Ho Chi Minh City About 1,400 students at the American International School Vietnam (AISVN) had to stay home from school on March 18, as most teachers stopped teaching due to unpaid wages.
AISVN has a campus located in Long Thoi commune, Nha Be district, accepting students from kindergarten to grade 12, following the International Baccalaureate (IB) program.
On the morning of March 18, Ms. Thanh Phuong, a parent of a 9th grade student at the American International School Vietnam, confirmed that her child would be absent from school today. Last night, she received an email notification from the school, stating that the current number of teachers was not enough to ensure the safety and teaching of the students.
"In the coming days, the children may not be able to go to school because the teachers are on strike. The situation at the school has been tense for many months now, and we don't know where it will go," said Ms. Phuong.
Ms. Hong Hanh, who lives in District 7 and has three children studying at the school, said this was a big shock to her family. The children could not go to school, disrupting the family's work and schedule. More importantly, the children's education was interrupted while the school had no positive solution.
"I never thought a famous international school would fall into this situation," said Ms. Hanh.
"It's almost certain that the children won't be able to go to school for the next two days, followed by a spring break lasting more than 10 days. Foreign teachers will probably return home right after the break if they don't receive their salaries and insurance."
Ms. Hanh said that in a meeting with parents yesterday, the school said that 95% of teachers did not show up to teach on Monday because their salaries and insurance had not been paid. Therefore, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ut Em, Chairwoman of the school's Board of Directors, decided to give students a day off on March 18.
In the meeting minutes provided by parents, AISVN said that it was facing financial difficulties and therefore could not pay teachers and staff in full and on time. The school had asked parents to contribute more money to support the school through the difficult period but was not supported.
Parents said about 1,400 students from kindergarten to grade 12 at the school were affected.
Responding to VnExpress on the morning of March 18, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ut Em confirmed that all students of the school were absent today, saying that she would provide specific information later.
American International School Vietnam campus in Nha Be. Photo: Le Nguyen
According to Ms. Le Thuy My Chau, Deputy Director of the Departmentof Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City, the Department has received the information and is working with the school to ensure the rights of students and parents.
"The top priority is to stabilize students' studies," said Ms. Chau.
AISVN was established in 2006. By the end of 2023, the school will have more than 1,400 students, 200 foreign teachers, and 300 domestic staff. Tuition fees here are 280-350 million VND per year for preschool, 450-500 million VND for primary school, and the highest is 600-725 million VND for secondary school.
In September 2023, many parents gathered to demand debt from the American International School Vietnam. These parents said they lent the school tens of billions of dong without interest so that their children could study for free, but by the time their children graduated, they still had not received any repayment.
The Department of Education and Training then required non-public schools and international schools to separate business and professional activities. Schools only collect regular tuition fees and are not allowed to sign joint ventures, contribute capital, or mobilize capital. Private and international schools are only allowed to collect tuition fees for one school year and are not allowed to combine exams for multiple semesters or years.
Ho Chi Minh City has 35 foreign-invested schools. These schools mainly teach British, American, and Canadian programs, and add History, Geography, and Vietnamese Studies for Vietnamese students. Tuition fees at these schools range from 100 million to 1 billion VND per year.
Le Nguyen
*Parents names have been changed
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