Free tuition - need to remove invisible barriers

For the tuition-free policy to be truly successful, it is necessary to ensure the quality of education, improve teachers' income and remove invisible barriers so that all children have equitable access to education.

Concerns of teachers in remote areas

While the quality of education in cities and plains is increasingly improved, in remote areas, teachers are still struggling with specific difficulties. Lack of facilities, limited learning conditions, and especially the difference in access to education are causing the gap in education quality between mountainous areas and urban areas to widen.

Teacher Tran Hieu (Ta Mung Primary School, Than Uyen District, Lai Chau ) often has to go to students' homes to call them to go to school. Mong and Thai ethnic students in this mountainous, especially difficult commune of Than Uyen District still have the habit of "staying home from school". Ms. Hieu said that students here do not like to go to school, so they stay home. If the teacher does not come to persuade them, they will stay home from school.

"Teachers in difficult areas like us have good treatment policies and highland allowances. The qualifications of teachers in mountainous areas are now up to standard and above standard. We are also regularly trained to keep up with the teaching requirements of the new program. All classrooms at my school are equipped with projectors. In particular, the government pays great attention and creates favorable conditions for students in remote and mountainous areas. However, due to limited awareness among people, they do not see the importance of sending their children to school.

Teaching in the highlands is not only about imparting knowledge, but also about how to keep students in class. Compared to other localities, with education in mountainous, remote and isolated areas, sometimes just having enough students in class is considered a success. In reality, many students still have to drop out of school to help their families. Meanwhile, parents in the city are very interested in investing in their children's education. Therefore, if there is no change in people's awareness so that they value their children's education, no matter how hard teachers try, the educational gap will be difficult to narrow," Ms. Hieu worried.

Lunch of primary school students in Than Uyen district, Lai Chau province

Free tuition must go hand in hand with ensuring the quality of teaching and learning. Increasing the number of students attending school requires adequate resources: qualified teachers, facilities and quality learning materials.

Ms. Silvia Danailov, UNICEF Representative in Vietnam

A teacher (who asked to remain anonymous) in Than Uyen district, Lai Chau province, said that education in the mountainous areas is difficult to keep up with that in the plains because of the lack of qualified and professional teachers. "In many primary schools in the mountainous areas, there is a serious shortage of English teachers. Some schools overcome this by sending teachers without a foreign language diploma, only an English certificate, to teach English. This major problem causes the majority of students in the mountainous areas to remain 'blind' to English.

Information technology is also one of the difficulties in education in mountainous areas. Due to the lack of internet, students do not have smartphones or computers at home, and schools are not equipped with enough computers, students' technology is very poor. Poor foreign languages ​​and technology make the level of students in mountainous areas even larger than that of students in the plains and urban areas. In addition, the very different learning conditions also make it difficult for education in the mountainous areas to 'catch up' with the advantaged areas.

This teacher also expressed concern when the tuition exemption policy is implemented in practice: "Exemption of tuition fees brings clear benefits to each family but can also cause some financial difficulties for the education budget, especially if the government does not have a clear plan to compensate for the loss of revenue from tuition fees. Will this affect the regime and welfare of teachers? If the budget is cut or not properly adjusted to compensate for tuition exemption, educational institutions may face a lack of facilities, teaching equipment, or insufficient resources to train and improve teachers' qualifications. This can also affect the learning environment and teaching quality."

Investing in improving teacher quality

Teachers in mountainous areas now meet or exceed standards. However, compared to urban areas, they do not participate in many training courses to improve their qualifications and update new knowledge. This is also one of the reasons why the quality of education in remote areas is still limited. "To improve the quality of education in remote areas, in addition to the tuition exemption policy, I hope the government will invest more in the teaching staff, such as adding foreign language teachers, teachers with qualifications and experience, modern teaching methods and information technology..." - a teacher in Than Uyen, Lai Chau shared.

Students of Luong Minh Primary Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities

To improve the quality of education in disadvantaged areas, according to Mr. Nguyen Van Thanh (Principal of Luong Minh Primary Boarding School, Tuong Duong, Nghe An), it is necessary to improve the quality of teaching and learning. To do that, it is necessary to improve school facilities such as investing in building solid schools, with adequate classrooms, libraries, teaching equipment, expanding the internet system and information technology so that teachers and students can access more diverse learning materials. In addition, it is necessary to strengthen the training of teachers in mountainous areas such as organizing professional training courses and modern teaching skills for teachers in remote areas...

Tuition exemptions can lead to increased class sizes, which can put pressure on teachers without adequate resources and staffing. Therefore, if tuition exemptions are accompanied by investments in teacher training, facilities, and curriculum, the quality of education will improve. "Equipping teachers with adequate materials, equipment, and professional support will help them improve their teaching methods, thereby improving the quality of student learning."

Mr. Dang Huu Doan (Vice Principal of Than Uyen Town Primary School, Lai Chau Province) affirmed that free tuition is a meaningful policy, not only for parents and students. Teachers in mountainous areas are excited because with the free tuition policy, they will have less trouble in motivating students to go to school. Now, thanks to digital transformation and the application of technology in education, the quality of teachers in mountainous areas has also been greatly improved.

However, teachers here need more support in terms of teaching materials and advanced training programs. To ensure that the tuition-free policy really brings long-term benefits, there needs to be a coordinated and reasonable support measure, including investment in facilities, teacher training, and ensuring adequate financial resources to improve teachers' working conditions and teaching quality.

The Politburo decided to exempt tuition fees for public high school students nationwide.