On the occasion of November 20th, Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son affirmed that never before have intellectuals, teachers, scientists, innovators, and educators been so highly valued, respected, and placed at the forefront of national priorities by the highest leaders of the Party and State as they are today. Teachers, regardless of their position, expect innovation linked to practical realities to further ignite their passion for the profession and ensure peace of mind in their work.
Ms. Hoang Thi Huyen Trang, Principal of Be Trieu Kindergarten in Hoa An district, Cao Bang province, is one of 251 outstanding teachers honored by the Ministry of Education and Training on the occasion of November 20th this year.
One of Ms. Trang's outstanding achievements is her initiative to improve the method of calculating meal portions for children in preschools. This initiative has been replicated in all preschools in Hiep Hoa district and neighboring districts of Cao Bang province.
Teacher Huyen Trang recounted: "Getting software to calculate meal portions is very easy for schools in the city. But in disadvantaged areas, where facilities are lacking, having such software is impossible. The school doesn't have a dedicated kitchen staff, so teachers have to take on the responsibility of calculating children's daily meal portions."
Recognizing that manual calculations are complex, prone to errors, and time-consuming, and that a single miscalculation can significantly impact the quality of school meals, leading to food shortages, insufficient portion sizes, and nutritional deficiencies, teacher Huyen Trang developed a spreadsheet program in Excel with pre-set calculation formulas. Teachers only need to input data such as the number of students and portion sizes to calculate detailed meal portions, thereby determining the amount of food needed to purchase or supplement each day and each meal.
Teacher Huyen Trang shared: “My spreadsheet doesn't require an internet connection to function, making it convenient to use. Teachers' workload is reduced. The quality of school lunches is improved. Children are able to eat enough and enjoy their meals. After piloting it at the school, we have seen clear results in reducing the number of steps involved and improving the children's physical well-being.”
Fifteen years after graduating from Thai Nguyen University of Education, teacher Huyen Trang has been deeply committed to her students in Cao Bang, despite the difficult and challenging conditions in the locality.
“What keeps me in this profession is my love for children in disadvantaged areas. On November 20th, the children bring me bouquets of wild sunflowers and wildflowers, along with heartfelt words. I understand that these children, with their dirty faces and inadequate clothing, desperately need young people like us to volunteer and build a future together,” teacher Huyen Trang shared emotionally.
Teacher Nang Xo Vi from Dak Me village, Po Y commune, Ngoc Hoi district, Kon Tum province is the youngest female National Assembly delegate in the field of Education, and also the only delegate representing the voice of over 500 people of the Brau ethnic group in the National Assembly, participating in and deciding on important national policies.
Growing up in poverty, but thanks to the propaganda and mobilization efforts of officials, Nang Xo Vi understood and longed to go to school and the importance of bringing knowledge back to contribute to the development of her village.
Teacher Nàng Xô Vi said: “In the entire Đắk Mế village, only 5-7 children attend school, and only about the same number graduate from high school. Hunger and poverty, along with outdated customs such as ‘only people of the Brâu ethnic group are allowed to marry each other,’ have been barriers preventing children from attending school and pursuing higher education.”
When cultural and intellectual education was introduced to her by officials, Nang Xo Vi harbored a desire to study in order to change her life. In 2014, with the support of the village head and the villagers, Nang Xo Vi became the first person of the Brau ethnic group to be admitted to university.
Having grown up amidst hardship, receiving help and love from those around her, and later becoming a teacher and returning to her hometown to work, Teacher Nang Xo Vi also dedicates all that love to her students.
Teacher Nàng Xô Vi shared: “I love my students with the heart of a teacher, an older sister, a mother, not as a superior. I always tell my students that I am only a guide, and they are the subjects in their learning and research. A good teacher is not about teaching good students to become even better, but about teaching weaker students to become better.”
By giving love and affection, teacher Nàng Xô Vi also received in return the simple, innocent, and sincere feelings of her students.
“During my time working in the particularly difficult border region, on holidays, Tet (Vietnamese New Year), or Vietnamese Teachers' Day, the gifts the students brought me were gourds, pumpkins, shrimp, and prawns that they or their families had caught themselves. The teacher didn't have much to offer them, just a big pot of sweet soup. But both the teacher and the students were very happy,” said teacher Nang Xo Vi.
“Recalling those difficult times, living in a dilapidated rented house, and raising young children, my father would accompany me to help carry the baby. On weekends, my siblings would come to my house to grow vegetables, raise chickens, and look after my children… Those feelings were the motivation for me to overcome hardships and dedicate myself to my profession,” Representative Nang Xo Vi said emotionally.
"Through years of hardship and a burning desire to change her life, Delegate Nang Xo Vi said, 'I felt the happiness on the faces of the children as they received knowledge and listened to my lectures; I saw hope in their eyes. I want to inspire them to step out of their village gates, step outside their comfort zones, and discover their own potential,'" shared teacher Nang Xo Vi.
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A teacher from a privileged area comes to a disadvantaged region, a teacher who grew up in a remote village. But within them both lies a love and dedication to making education in these difficult areas better. This beauty is the nobility of the teaching profession, helping them overcome many difficulties and sacrifice their personal lives to live meaningful lives through the profession they pursue.
Ms. Dang Thi Hue, a teacher at Moc Ly Secondary School in Moc Chau district, Son La province, is a key teacher at the district level. She participates in training courses, provides professional support and assistance to colleagues, and implements the contents of the 2018 General Education Program for teachers in the district.
As one of the outstanding teachers honored by the Ministry of Education and Training in 2024, teacher Dang Thi Hue felt very happy and honored. Teacher Hue said: “This is a great source of motivation that helps me always strive to improve myself further, hone my professional skills to meet the requirements of educational reform today.”
The efforts of each teacher always need support from policies and planning of the Party, the State, and the National Assembly.
According to teacher Dang Thi Hue, teachers' salaries have increased since the salary reform policy was implemented. This helps each teacher become more committed to the profession and trust in the policies implemented by the Party and the State.
As a teacher in a mountainous region, Ms. Dang Thi Hue hopes that educational reforms will be more thorough and reach every teacher in disadvantaged areas.
Teacher Dang Thi Hue said: “Over the years, the education sector has always strived for innovation to focus on learners. This includes innovations in the curriculum. This is a very good program that helps students develop their abilities and strengths. However, I hope the education sector will organize in-person training courses instead of online ones in schools so that teachers can access the new curriculum in a more visual way. This is especially important for teachers who teach integrated subjects such as Natural Sciences, History, and Geography.”
To bring education policies closer to reality, the voices of teachers who are also Members of Parliament are essential. As teachers, administrators, and Members of Parliament, they have been and are effectively conveying the voices of their constituents—teachers—ensuring that policies, when enacted, are aligned with practical realities.
At the 8th session of the 15th National Assembly, the draft Law on Teachers was presented to the National Assembly for the first time. This is good news for teachers in general, and especially for teachers in disadvantaged areas and ethnic minority regions.
One of the core issues that many National Assembly deputies are concerned about is the salary policy for teachers.
Representative Le Thi Thanh Xuan, from the Dak Lak Provincial Delegation of the National Assembly and Director of the Dak Lak Department of Education and Training, stated: “This draft law has designed a salary and allowance system and conditions to attract teachers in economically disadvantaged areas, islands, and special regions. According to Conclusion 91 of the Politburo, it proposes a salary mechanism. For example, it suggests classifying teachers at salary level 2 or stipulating 9 types of allowances, depending on the category. Accordingly, teachers working in disadvantaged areas will have housing, housing rentals, and health check-up support… basically addressing issues related to teachers' lives, helping them feel secure in their work and dedicate themselves to their work.”
Mr. Thai Van Thanh, Member of Parliament for Nghe An province and Director of the Department of Education and Training of Nghe An province, said: "Nghe An also faces difficulties regarding the shortage of teachers and the transfer of teachers within the province as well as between provinces. The Law on Teachers will solve this problem."
“The draft Law on Teachers also includes provisions to attract outstanding students. The law, once enacted, will provide a legal basis for advising the Provincial People's Committee to issue policies and mechanisms to attract talented individuals to the teaching profession. Outstanding high school graduates, those who have won high awards in competitions, and those with special talents who have received pedagogical training will be attracted to become teachers. In particular, Nghe An is a province with a large geographical area, including the sea, borders, islands, and ethnic minority communities… In these difficult areas, recruiting teachers is already challenging, and recruiting excellent teachers is even more difficult. The approval of the draft Law on Teachers will provide a legal framework for the education sector to attract talented, dedicated, and passionate individuals to contribute to these challenging regions,” said National Assembly representative Thai Van Thanh.
"If we want teachers to feel secure in dedicating themselves, contributing, and being passionate about their profession, then the Party, the State, and the National Assembly must pay attention to teachers. This will enable teachers, with their enthusiasm, self-respect, and efforts to excel, to work together with the political system to make positive contributions to the overall development of the country," Representative Le Thi Thanh Xuan emphasized.
Among the achievements our country has made over the past 40 years of the reform period, the very important contributions of the teaching force and the intellectual class cannot be overlooked.
The national education and training system is facing both great demands and great opportunities. The greater the mission entrusted to it, the higher the requirements and expectations, and the faster the reform of national education becomes necessary, and the faster the improvement in quality becomes.
According to Minister Nguyen Kim Son, for the country to develop rapidly and become a high-income developed nation, it needs a high-quality workforce with good character, capabilities, physical fitness, skills, and foreign language proficiency, especially for cutting-edge science and technology sectors, new technologies, and industries that bring the country a competitive advantage on the international stage. This is a major and challenging requirement for the education sector.
But the history of our nation and the history of education has achieved seemingly impossible feats in the past, and we have succeeded and believe that in the future, education will continue to write even greater miracles. Global education faces challenges from the explosion of knowledge, the challenges of artificial intelligence, robotics, the Internet of Things, big data, supercomputers, virtual schools, and new pedagogical methods and tools. These emerging factors lead many to question and doubt the existence of traditional school education and the role of teachers in the future.
“We need to face the challenges, not avoid them, not be afraid. We stand firm on the foundation of educational science and the integrity of teachers to embrace the advantages of the era, to seize opportunities, and to develop faster. Artificial intelligence cannot and should not replace humans; the role of teachers is irreplaceable. With artificial intelligence and new digital tools, we need to consider them as sharp and effective new tools. The sharper and more powerful the tools and weapons, the more they require users with higher thinking abilities and better skills to control and utilize them. The new education system will fail if it only focuses on equipping people with knowledge, but it would be a mistake to completely abandon knowledge. Big data cannot replace small data that exists actively within and in learners, truly belonging to the learner, transformed by their reception and through their thinking,” the head of the education sector affirmed.
According to the Minister, we need to equip students with fundamental knowledge to use as tools for thinking, teaching them adaptability and self-learning skills for self-development, because ahead lies Industry 4.0, then Industry 5.0, and many more in the future. The greater the challenges, the more changes occur, and the more new things come flooding in, the more education needs to return to consolidating and equipping learners with the most basic and fundamental knowledge. We must firmly stand on the core values of education: love, honesty, kindness, and beauty, in addition to the new abilities and skills of the era. This is about using the unchanging to respond to the ever-changing. This is the philosophy of adaptation and sustainable development of our education system.
Therefore, in the face of new challenges in education, with an increasingly large and new mission for education, educators in the new era also need to demonstrate their capabilities, viewing challenges as opportunities for the entire teaching force to develop, and for each educator to become better. The greater the challenge, the more educators need to return to and firmly uphold the core values of a teacher to create a new intellectual class, a new team of educators. Traditional values such as "learning without weariness, teaching without fatigue," the spirit of tolerance, altruism, sacrifice, profound and boundless love for humanity, the spirit of constantly innovating, overcoming limitations to guide learners, the spirit of daily innovation, self-learning, and self-adaptation to guide students – these are the eternal values that make teachers worthy of being teachers in all ages. Old qualities, new skills, new thinking, and the addition of foreign languages and digital tools are what we educators need to master.
“Educational reform in the next stage is essentially a profound reform of the teaching staff itself. The limitations of teachers are the limitations of education, and the limitations of education are the limitations of a nation's development. Our teachers need to transform these limitations into unlimited ones,” Minister Nguyen Kim Son said. According to the Minister, never before have the intellectual class, teachers, scientific and technological activities, innovation, education, and training been so highly valued, emphasized, and placed at the forefront of national policy by the highest leaders of the Party and State as they are today. Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW of the 11th Central Committee affirmed that the teaching staff is the decisive factor in reform. Conclusion No. 91-KL/TW further affirms the priority and focus on developing the teaching staff. Resolution 45-NQ/TW of the 13th Central Committee on continuing to build and promote the role of the intellectual workforce to meet the requirements of rapid and sustainable national development in the new period also affirms that "Building a strong and comprehensive intellectual workforce is an investment in building and nurturing the 'national spirit'; and sustainable development; it is the responsibility of the Party, the State, the political system and society."
With these major policies, intellectuals, educators, and activities in education and science and technology are placed in a prestigious leading position – a position of unprecedented importance in history. This is a great opportunity for the development of education, a great opportunity for educators and intellectuals to fully demonstrate their talents, all for the development of the nation. "The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of its people," and with the country facing a period of prosperity, intellectuals bear a very great responsibility. Educators and intellectuals must definitely answer the question: how can we repay the trust, confidence, and responsibility entrusted to us by the Party, the State, and the people? The repayment of gratitude from intellectuals has always been, and should be, in the spirit of repaying a debt to the nation with an ever-flowing river.
Minister Nguyen Kim Son pointed out that in recent directives, General Secretary To Lam once again affirmed the role of teachers as the "locomotive of education," the most important force determining education. The General Secretary expressed special concern for teachers when he instructed during a National Assembly group discussion on the Law on Teachers that "the Law on Teachers must be enacted in a way that makes teachers happy, joyful, and receptive..." Teachers must have a workplace, official housing, and be respected and protected... These are important guiding principles of the General Secretary for the education sector and intellectuals, which have greatly encouraged teachers, making them feel deeply cared for, and showing that the Party leader understands the practical realities, the human condition, and possesses a strategic vision for the nation and the times.
Article by: Le Van
Presented by: Nguyen Ha
Source: https://baotintuc.vn/long-form/emagazine/ky-vong-nhung-doi-moi-de-tiep-suc-cho-nha-giao-20241120001037346.htm
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