Textbooks of the 2018 General Education Program have not been widely tested.

TPO - After 5 years of implementing the 2018 General Education Program, the Ministry of Education and Training has concluded that the compilation of textbooks according to the program applied for the first time has encountered many difficulties from the design stage to the implementation stage. The time for testing the new program and textbooks is very limited, there are no conditions to organize testing in both breadth and depth.

The first time socializing textbooks

According to the Ministry of Education and Training , from the 2020-2021 school year, the unit will implement the socialization of textbooks according to the roadmap.

There have been 7 publishers and 12 organizations participating in compiling and publishing textbooks for subjects/ educational activities for all grades. Compiling textbooks has attracted a large number of prestigious teachers and scientists with practical experience and textbook compilation capacity from pedagogical universities, specialized universities, research institutes and general education institutions to participate.

The number of authors in the 2018 General Education Program is more than 3 times higher than that of the 2006 General Education Program; nearly 3/4 of the authors have academic titles and degrees from doctorate or higher. For the first time, the team of general education teachers directly participated in the compilation, with a total of more than 3,800 authors, evenly distributed at all levels.

Students of Viet Long Primary School ( Hanoi ) during a class. (Photo: Ha Linh)

The Ministry of Education and Training assessed that by the 2024-2025 school year, the General Education Program has been implemented in all grades nationwide. The results of the assessment of the implementation of the General Education Program show that students have absorbed the program relatively well and have developed their own abilities. Students are bold and confident in studying and communicating in life.

Students are encouraged to self-study, research, explore, acquire knowledge, and apply new knowledge; there is plenty of time in class for students to practice, perform, present, and discuss. Synthesizing results from localities on the final assessment results of the school years from 2020-2021 to present shows that the quality of students is guaranteed according to the output standards and requirements of the program.

Foreign language textbooks not approved yet

However, there are also many shortcomings and limitations. The report of the Ministry of Education and Training shows that, up to this point, textbooks for Foreign Language 2 at the secondary and high school levels have not been approved.

The organization of textbook selection also has many shortcomings, especially in some localities where the preparation of the selection dossier is lacking compared to the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training. Some localities submit dossiers requesting approval of local educational materials too late, near the end of the school year.

Implementing the new program, the Ministry of Education and Training has repeatedly affirmed that the teaching staff is the "key", the force that determines the quality of teaching, but in reality there is still a shortage of teachers and a lack of uniformity in the structure for junior high school and high school levels.

The development and implementation of school education plans in some places are not suitable and effective according to the requirements of the program. Schools assign teachers to take charge of the program content and develop education plans for Natural Sciences, Experiential Activities, Career Guidance, and Local Education Contents, but are still confused.

In some localities, there are still many temporary classrooms, many degraded school buildings that have not been upgraded or renovated; classrooms in many localities, especially in disadvantaged areas, lack space; sanitation facilities, clean water, and kitchens in many localities are still very lacking...

The Ministry of Education and Training determined that the reason was that, for the first time, the general education program was built in a comprehensive, comprehensive, and synchronous manner for all subjects and educational activities at all levels and classes according to the approach of developing students' qualities and abilities. The general education program was compiled according to the orientation of developing students' qualities and abilities, which was implemented synchronously at all levels for the first time, which is a big change for the whole industry.

Compiling textbooks according to the first applied program encountered many difficulties from the design stage to the implementation stage. The time for testing the new program and textbooks was very limited, there were no conditions to organize testing in both breadth and depth.

Besides, the policy of socializing textbook compilation was implemented for the first time without past experience, while referring to and learning from international experience could not be applied much to the context of our country; the socialized force participating in compiling textbooks according to the new program nationwide has not been as expected.

Implement a set of textbooks in the next school year

According to Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son, the education sector has completed a complete cycle from grade 1 to grade 12, achieving both breadth and depth, meeting the goals of the new program - a comprehensive innovation at the general education level.

The new program has many different, “non-traditional” elements, requiring strong adaptation, shifting from imparting knowledge to developing learners’ qualities and abilities – a change of profound philosophical significance. Textbooks are also transformed from “knowledge packages” to open learning materials, helping teachers guide students to develop their abilities.

Mr. Son requested that in the coming time, localities must both maintain and improve the work that has been done and prepare for the new phase. Accordingly, it is necessary to review, improve and develop the program after a period of operation, and implement it in a scientific and methodical manner.

Localities need to continue to advise the government and pay more attention to the conditions for implementing the program, including facilities, equipment, finance and staff. Continue to improve the capacity, qualifications and adaptability of teachers to new requirements, especially integrated teaching and developing students' qualities and abilities.

The Minister also proposed promoting digital transformation and applying AI in teaching and learning, but it must be cautious, appropriate and controlled.

The Ministry of Education and Training will prepare a unified set of textbooks for the whole country, to be implemented from the 2026-2027 school year. The compilation, appraisal and issuance of the unified set of textbooks will be carried out according to a strict and scientific process, inheriting the results achieved in the previous stage, while overcoming the existing shortcomings.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/sach-giao-khoa-chuong-trinh-gdpt-2018-chua-duoc-thu-nghiem-tren-dien-rong-post1788216.tpo