Voters disagree with the textbooks' receptive attitude towards criticism.

Expressing concern about the reform of the general education curriculum and textbooks, National Assembly representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy (Da Nang) acknowledged the great efforts of the Ministry of Education and Training in developing the 2018 general education curriculum and directing the compilation, publication, and distribution of new textbooks according to the schedule set forth in the National Assembly's resolutions.

The chairpersons and secretaries at the morning session on June 1st.

The Ministry of Education and Training and the education sector in general face difficulties in terms of personnel and finances that are difficult to resolve alone. In undertaking a task that the whole country has high expectations for – educational reform – if the two most important factors—people and money—are not proactively managed, it will be difficult to do well. Representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy also argued that if the Ministry of Education and Training conducts thorough inspections and audits, identifies difficulties, obstacles, and violations, and promptly discusses them with local leaders and reports to the Prime Minister for solutions, then these difficulties, obstacles, and violations are not insurmountable.

According to Representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy, regarding errors in some textbooks and the potential shortage of textbooks in the upcoming school year, the attitude of the Ministry of Education and Training and publishers in accepting criticism is what worries voters and disapproves of public opinion. Most criticisms and suggestions have not been responded to by publishers and the Ministry of Education and Training. In some cases, responses were inaccurate.

Representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy cited an example: in a written response to a representative's question, the Minister of Education and Training affirmed that the Vietnam Education Publishing House had recalled 110,000 copies for correction, and simultaneously canceled and reprinted 38,000 copies of the Grade 6 Natural Science textbook from the "Connecting Knowledge with Life" series.

National Assembly representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy spoke on many issues related to textbooks.

However, according to feedback from teachers in many schools, the textbooks have not yet been replaced with new ones. “To know which information is correct and which is incorrect, one only needs to check the textbook evaluation records. If the textbooks have been revised, when will the revisions take place?” asked representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy.

In a recent letter responding to a question, the Minister of Education and Training reaffirmed the opinion of the representative of the Vietnam Education Publishing House during a meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister on the afternoon of May 10, 2023. According to this, as of April 30, 2023, the percentage of textbooks printed by the Vietnam Education Publishing House for grades 4, 8, and 11 under the 2018 general education program reached 79%. However, in reality, the publishing house only issued a tender invitation on May 5, 2023, to print textbooks for grades 4, 8, and 11 for distribution to warehouses in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho, and Da Nang. The tender opening time was 9:00 AM on May 21, 2023. Therefore, the 79% of textbooks reported by the publishing house to the Deputy Prime Minister had already been printed before the bidding process, analyzed Representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy.

Lack of transparency in textbook selection

Representative Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy argued that the lack of transparency, objectivity, and respect for the opinions of teachers, schools, and parents in the textbook selection process, as reflected in the press, stems from Circular No. 25 dated August 26, 2020, issued by the Ministry of Education and Training, which provides guidance on textbook selection.

Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son at the meeting on the morning of June 1st.

Although the circular outlines the textbook selection process from the grassroots level upwards, it empowers a 15-person council to vote on the selection of textbooks for each subject without specifying what percentage of schools in educational institutions would determine the council's responsibility to choose that textbook.

"I have received feedback from many teachers and educational administrators regarding the selection of textbooks, stating that the opinions of teachers and schools are not respected. In fact, many subject departments and schools have had to redo the textbook selection minutes to comply with the opinions of their superiors. I have the specific addresses of these teachers and administrators," said delegate Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy.

According to delegate Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy, the most worrying aspect is the lack of transparency and objectivity in the textbook selection process. This not only fails to encourage competition among organizations and individuals involved in compiling, publishing, and distributing textbooks to continuously improve textbook quality, benefiting both teachers and students, but also has the potential to encourage unhealthy competition, gradually distorting the principle of socialization, and even eliminating socialization in this field, returning to the old monopolistic situation.

A view of Dien Hong Hall on the morning of June 1st.

Based on that, delegate Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy proposed that the Government direct the organization of inspections and audits to detect and promptly handle violations; and that the Ministry of Education and Training urgently review and amend the unreasonable regulations of Circular 25.

The delegates also proposed that the National Assembly and the Government consider amending the Education Law to continue implementing the policy of diversifying learning materials as stated in Resolution 29 of the Central Committee and socializing the compilation of textbooks as stipulated in Resolution 88 of the National Assembly.

MAI DUONG LAM