Ho Chi Minh City students must go to school on Saturday mornings, Department of Education and Training speaks out

According to the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City, for schools that have organized two sessions a day, Saturday morning classes will only be implemented when there is a need or desire of parents and students on a voluntary basis.

Students and teachers of Tran Huy Lieu Secondary School, Duc Nhuan Ward, Ho Chi Minh City during an extracurricular activity. This is one of the schools implementing the advanced integration model in Ho Chi Minh City - Photo: TRI DUC

Regarding the incident where many secondary school students in Ho Chi Minh City had to attend an extra class on Saturday mornings instead of just studying from Monday to Friday like last year, Tuoi Tre had a talk with Mr. Nguyen Bao Quoc - Deputy Director of the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City.

Mr. Quoc said: "The viewpoint of the City Department of Education and Training when implementing two-session teaching/day is to ensure the scientific implementation of the general education program; reduce learning pressure for students; improve the quality of comprehensive education... However, the implementation must be suitable to the conditions of facilities and teaching staff of each locality and each school."

* Sir, Ho Chi Minh City has many types of schools and classes (advanced - integrated schools, intensive English classes, integrated English classes...). Are there any difficulties in implementing the Ministry of Education and Training's document 4567 on teaching two sessions/day?

Mr. Nguyen Bao Quoc - Deputy Director of the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City

- It is true that currently Ho Chi Minh City has many different types of schools and classes. Among them, at the secondary level, there are 16 schools implementing the advanced and integrated school model.

The characteristic of this type is that it must comply with the regulations of the pilot standards set for advanced and integrated schools.

For example, it is necessary to organize English and IT teaching according to international standards; apply information technology in teaching so that when students graduate from junior high school, at least 90% must be able to use English (all four skills of listening, speaking, reading, writing) at level A2 or higher, of which at least 30% must have international foreign language certificates at the corresponding level; 100% must have knowledge and skills in information technology (office IT, web usage, online communication skills), of which at least 50% of students must meet international IT standards.

Advanced and integrated secondary schools must have at least three sports clubs and one art club organized for students to participate in weekly activities; 100% of students must meet the standards for assessment and physical classification according to age; ensure that each student knows how to play a sport; 100% of students must be educated in safe swimming and drowning prevention...

With the above standards, if an advanced - integrated school only teaches seven periods/day from Monday to Friday, it cannot meet the requirements.

On September 10, the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City will hold an online meeting with all high school principals and cultural and social officers of 168 wards and communes in Ho Chi Minh City (including the three old areas of Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau ) on the school's education plan for the 2025-2026 school year. At this meeting, the department will have specific instructions for units on teaching two sessions/day.

In short, the implementation of two-session teaching at the junior high and high school levels will be implemented step by step, giving priority to schools with good facilities and teaching staff, then gradually expanding. Thus, the city can be proactive in implementing the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training, while still ensuring compliance with the characteristics of existing types of schools and classes.

* How is the HCM City Department of Education and Training expected to direct schools in implementing the school program as well as teaching two sessions per day? Specifically, how many additional periods will schools be allowed to tutor underachieving students, nurture gifted students, school programs...?

- The implementation of teaching two sessions/day will be implemented flexibly, ensuring compliance with the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training. Schools will base on actual conditions to develop school education plans: increase the amount of time for tutoring students who have not achieved, nurture excellent students as well as allocate appropriate time for educational activities, experiences and development of students' abilities and qualities.

Thus, the number of additional periods is not fixed at a specific number but depends on each level of education, each type of school and the practical needs of students, but must still be within the legal framework prescribed by the Ministry of Education and Training.

* What do you think about the reaction of parents in Ho Chi Minh City when their children have to go to school on Saturday mornings according to the school timetable? What solution will the Department of Education and Training have for this problem?

- For schools that have organized two sessions a day, Saturday morning classes will only be implemented when there is a need or wish from parents and students on a voluntary basis.

For schools that do not have the conditions to teach two sessions per day, the school will prioritize arranging classes on the other side of the week; only when conditions are truly not met will Saturday morning classes be arranged to ensure implementation of the 2018 General Education Program.

This means that Saturday morning classes will be considered and flexibly considered based on the facilities, teaching staff and practical needs of each school and each locality.

I would like to emphasize that teaching two sessions a day (instead of one session a day) is not to increase learning pressure for students, but to allocate time reasonably, helping students learn more easily.

Schools need to flexibly arrange the first and second sessions, support underachieving students, nurture excellent students, and give all students the opportunity to participate in learning activities and develop their talents.

Mr. NGUYEN BAO QUOC

Parents react because children have to go to school on Saturday mornings

Although the 2025-2026 school year has only started for a few days, Tuoi Tre has received complaints from many parents whose children are studying in secondary schools in Ho Chi Minh City. They are upset that their children's secondary schools require students to attend school on Saturday mornings instead of just Monday to Friday (morning and afternoon) like the previous school year.

They also disagreed with the reasons given by the school: because the regulation of teaching two sessions/day by the Ministry of Education and Training this year only allows for seven periods/day instead of eight periods/day like last school year.

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HOANG HUONG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hoc-sinh-tp-hcm-phai-di-hoc-sang-thu-bay-so-gd-dt-len-tieng-20250910090357407.htm