What did the principal say about the stir about teachers assigning parents to come to class to clean?

Ngo Thi Nham Primary School - Photo: School's Facebook page

Recently, a parent took to social media to express their frustration at having to go to their child's school to do cleaning duties after 5 PM.

If they don't pay the fees, do parents have to do the cleaning duty at school in place of their children?

This parent said their child is in first grade at Ngo Thi Nham Primary School in Thanh Tri ( Hanoi ). Since the beginning of the school year, parents in the class have had to take turns coming to school to do daily chores at 5 PM.

According to this parent, at the beginning of the school year, parents were informed that because first-grade students had difficulty cleaning the classroom, each class needed to pay 500,000 VND to hire someone to clean the classroom. If they didn't hire someone, parents would have to come to school at 5 PM every day to do the cleaning duty for their children.

According to this parent, assigning parents to be on duty in the classroom is unreasonable.

In addition, parents also reported that the school's parent committee was calling for donations of school facilities. Specifically, in the first semester, the first-grade students donated 10 air conditioners to the school, estimated at over 10 million VND per unit. In the second semester, parents from the entire school donated an artificial turf field, estimated at over 100,000 VND per student.

"The teacher has been asked to write a report."

Speaking to Tuoi Tre Online on the morning of September 27, Ms. Hoang Thi Thu Ha, principal of Ngo Thi Nham Primary School, affirmed that the school has not collected any fees whatsoever to date.

According to Ms. Ha, right from the beginning of the school year, the school has fully and widely disseminated the tasks for the school year, the regulations for implementation in general, and environmental hygiene work in particular.

The school assigns janitors to clean common areas such as restrooms and the schoolyard. Students maintain a daily classroom cleaning routine to foster a sense of responsibility for maintaining cleanliness and to develop soft skills in sharing responsibilities with family and society.

According to Ms. Ha, the school has no policy of implementing the content as reflected in the report.

Ms. Ha stated that after reviewing the feedback, the school found that Ms. NTU - the homeroom teacher of class 1A5 - exchanged information via text messages on the class's Zalo group. However, due to the teacher's communication and implementation not conforming to the school's policy, lacking thoroughness and clarity, the parents were dissatisfied, upset, and submitted complaints.

"The school has requested teachers to write reports and has also held a meeting of the teaching staff to instruct all staff and teachers that when exchanging or providing information to parents, they must ensure compliance with the school's policies."

Information must be discussed openly and transparently so that parents understand and cooperate with the school in all activities related to raising and educating their children. The school has also contacted and explained the situation to parents to foster understanding and cooperation.

"Following this incident, the school will strengthen the guidance and instruction of staff and teachers on communication skills with parents to create shared understanding, consensus, and collaboration with the school in all activities," Ms. Ha said.

Regarding the appeal for parental support to purchase 10 new air conditioners and contribute funds for the construction of an artificial turf field, which drew reactions from some parents, Ms. Ha explained that the school was only seeking opinions on these matters. Since parents did not agree, the school has stopped implementing them.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/xon-xao-giao-vien-phan-cong-phu-huynh-den-lop-truc-nhat-hieu-truong-noi-gi-2024092710453895.htm