The joy of spacious, modern schools always goes hand in hand with worries about the distance to school, changing environment and stabilizing the team. However, the common goal is still to create the best conditions for students to study in a safe, complete environment.
Accompanying change
Kpa Klong Primary School (Ia Nan, Gia Lai ) is located in the middle of a sunny and windy border area, with 437 students, of which nearly 90% are ethnic minorities. Every day, many teachers have to travel 60-70 km to get to class because the school does not have a public house. Despite the difficulties, they still stick to the school, stick to the village, and persistently teach their students.
In the last days of the year, the project of the Primary and Secondary Boarding School for 7 border communes in Gia Lai was officially started, bringing joy and new hope to teachers, students and parents. This is not only a new educational project, but also a belief in a safe, complete and closer learning environment for students.
Ms. Tran Thi Nhung - Principal of Kpa Klong Primary School, shared: "Both teachers and students are excited. Most parents work in the fields, have economic difficulties, and every morning after taking their children to school, they rush to the fields. A suitable boarding model will reduce the burden on the family."
Ms. Nhung said that when the inter-level school is completed, the longest distance from the village to the school will only be about 4 km. If students are allowed to stay in the dormitory, it will be easier to maintain the number of students and improve the quality of learning. However, organizing boarding needs to take into account the age and psychology of the students. Because, with grades 4 and 5, the students are older and can adapt quickly, but grades 1, 2, and 3 should still organize semi-boarding because they are still young, used to living with their parents and cannot take care of themselves.
“Teachers are not afraid of hardship, but are afraid that the children will miss their parents and cry. But if these efforts help the children learn better, we are always ready,” said Ms. Nhung.
Not only in Gia Lai, the arrangement and streamlining of schools and classrooms is also a major concern in Ninh Binh. Ms. Nguyen Thi Mui - teacher at Liem Phong Primary School (Liem Ha, Ninh Binh) said that the teaching staff is always proactive in learning and preparing mentally for the policy of arranging the school network.
“We understand that streamlining school systems is an inevitable trend, especially when some communes still maintain isolated locations with low student numbers and scattered resources. If properly arranged, the quality of education will improve thanks to more centralized facilities, convenient professional activities and teachers having the conditions to innovate methods,” Ms. Mui said.
The whole city of Can Tho has 1,184 public service units in the field of education, including 1,141 kindergartens and general schools (329 kindergartens; 483 primary schools; 238 secondary schools; 92 high schools). Implementing Resolution No. 71 of the Politburo on breakthroughs in education and training development, Can Tho City has a policy of basically maintaining the existing high schools, secondary schools, primary schools, inter-level schools, and public kindergartens. Accordingly, review and merge small-scale, substandard schools in accordance with the regulations and instructions of the Ministry of Education and Training.
Mr. Nguyen Vu Luan - teacher of Vinh Binh Secondary School (Vinh Trinh, Can Tho), said: Reviewing and merging small-scale, substandard schools in the area helps to centralize management, streamline the school apparatus, use facilities effectively, and students learn in a more complete environment. At the same time, teachers are assigned according to their abilities, facilitating professional activities, sharing experiences, and improving their skills.
According to information from the Gia Lai Department of Education and Training, in the 2025-2026 school year, the province will maintain the network of public high schools, middle schools, primary schools, inter-level schools and kindergartens to ensure stability for students and parents.
For vocational education and continuing education centers and continuing education centers under the Department, most of them have stabilized in terms of organization, facilities and staff, operating effectively, linking vocational training, opening regular high school education classes, providing IT and foreign language training and cooperating with businesses.
Many centers have met enrollment targets and have service revenue, contributing to reducing the budget burden. At the same time, they are an important link in training and career transition for local workers, in line with the Provincial Human Resources Development Project for the period 2021 - 2030. On this basis, the Department proposed to arrange 25 existing centers into 15 vocational education - continuing education centers and 1 continuing education center under the Department, providing public services according to inter-ward and commune areas.
Advantages go hand in hand with challenges
Despite the consensus, teachers still have concerns about changing their workplace, longer commutes, and the impact on expenses and family life. In addition, the increased number of students after the merger will make class management more difficult.
“Teachers are willing to accompany, but the way of doing it must be cautious, transparent and ensure rights. If the travel support policy and support for difficult areas are fully calculated, we will feel secure in implementing it,” emphasized Ms. Nguyen Thi Mui - teacher at Liem Phong Primary School (Liem Ha, Ninh Binh).
Similarly, Mr. Nguyen Vu Luan - teacher of Vinh Binh Secondary School (Vinh Trinh, Can Tho) also pointed out the challenges: First of all, in terms of geographical distance, many communes still have separate schools far from the center. When merging, preschool and primary school students have to travel further, causing difficulties in commuting.
In addition, changing the working environment or rotating positions can easily cause anxiety among teachers. After the merger, there may be a surplus of staff in some departments (accounting, school health, library, etc.). Therefore, the rearrangement of staff, labor contracts and teacher structure by subject requires flexibility and impartiality.
At the same time, the sudden increase in student numbers can easily create pressure in order management and overload common areas such as playgrounds, toilets, and parking lots if the facilities have not been upgraded. Some old schools have degraded, do not meet subject classroom standards, and require huge funding for repairs and new construction, while progress and budget are still limited.
Meanwhile, parents have their own concerns. Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy, whose child studies at Yen Khanh Secondary School (Y Yen, Ninh Binh), said that although there is no specific plan yet, parents have been closely monitoring because everyone wants their children to study in better conditions, with functional rooms, playgrounds, and adequate equipment. But the biggest worry is still the distance, because if children have to travel a few more kilometers, traffic safety issues are worth considering. Ms. Thuy hopes that the education sector will carefully study each area and arrange appropriate support plans, such as shuttle buses or road upgrades.
“Parents can only feel secure when their children go to school safely and without psychological disturbance. If that can be done, the policy of rearranging schools will receive widespread consensus,” said Ms. Thuy.
Ms. Thuy Quynh, whose child attends primary school in Vinh Thanh commune (Can Tho), is worried that changing schools, teachers, and friends will disrupt their psychology and affect their studies. Traffic safety and pick-up and drop-off times also need to be considered.
However, she still believes in the policy: “In the case of merger, I hope that children will be able to study in a spacious environment with full functional rooms. At the same time, teachers will spend more time getting to know and caring for students, especially those in disadvantaged areas, so that children can confidently study and play with teachers and friends in a new environment.”
Mr. Pham Van Nam - Director of the Department of Education and Training of Gia Lai said that the area is large, with many communes in remote, border areas and difficult transportation, so merging schools could cause students, especially preschool and primary school students, to have to go to school far away.
In addition, the prolonged rainy season has isolated many areas, making travel unsafe. At the same time, the scattered and fluctuating population and language barriers have also made it difficult to forecast student numbers. In addition, many remote schools and temporary classrooms do not meet standards, and the merger requires investment in new facilities at the central school while funding is limited.
Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/sap-xep-truong-lop-hoc-sinh-vung-kho-duoc-huong-loi-post759532.html
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