The challenge shifts from management to governance.

GD&TĐ - In the context of comprehensive educational reform, principals and vice-principals face many challenges and pressures.

This requires school administrators to innovate, improve their capabilities, vision, and responsibility to meet new demands.

The pressure of being the leader.

Ms. Tran Thi Da, Principal of Nhan Thanh Primary School (Yen Thanh, Nghe An), said that education in recent years has undergone many groundbreaking changes. Along with this, the two-tiered local government system has been implemented, with preschool, primary, and secondary schools under the state management of the commune level. Professional matters, however, are directly supervised by the Department of Education and Training. In this context, school administrators will face many new tasks, responsibilities, and roles. On one hand, they will advise the local government on issues related to education.

On the other hand, they directly perform professional duties, report to, and are accountable for quality to the Department of Education and Training. Therefore, the biggest challenge in achieving this is that school administrators must improve their capacity to keep up with new educational trends. This includes creating a democratic, transparent working environment, assigning the right people to the right jobs, clearly defining roles, responsibilities, and benefits for administrators, teachers, and staff. Simultaneously, it is crucial to actively apply technology, promoting its use in managing all school activities, from student affairs and learning to finance and human resources.

Ms. Tran Ho Ly, the Vice Principal of Nguyen Trai Secondary School (Tan Ky commune, Nghe An province ), has been in management for nearly 20 years but has never retired from her role as a core teacher. Although she doesn't teach as much as other teachers, she regularly teaches 9th grade classes and is willing to teach extra classes and extra sessions to support colleagues and mentor students during their crucial final year of secondary school.

Nguyen Trai Secondary School currently has 22 classes with over 900 students. This school serves both as a general education institution for students in the area and as a key school tasked with improving the quality of advanced education for the commune and the cluster of neighboring mountainous communes.

“In implementing the 2018 General Education Program, teachers must be the first to change, from their mindset and awareness to their concrete actions, innovating teaching methods and student assessment. As the Vice Principal in charge of professional development, I believe I need to lead the way and constantly strive in teaching and learning. Teaching is also for learning, and learning is for teaching better. From there, I create motivation and inspire teachers to move forward together,” shared Ms. Tran Ho Ly.

Ms. Tran Ho Ly herself has been recognized as an excellent teacher at the provincial level in Nghe An three times and is the only teacher at Nguyen Trai Secondary School to be honored with the title of Distinguished Teacher.

In the 2025 high school graduation exam, Hoang Mai High School ranked 3rd in Nghe An province, with 4 students achieving high scores and receiving commendation from the Provincial People's Committee. The overall school quality assessment ranked 11th in the province, an increase of 8 places compared to 2024.

Mr. Ho Truong Son, the school principal, shared: “We believe that the quality of education is a key issue for schools. The results of the exam are not just numbers, but also a commitment and a strong motivation to drive each teacher to constantly strive for improvement.”

In the context of significant educational reforms, school principals face considerable pressure from various sources, including students, teachers, parents, and society. Throughout the management process, the school administration emphasizes that innovation should be the driving force. The implementation of emulation movements is closely linked to the urgent need for innovation in teaching methods, fostering creativity within each subject group to develop effective and practical review models.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa - Principal of Nghe An Provincial Ethnic Boarding High School (far left) accompanies students in cultural exchange and writing activities. Photo: NTCC

Enhancing management capabilities

Despite having limited entry requirements, the Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School has consistently ranked among the top schools in the province for educational quality for many years. Not only have its students achieved high results in provincial exams and high school graduation exams, but many have also confidently stepped onto the international intellectual stage and achieved encouraging results.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa, Principal of Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School, shared that to achieve these results, the school's management board had to identify and plan appropriate strategies. Besides teaching according to the general education curriculum, the school also created its own methods to support ethnic boarding students. This included focusing on improving English skills and applying knowledge to solve problems encountered in life. In addition, the school proactively sought social resources, calling on businesses and sponsors to create opportunities for students to participate in academic and skills-based activities both domestically and internationally.

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa, in implementing the 2018 General Education Program, educational institutions have the right and responsibility to proactively develop educational and teaching plans and organize their implementation. Principals and vice-principals play a key role in determining the vision, strategy, goals, and action programs that are appropriate to the staff and the specific characteristics of the students.

Over the past five years, Thanh Chuong 3 High School (Cat Ngan, Nghe An), once a school in a disadvantaged area with dilapidated facilities, has gradually transformed its appearance comprehensively. Through social mobilization for education, Thanh Chuong 3 High School has raised tens of billions of VND to build facilities such as sports fields, new classrooms, practice rooms/laboratories, subject-specific classrooms, along with teaching equipment, computers, air conditioners, etc. This has contributed to improving the overall quality of education.

Teachers and students of Thanh Chuong 3 High School (Cat Ngan, Nghe An). Photo: Ho Lai

According to Principal Le Van Quyen, in the new context of education, school administrators must also change their vision to build a comprehensive development strategy for the school. Entering the 2025-2035 period, Thanh Chuong 3 High School has defined its vision for modern, integrated, and innovative development, with educational quality as the foundation, people at the center, and culture as the core.

The school focuses on promoting digital transformation in teaching and management. It aims to develop a team of highly qualified and competent professionals capable of international integration. It innovates teaching methods, fostering students' qualities, abilities, and creativity. It builds a friendly, democratic, and compassionate school culture. It increases investment in modern facilities, moving towards a model of a "Happy School – Active Students – Creative Teachers."

“What I deeply value as a school principal is to set an example, to practice what I preach, and to use responsibility, dedication, and honesty as standards in all my work. I always remind myself to be approachable, listen to, and understand my colleagues and students, creating an environment where everyone can develop their abilities and creativity,” Mr. Le Van Quyen shared.

Mr. Thai Van Thanh, Director of the Nghe An Department of Education and Training, emphasized that the role of principals and vice-principals in the current period of significant educational reform is not only to manage the school, but also to effectively administer the school, encompassing personnel, finance, facilities, curriculum implementation, and quality assurance.

In implementing the general education program, schools have gradually taken the autonomy to develop their own curricula and implementation plans, adapting them to the available facilities, teaching staff, students, and local socio-economic conditions. However, in reality, the understanding of some school administrators has not yet met the requirements of school governance reform, lacking the initiative to shift from management to school governance.

The Nghe An Department of Education and Training has proactively organized numerous training courses for school administrators to meet the requirements of the 2018 General Education Program. These courses focused on areas such as: defining the vision, mission, objectives, programs, regulations, and activity plans for schools; and then on organization, management, supervision, and evaluation.

School administrators also receive training in human resource management, finance, and school asset management. In addition, there is training in communication and coordination between the school, families, and society in education. Most recently, training has been provided on the application of AI in educational management. This enhances the school management capacity of principals and vice-principals, meeting the requirements of a modern and advanced education system.

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/thach-thuc-tu-quan-ly-sang-quan-tri-post760928.html