Implementing free English remedial teaching for over 3,600 primary school students in Mu Cang Chai district

TPO - The Wings Fund continues the ISMART free supplementary English teaching program for the 2024-2025 school year for about 3,629 students in grades 3 and 5 in Mu Cang Chai district, Yen Bai province.

In the 2019-2020 school year, when the Ministry of Education and Training implemented the new general education program, the 2019 general education program, in which English became a compulsory subject from grade 3, Mu Cang Chai district only had 1 English teacher at the primary level.

In 2022, EQuest Group and iSMART Education sponsored the iLINK project for free from the Wings Fund for Mu Cang Chai district for 5 years with the desire to popularize English in the highlands.

When the project began, countless challenges arose, which at times seemed insurmountable to the project team. Facilities were lacking, internet access was unstable, local teachers had little experience using technology, and the entire district had only one English teacher while there were thousands of primary school students. In particular, the living and learning conditions of the students here were extremely difficult due to dangerous roads and harsh weather.

After only 2 years of implementation, from having almost no access to foreign languages, now, nearly 4,000 primary school students from 16 schools in Mu Cang Chai district can study English for 2 periods/week (1 period of Math English and 1 period of Science English), 114 local teachers can master the operation of connecting and interacting with devices, lectures, and teaching software.

Every year, the project opens quality assessment periods to continuously improve the curriculum and approaches to suit the capacity and receptivity of students in mountainous areas. The test content for the 2022-2023 school year includes Math - Science knowledge and familiarization with Reading skills. In the 2023-2024 school year, the test content begins to be upgraded and developed more comprehensively, including Math - Science and Reading, Writing, and Listening skills.

Despite studying under a new curriculum, students in Mu Cang Chai have all passed their tests. Their skills and knowledge, ability to interact and keep up with the lessons have improved significantly compared to last year, especially for grade 4 students.

In the 2023-2024 school year, the number of students scoring 7 or higher and completing well increased by over 30%, the number of students scoring below average decreased significantly compared to the 2022-2023 school year. In particular, in grade 4, the number of students scoring 9 and 10 increased by nearly 50% after one school year.

Mr. Nguyen Anh Thuy, Head of Mu Cang Chai Department of Education and Training, shared that after two years of working with the project, the results have surprised teachers and managers. The skills of both teachers and students have changed significantly. With a longer-term vision, equipping children with foreign languages from primary school level will create fundamental changes for the future human resources of the locality.

The 2024 - 2025 school year is the third year the project has been implemented in Mu Cang Chai district with 3,629 students in grades 3 and 5.

After two years of efforts, the learning environment at the schools benefiting from the project is being significantly improved, and the digital transformation of education here is being accelerated. The program also creates a premise for concern about the sustainable future of children in mountainous and disadvantaged ethnic minority areas. A completely non-profit project, but brings great and long-term benefits.

The iLINK learning format is designed differently from other online learning formats currently being implemented in schools. It is an application of an online learning model combined with direct learning to teach English. Project teachers will connect directly with learning points via Zoom. Local teachers will guide students based on pre-built scenarios and detailed programs. The local Department of Education and Training arranges the timetable of all primary schools in the district/city to synchronize all students in the whole grade at a fixed time.

Quality management is carried out using many tools. Including direct teacher observation at least once a year in November. Teacher observation at least once per teacher per semester: core teachers carry out observation, support co-teachers at the school in charge, update observation results to iLINK. Training on final semester examinations twice a year, before the final examination time

Nghiem Hue

Source: https://tienphong.vn/trien-khai-day-bo-tro-tieng-anh-mien-phi-cho-tren-3600-hoc-sinh-tieu-hoc-cua-huyen-mu-cang-chai-post1672472.tpo