The paradox of free tuition, the total cost of education for each family increases

Socialization is necessary but must be appropriate to the conditions of each region.

This is the issue raised by National Assembly delegates at the discussion session on the Investment Policy of the National Target Program on Modernizing and Improving the Quality of Education and Training for the 2026-2035 period that recently took place.

Delegate Chu Thi Hong Thai ( Lang Son Delegation) said that the draft and the report on acceptance and explanation stated that the socialization rate only accounts for 10% of the total investment in projects on preschool, general education and vocational education, mainly to supplement equipment, learning spaces, playgrounds, experiential activities, etc. But the explanation has not fully assessed the risks in difficult areas.

Delegate Chu Thi Hong Thai pointed out the paradox: the State exempts tuition fees, but the total cost of education increases through socialized funds, sponsorship money,... Photo: Quochoi.vn

Ms. Thai pointed out the reality that in many mountainous communes, remote areas, there are almost no businesses with enough financial potential, people have low incomes so the ability to mobilize socialization is very limited.

In that context, if we still set a socialization rate of 10% without achieving it from businesses, there is a real risk that educational institutions and local authorities will shift to mobilizing and calling for voluntary contributions from parents to complete the targets on facilities and equipment.

"This approach leads to a paradox that in name, the State implements the policy of exempting tuition fees or not increasing tuition fees, but in reality, the total educational costs that households have to bear can increase through non-tuition revenues such as socialized fees, sponsorship fees, equipment fees, experiences, etc.

"If not well identified and controlled, socialization mechanisms such as modern design may risk reducing the effectiveness of tuition exemption and reduction policies, creating more financial pressure on poor families, especially in ethnic minority areas, and going against the goal of equitable access to education set by the program," the delegate frankly said.

Emphasizing the view that socialization is necessary but must be appropriate to the conditions of each region, the delegate suggested not applying the exact rate of 10% and limiting mobilization from parents and only socializing supplementary items, essential items must be guaranteed by the budget to not increase education costs for people, especially when we are implementing the policy of free tuition for high school students.

Need strong enough policies to attract English teachers

Delegate Tran Khanh Thu. Photo: Quochoi.vn

Delegate Tran Khanh Thu ( Hung Yen Delegation) stated that the program has set a goal of making English the second language in the national education system, in which by 2030, 30% of preschool and general education facilities strive to have equipment to implement teaching and learning in English.

By 2035, the program strives for 100% of preschool and general education facilities to meet standards in terms of facilities and teaching equipment to implement teaching and learning in English, gradually making English the second language in schools.

Ms. Thu said that this is a great orientation, demonstrating the determination to deeply integrate internationally, but to successfully implement it, it is necessary to frankly and thoroughly assess the conditions and challenges regarding facilities as well as human resources and the environment.

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, we are still short of about 4,000 English teachers at all levels of secondary education. The capacity of the staff is also a problem. On the other hand, the average age of English teachers is currently quite high (44.2 years old).

Some older teachers are less interested or have difficulty finding modern teaching methods suitable for each group of students, so the quality and effectiveness of teaching the subject have not been as expected.

From there, the female delegate suggested that there should be a specific roadmap to implement these contents, especially in mountainous provinces and difficult areas.

In particular, it is necessary to increase investment in infrastructure for provinces, especially mountainous provinces, such as supporting the construction of standard foreign language rooms for 100% of mountainous district schools before 2030; prioritizing mountainous and border areas, and areas with especially difficult socio-economic conditions.

In addition, there needs to be a strong enough policy to attract high-quality English teachers, such as increasing the attraction allowance to 70-100% of the basic salary for teachers in difficult areas; supporting housing, and committing to long-term contracts.

In addition, there should be policies to promote the application of technology, connect online classrooms, use artificial intelligence (AI) to support to compensate for the lack of teachers; build English centers in difficult areas according to the inter-commune model.

Source: https://laodong.vn/giao-duc/nghich-ly-mien-hoc-phi-tong-chi-phi-giao-duc-cua-moi-gia-dinh-lai-tang-1619588.ldo