Mergers to better serve learners.

Mr. Thai Van Tai, Director of the Department of General Education (Ministry of Education and Training), emphasized: "The Ministry's message is very clear: the school system is being reorganized to better serve learners, not just to reduce the number of schools. The reorganization must be linked to the goal of improving the quality of education, ensuring children's right to education, and preventing any region or group from being disadvantaged."

"This is a concrete step to implement the spirit of Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW of the Politburo on breakthroughs in education and training development in the new period, in which quality and equity in education are placed at the center of all policies and actions," Mr. Tai stated.

According to Mr. Tai, the Ministry of Education and Training's guidelines clearly state five principles, including two key points: not reducing access to education and maintaining the quality of teaching. Any arrangement must prioritize educational quality as the central criterion, not solely based on administrative factors. Adequate facilities, staffing, and school safety must be ensured before merging students.

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, all restructuring plans must prioritize educational quality as the central criterion, not just administrative factors.

PHOTO: TUYET MAI

The Ministry also requested that community feedback be sought, ensuring democracy, openness, and transparency, avoiding disruption and anxiety for parents, teachers, and students. All steps must be geared towards the dual goal of streamlining the organization and genuinely improving the quality of education.

Regarding specific support solutions, Mr. Tai said that the Ministry of Education and Training has directed localities to focus on three main groups of solutions: Prioritizing budget allocation for renovating and upgrading facilities and equipment at main school sites before receiving students from satellite schools; utilizing surplus land and buildings after administrative unit reorganization to serve educational development; and ensuring benefits and policies for administrators, teachers, staff, and students, especially in disadvantaged areas.

At the same time, Mr. Tai stated that the Ministry of Education and Training will coordinate with the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Justice in resolving difficulties and obstacles, ensuring that the restructuring process is carried out in an orderly, synchronized, humane, and lawful manner.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Viet Nga, a member of the National Assembly's Committee on Culture and Society, also expressed her view: The most important thing is that all decisions in rearranging the school network must be geared towards the learners. The success of this process is not only measured by the number of schools merged or the reduction of administrative units, but more importantly, by ensuring that all students have access to a better and more convenient learning environment. "That is the highest criterion, the measure of correctness, humanity, and appropriateness in the process of rearranging the network of general education schools, a task that is both urgent and long-term, requiring political determination, social consensus, and a high sense of responsibility from the entire education sector," Ms. Nga shared.

To achieve this, Ms. Nga believes that the restructuring needs to be carried out based on thorough investigation and survey of the current situation regarding the scale of student enrollment, facilities, staff, and geographical conditions. Local authorities need to develop a comprehensive plan with a clear roadmap, and coordinate closely with relevant sectors such as finance, agriculture and environment, and construction... to ensure consistency and feasibility.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/sap-nhap-de-phuc-vu-nguoi-hoc-tot-hon-185251009222258637.htm