Why can't we decide "Should the State directly compile textbooks or socialize them"?

(Dan Tri) - It is not yet feasible to immediately determine whether a unified set of books will be compiled directly by the State or implemented through socialization, because the specific plan is being considered by the competent authority.

On the morning of December 4, the National Assembly Standing Committee gave opinions on explaining, accepting, and revising many contents related to education , including the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Education.

Discussing in the hall and previous groups regarding this draft law, many delegates were interested in the regulations on general education textbooks, with the direction of agreeing that the State should issue a unified set of textbooks nationwide and implement them from the 2026-2027 school year, but requested to clearly define the scope of "mandatory books or standard books for selection".

The free textbook policy was also requested to be clarified by National Assembly delegates.

Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son presented a summary report of the Government receiving and explaining opinions related to the draft revised Law on Higher Education (Photo: Hong Phong).

Explaining these contents, the Government said that the draft Law stipulates that "The Ministry of Education and Training decides on a set of general education textbooks to be used uniformly nationwide".

This regulation ensures that the Ministry of Education can choose to compile a new set of books or select and edit from existing sets of books, depending on the practical situation and the decision of the competent authority.

According to the Government's explanation, determining in the law whether the unified set of books is compiled directly by the State or implemented by socialization is not feasible, because the specific plan is being considered by the competent authority.

Therefore, the open regulation as in the draft will ensure the stability of the law, not creating constraints while this policy is being researched and its impact assessed.

The Government has also assigned the Ministry of Education and Training to develop a report on the plan to deploy a unified set of textbooks nationwide from the 2026-2027 school year, ensuring publicity, transparency, objectivity, thrift, and anti-waste.

The Government's viewpoint is that the plans to implement a unified set of textbooks must promote the advantages of existing sets of textbooks, minimize the impact on teachers and students, and not disrupt teaching and learning activities.

After the competent authority has a decision on the policy, the Government will direct the review and adjustment of current regulations related to textbooks in the direction of clarifying the role of the State and the participation of society in compiling, publishing, distributing and managing textbook prices.

Chairman of the Committee for Culture and Social Affairs Nguyen Dac Vinh (Photo: Hong Phong).

In response to concerns that a set of textbooks could lead to “uniform thinking”, hindering creativity and innovation, the Government emphasized that it would direct the education sector to promote training and development of teachers, innovate teaching methods and testing and assessment to promote the initiative, flexibility and creativity of teachers and students in the teaching and learning process.

From the perspective of the examining agency, Chairman of the Committee for Culture and Society Nguyen Dac Vinh also said that the draft law has revised the regulations on textbooks in the direction that "the Minister of Education and Training decides on a set of general education textbooks to be used uniformly nationwide", and the Government stipulates free textbooks for students.

The draft law also removed the content "assigning the Government to specify details on the socialization of textbooks".

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man speaks at the meeting (Photo: Hong Phong).

Speaking at the meeting, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man reiterated the statement of National Assembly delegates about the heavy pressure when taking the 10th grade entrance exam. From there, the National Assembly Chairman suggested that in the future, the exam issue must be calculated to strictly manage input or output.

Also from the reality that there have been many cases of disciplinary action, including criminal prosecution related to violations of textbooks, the National Assembly Chairman noted that the law amendment must overcome this situation.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/thoi-su/vi-sao-chua-the-chot-nha-nuoc-truc-tiep-bien-soan-sgk-hay-xa-hoi-hoa-20251204120231930.htm