Is attending school for two sessions a day considered "circumventing the law" to allow for extra tutoring or supplementary classes?

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - Currently, many localities are piloting a two-session-per-day teaching schedule, with Saturdays off. Is this a way to circumvent the regulations of Circular 29/2024/TT-BGDĐT to allow for extra tutoring and supplementary classes?

Responding to the press, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Xuan Thanh, Director of the Secondary Education Department (Ministry of Education and Training), stated that if schools adhere to the regulations and guidelines previously issued by the Ministry of Education and Training, there would be no concept of "circumventing the law" to provide extra tutoring.

There's no need to bend the rules if the school follows regulations.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Xuan Thanh, the guidelines on teaching two sessions per day are outlined in Official Document 7291/BGDĐT-GDTrH, issued by the Ministry of Education and Training in 2010, which provides guidance on teaching two sessions per day for secondary schools.

The Ministry of Education and Training stipulates many activities such as: youth group activities, experiential learning, reading at the library, self-study activities, etc. In addition, there are activities at playgrounds, sports fields, and multi-purpose halls with invested and installed equipment.

Teaching two sessions a day doesn't mean that in the afternoon, students are put into the classroom to teach cultural subjects (Photo: My Ha).

Therefore, there are many activities for which the school may not have fully planned to effectively utilize the existing facilities and equipment, and it's not simply a matter of teaching two sessions a day, with students still being placed in classrooms for cultural subjects during the second session.

"Learning is also regulated in Article 19, Clause 2, of the School Charter, which stipulates the forms of organizing educational activities in the school such as theoretical learning, doing exercises, experiments, practical work, clubs, community activities, etc."

Schools must develop such plans; they shouldn't organize two teaching sessions per day but still fill up the afternoon with students, as that violates regulations on extracurricular tutoring.

"If schools organize classes properly, with two sessions per day as I mentioned, they cannot violate regulations on extra tutoring," Mr. Thanh affirmed.

According to preliminary statistics, there are currently about 10 localities nationwide that are piloting a 5-day school week for junior and senior high school students, with Saturdays and Sundays off. These include: Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Yen Bai, Phu Tho (14 high schools and 22 junior high schools), Ha Tinh city, Vinh city (Nghe An), Thanh Hoa city (Thanh Hoa), Nha Trang city (Khanh Hoa), Bac Ninh city (Bac Ninh)...

Many localities are piloting a two-session-per-day teaching model.

Reportedly, after the ban on extracurricular tutoring within schools, some localities such as Ninh Binh, Yen Bai, Phu Tho, Vinh Phuc, etc., are piloting a two-session-per-day teaching model before expanding it to the general public.

On February 19th, the Vinh Phuc Department of Education and Training sent a document to the Provincial People's Committee requesting approval for the pilot program of teaching and learning 5 days a week.

The program applies to junior high schools, high schools, and educational institutions implementing the Continuing Education program at the high school level that meet the requirements in terms of facilities and teaching staff. The proposed pilot implementation period is from March 1st to the end of the 2024-2025 school year.

Accordingly, teaching and educational activities will be organized in two sessions per day, from Monday to Friday. Students will have Saturdays and Sundays off. Each day will not exceed 7 lessons, and each week will not exceed 35 lessons.

Many localities are piloting a two-session-per-day teaching model (Photo: Son Nguyen).

Educational institutions should develop a 5-day/week teaching schedule that is appropriate to their specific conditions, without affecting the learning progress and quality of education, and without overloading students.

Teachers' teaching schedules should be arranged appropriately according to the prescribed quotas. For final-year classes (grades 9 and 12): experienced teachers should be assigned to teach, tutor, and review the material with the students.

For the time being, this locality is allowed to use the allocated recurrent budget for schools to support extra teaching hours that exceed the teachers' standard teaching hours.

Teachers and students are encouraged to participate in teaching for 35 lessons per week in grades 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11, based on their voluntary participation.

Previously, the Phu Tho Department of Education and Training issued document No. 1918/SGD&ĐT-GDTrH regarding the pilot program of teaching and learning 5 days a week and allowing junior and senior high school students to have Saturdays off.

The pilot program will be implemented for grades 6, 7, and 8 in lower secondary school; and grades 10 and 11 in upper secondary school in a number of representative schools across different regions, starting from the second semester of the 2024-2025 school year.

Ninh Binh province is currently piloting a model of two-session schooling per day, five days a week. The pilot period runs from February 3rd to February 28th. After the pilot period, the locality will hold a review meeting to draw lessons learned before implementing the model on a large scale across all educational levels in the province.

Yen Bai province will pilot this teaching model starting in early January 2025 for junior high school students throughout the province.

The Department of Education and Training of Thanh Hoa City has also submitted a proposal to the People's Committee of Thanh Hoa City regarding the implementation of a two-session-per-day schooling schedule.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/hoc-2-buoingay-co-phai-lach-luat-de-day-them-hoc-them-20250219224617868.htm