Balanced solutions for textbooks

Standard textbooks ensure unity and equality; rich reference books to stimulate students' creativity

Every year, the story of textbooks heats up again, because this is one of the keys that opens the door to educational innovation.

Need strict assessment

Solving the textbook problem is not just a matter of a few books, but a choice between unity and diversity in educational philosophy. Over the past decades, we have moved from a single set of textbooks compiled by the state to "1 program, many sets of textbooks". Both have left their mark but also revealed their limitations and now is the time to need a more balanced and feasible solution.

I think that the model of one set of textbooks once fulfilled its historical mission: creating a common knowledge base, absolute unity, ensuring fair access when the country was still in difficulty. But this monopoly entailed a monopoly of thinking: teachers were constrained; students "parroted learning", exams followed the words in the book, eliminating creativity. When the goal of fundamental and comprehensive innovation was set, this model became outdated.

The policy of "1 program, many textbooks" appeared later as a push to break the monopoly, open up a space for academic competition, and empower teachers. But instead of competing for quality textbooks, it sometimes becomes a marketing race; parents are confused, students are frustrated, social costs increase; the burden of choice falls on schools - which are not all places capable of appraisal. The risk of inequality is evident when conditions between localities differ. Students transferring schools and levels becomes an obstacle when the same program but different textbooks can cause a loss of connection between levels and classes.

Standard textbooks will be the national quality “floor”, ensuring access for all students. Photo: TAN THANH

International experience shows that many countries have successfully balanced the textbook issue. Japan maintains a unified curriculum but allows many books from different publishers, all of which must pass strict appraisal by the Ministry of Education. Korea has a standard set of books for core subjects, while simultaneously approving private books of sufficient quality for parallel use.

Singapore combines standard textbooks with an open electronic resource repository for teachers and students to freely choose from. Even Finland - a symbol of liberal education - still has a national minimum competency framework, based on which teachers and publishers develop diverse materials that do not deviate from output standards...

The common point of the above countries is the diversification of textbooks accompanied by a minimum quality "floor" and a transparent monitoring mechanism to avoid fragmentation.

From international practice and experience, I believe that a feasible model for Vietnam is "1+N": 1 set of standard textbooks compiled by the state, copyrighted and released in free PDF; along with many other sets of books as reference materials. Standard textbooks will be the "floor" of national quality, ensuring all students access the same standard of knowledge.

The printing and distribution of textbooks, which is the most costly, must be done through public bidding to break the economic monopoly and reduce costs. Reference books - including other textbooks, exercise books, and specialized subjects - operate according to market mechanisms, encouraging creativity but need to be evaluated to eliminate incorrect or poor quality documents.

Two pillars of roots

The above solution balances the core contradiction: Standard textbooks ensure unity and equality; rich reference books inspire creativity. "A good fragrance needs no bush", whichever textbook is good, good, and cheap, users will choose.

However, any model will be difficult to succeed without two pillars. First, the capacity and autonomy of teachers. Good teachers will turn standard textbooks into a framework, and at the same time, distill the essence of other materials to design lessons. It is necessary to invest in professional training, skills and real empowerment for teachers.

Second, thoroughly reform the testing and assessment process. When the test questions still follow the wording of a set of textbooks, those textbooks will become "legal shackles". To liberate teaching and learning, testing must follow the output standards of the 2018 General Education Program, measuring analytical ability, problem solving, creativity, and language - instead of mechanical memory.

The benefits of the "1+N" model are not only pedagogical. The state holds the copyright of textbooks and releases free PDFs, which will reduce the cost burden, especially in remote areas. Bidding for printing will create healthy competition, preventing price monopoly. This also helps reduce the pressure of choice for parents, creating a common quality level, while still maintaining space for local innovation and adaptation.

If exam reform is slow, standard textbooks may become the only "handbook" and will invalidate reference books. If teacher training is not uniform, autonomy can easily lead to quality disparities. If there is a lack of supervision, bidding for printing can easily turn into interest groups. Therefore, it is necessary to have a mechanism for periodic inspection, public results, and readiness to adjust policies...

Mr. HUYNH THANH PHU , Principal of Bui Thi Xuan High School (HCMC):

Take advantage of the digital environment to avoid waste

When implementing the policy of "1 program, many textbooks", the advantage is good competition. From that "competitive mechanism" leads to competition in price, product quality..., but also leaves inevitable consequences.

It can be seen that nowadays, not only teachers but also parents no longer have high expectations for textbooks. Reality has proven that in many current exams, the scope of knowledge is not included in textbooks. For example, in the subject of literature, the 10th grade entrance exam has completely eliminated the language materials in textbooks, in order to follow the goal of the 2018 General Education Program - comprehensively assessing students' abilities and qualities.

The lack of consistency between different sets of textbooks makes parents and students tired. In fact, many related departments have spent a lot of time and money buying books. Even in the same subject, many different textbooks are used, without a fixed direction, making students more confused.

Because of these shortcomings, having a common set of textbooks for the whole country is an important and correct decision of the Politburo . A common set of textbooks will solve the problem of uniformity and unity in the entire program content... A common set of textbooks is stable in the long term, satisfies the people and solves the current shortcomings - there are many sets of books.

In the era of digital transformation and digital citizen training, the new textbooks should also be designed as digital textbooks; put online so that students and parents can access and use them for free, creating convenience for everyone to use, avoiding waste, using them for a long time and promoting the digital transformation process. Even in cases where historical, geographical, economic, social knowledge... needs to be adjusted, updating them in the digital environment is easier and more convenient.

Not separate from overall reform

The issue of textbooks cannot be separated from the overall reform of education. Therefore, we need a vision that goes beyond the debate of "one or many textbooks" to move towards a structure that is both unified and flexible. I believe that the "1+N" model, with standard textbooks as the foundation, diverse reference books and two pillars - teacher autonomy and innovative examinations - can be the key.

Only when teachers are trusted and supported; students are tested on their abilities instead of memorizing; and every textbook is just a tool, not an "order", can we unleash the creative potential of both teachers and students and build an equal, liberal, and modern education system.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/giai-phap-can-bang-cho-sach-giao-khoa-196250911215937523.htm