CAND Newspaper reporters on this issue, Associate Professor Dr. Bui Manh Hung, a general education program development expert, said that the policy of teaching English compulsory from grade 1 from 2030 is a step forward compared to the regulations in the 2018 general education program. According to the regulations in the 2018 general education program, students in grades 1 and 2 can study English as an elective subject, the study time does not exceed 70 periods/year, or 2 periods/week. In recent years, students in many schools, especially private schools and public schools in large cities where conditions are met, have chosen to study English from grade 1. Therefore, making this subject compulsory is to create equal opportunities for all students, including those in disadvantaged areas, to access English early, without being disadvantaged compared to their peers in the city, but this policy poses many challenges.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Bui Manh Hung, the challenges include a serious shortage of teachers, the quality of English teachers is not enough to meet the requirements and more importantly, without appropriate teaching methods, it will easily create a great learning burden for students. “From grade 1, students have to spend a lot of time getting used to Vietnamese writing, and have to practice a lot to form and develop skills, especially reading and writing. For students from ethnic minority groups, in addition to Vietnamese, they can also learn an ethnic minority language. Now, with the addition of English, they have to learn 3 languages at the same time. Besides, the current English textbooks are compiled according to the output standards of the 2018 General Education Program, the study time in Primary school is only 3 years. If teaching is compulsory from grade 1, will the output standards for grade 5, and then grade 9 and grade 12, be raised? If raised, will the program and all English textbooks have to be rewritten?

In addition, along with the lack of teachers, the quality of teachers' teaching is also a problem. If teachers do not have good English skills and do not know how to take advantage of the support of machines and technology, the teachers' pronunciation errors can be transmitted to students, causing them to mispronounce right from the start, which is very difficult to correct later. Early learning then becomes more harmful than beneficial. And finally, in the context of our limited national resources, investing too much in teaching English will certainly affect the teaching of other important subjects, including subjects that may be much more important than English," Associate Professor Dr. Bui Manh Hung raised the issue.

From the above analysis, Associate Professor Dr. Bui Manh Hung recognized that the compulsory teaching of English from grade 1 needs to be interpreted in the context of implementing the Project in Vietnam with specific and achievable goals. In particular, it is necessary to consider this as a long-term strategy, the result of thorough scientific research, not purely political determination. Therefore, there needs to be specific, methodical solutions, a roadmap suitable to the practical conditions of the country, both implementing and surveying and evaluating so that educational innovation is in the right direction and investment resources are used effectively.

Dr. Nguyen Thuy Hong, former Deputy Director of the Department of Teachers, Ministry of Education and Training, also said that this policy will contribute to changing the perspective of teaching English in schools, making English a language used in a wider and more popular environment, students can start learning from grade 1 and gradually move towards teaching subjects in English in places with sufficient conditions. However, Dr. Nguyen Thuy Hong also admitted that to achieve the goal, we are facing many challenges, requiring changes in programs, learning materials, teaching methods; improving the quality of the teaching staff, especially the skills of applying information technology; changing the way of testing and evaluation.

Therefore, the solution that needs to be focused on is investing in training and fostering English teachers in sufficient quantity, ensuring quality with standardized training programs; improving salary policies, allowances and career opportunities to attract teachers, especially in difficult areas; and finally, having a flexible implementation roadmap between regions.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/giao-duc/day-tieng-anh-bat-buoc-tu-lop-1-can-giai-phap-bai-ban-va-lo-trinh-phu-hop-i787558/