Which medicine provides a 'cure'?

The new regulations on tutoring and supplementary classes, as stipulated in Circular No. 29/2024/TT-BGDĐT of the Ministry of Education and Training, are receiving mixed reactions. Experts believe that the most important thing to address this issue is to improve the quality of genuine teaching and learning within schools.

Avoid disrupting learning.

From the second semester of the 2024-2025 school year, Dai Mo High School (Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi ) will cease organizing supplementary teaching for its students, complying with the regulations on extracurricular teaching and learning as stipulated in Circular No. 29/2024/TT-BGDĐT of the Ministry of Education and Training.

The decision to discontinue supplementary tutoring for students in schools has caused concern among many parents, as the need for extra tutoring among students is real. Meanwhile, the tuition fees for these supplementary classes offered by school teachers are very low.

A regular class session between a teacher and students at Ba Dinh Secondary School (Ba Dinh District, Hanoi). Photo: Nguyen Hoai.

Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Anh, a parent whose daughter is in 10th grade at Dai Mo High School, said: “The school organizes supplementary classes for students who need to improve and enhance their knowledge. My daughter took these supplementary classes in Literature, Math, English, Physics, and Chemistry, and the tuition was only about 200,000 VND per month. Now that the school no longer organizes these supplementary classes, I don't know where to send my daughter for extra tutoring.”

Circular 29/2024/TT-BGDĐT of the Ministry of Education and Training, regulating supplementary teaching and learning, will take effect from February 14, 2025. According to this circular, there are three cases where supplementary teaching is prohibited: primary school students; teachers currently teaching at schools are not allowed to provide supplementary teaching outside of school for a fee to students they are assigned to teach according to the school's educational plan; and teachers in public schools are not allowed to participate in managing or operating supplementary teaching outside of school, but may participate in teaching supplementary classes outside of school.

The new circular stipulates that organizations and individuals providing extracurricular tutoring outside of school for a fee must register their business in accordance with the law.

According to Truong Thi Lien, the principal of Van Yen Secondary School (Ha Dong district, Hanoi), if extra classes were offered within the school without fees as stipulated in Circular 29, the school's budget would not be sufficient to cover the costs. Currently, the tuition for extra classes within the school ranges from 6,000 to 13,000 VND per lesson, depending on the number of students in the class. Tuition for extra classes at centers outside the school would be many times higher. Therefore, not all parents can afford to send their children to these extra classes.

"We are awaiting instructions from higher authorities and are discussing how to proceed to avoid disruption," said the principal of Van Yen Secondary School.

What is the best way to "cure the root cause"?

The issue of tutoring and supplementary education has long been a hot topic, attracting significant public attention. Although the Ministry of Education and Training has implemented numerous solutions to prevent the distortions of tutoring and supplementary education, even now, with Circular 29 just days away from officially taking effect, this issue continues to generate much debate.

Conversely, many parents breathed a sigh of relief when their children didn't have to attend extra classes with their own teachers. According to Ms. Hoang Dieu Thuy, a parent with a fourth-grade child in Hanoi, the reason is the quality of teaching. "If my child doesn't attend extra classes with their teachers, I'm afraid the teachers won't be happy, but sending them to extra classes takes up too much of my child's time," Ms. Thuy said.

Parents' inconsistent views on tutoring and extra classes are understandable. In reality, many negative aspects of tutoring have been pointed out, such as: teachers giving perfunctory lessons at school to pressure students into attending extra classes; tutoring increasing financial pressure on parents; and students not attending extra classes being discriminated against by teachers. Meanwhile, the need for extra classes among students is real, especially for those in their final year of school.

The new regulations on tutoring and supplementary classes in Circular 29 are considered appropriate to the current situation and move away from the "if we can't manage it, we'll ban it" mentality in the development of legal regulations. The new regulations also aim to limit the negative aspects of tutoring and supplementary classes. However, many teachers believe that once the circular takes effect, whether the organization and management of tutoring and supplementary classes will comply with the regulations remains a question.

To address this problem, many believe that fundamental and comprehensive solutions are needed to "cure the root cause".

In an interview with a reporter, Associate Professor Bui Thi An, a member of the 13th National Assembly , stated that the most important thing now is to improve the quality of teaching and learning in schools, so that students have sufficient knowledge to participate in subsequent classes and pass exams without needing extra tutoring.

Regarding the new regulations, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Pham Ngoc Thuong stated that the Ministry's leadership believes that in public schools, teachers who receive state salaries and use state-owned facilities should not be allowed to provide extra tutoring for a fee charged to parents or students.

The Deputy Minister of Education and Training pointed out the reality that when the circular was issued, some localities relaxed their regulations and stopped providing support to students... Mr. Thuong expressed his hope that, during the implementation of Circular 29, leaders of provincial Departments of Education and Training and school principals would avoid extremism.

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/day-them-hoc-them-thuoc-nao-tri-tan-goc-10299629.html