Recently, at the inspection and survey on the implementation of digital transcripts, the development of digital learning materials and the organization of 2-session teaching per day for generaleducation , a representative of the Ministry of Education and Training said that in the near future, it will aim to require secondary and high schools to teach 2 sessions per day.

The information immediately received attention from school leaders. Many principals expressed concerns and said that it would be difficult to implement in the current conditions in their facilities and localities.

Sharing with VietNamNet , Mr. Ho Tuan Anh, Principal of Quynh Phuong Secondary School (Hoang Mai town, Nghe An ) said that the spirit of organizing 2 teaching sessions/day is correct, however, implementing it in current conditions is quite difficult.

“First of all, we must ensure the facilities of schools, especially the number of classrooms, while many schools are currently lacking. For example, my school has 34 classes but only 17 classrooms. The school is rotating 17 classes in the morning and 17 classes in the afternoon. So, in essence, it is 2 shifts, each student studies 1 session/day and the week is already full, not to mention teaching 2 sessions/day,” said Mr. Tuan Anh, adding that the number of classes at the school will increase next school year.

The second condition that must be met if you want to study 2 sessions/day is teachers. “If there are not enough staff, the problem will arise of exceeding the standard number of teaching hours. The problem lies not only in the issue of funding to pay teachers for exceeding the standard number of teaching hours, but also in ensuring the health of workers and complying with the provisions of the Labor Code that work does not exceed 200 hours/year,” Mr. Tuan Anh analyzed.

In addition, to implement this, according to Mr. Tuan Anh, the core condition is to build a truly appropriate and meaningful 2-session/day teaching program. “Because the story is not simply about opening the school for students to freely play, experience, and take advantage of the school's facilities. In any case, when students come to school, there must be a manager, whether it is a library, a stadium, a swimming pool, etc. to guide students in the necessary activities and, more importantly, to ensure their safety. If not carefully calculated, organizing the 2nd session will easily turn into disguised extra teaching and learning activities,” said Mr. Tuan Anh.

Mr. Tuan Anh cited that in the previous 2006 General Education Program, there was a content called elective lessons, but in reality, most schools "turned" those elective lessons into extra lessons. "Thus, organizing the second session but not managing it well and not having a truly standard and suitable program, it is easy to re-write the old lesson," he said.

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High school students in many schools attend school one session a day. Illustration photo: Thanh Hung

In Hanoi , the principal of a secondary school in Hoai Duc district said that up to now, the school has allowed students to study in the morning with a maximum of 5 periods per session. However, in the future, if the Ministry requires organizing 2 sessions per day, it will be divided into no more than 4 periods in the morning and no more than 3 periods in the afternoon.

“This can reduce stress for students by studying 5 periods in 1 session and spreading out teachers’ working hours. However, teachers have to work more. For example, currently, teachers at my school only have to go to school in the morning, but if we switch to 2 sessions/day, we will have to add time in the afternoon. Meanwhile, the school does not charge extra tuition for adding sessions, so teachers cannot have extra income,” he said.

According to this principal, the purpose of the Ministry of Education and Training is to reduce the number of lessons for students in one session, but organizing 2 sessions/day will make teachers work harder. The advantage is that schools that organize boarding meals will make parents feel more secure about managing their children at school.

However, according to the principal, the first thing to do is to solve the problem of meeting the facilities requirements for schools. Like her school, if next year, they implement 2 sessions/day, they will have to renovate to design more classrooms.

“For senior students, studying two sessions a day is more difficult than studying one session in the morning and then having the afternoon off to study, review, or simply rest,” he said.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/nhieu-hieu-truong-than-kho-neu-to-chuc-day-hoc-2-buoi-ngay-2388246.html