On the morning of November 9, addressing the Hanoi delegation of National Assembly deputies, General Secretary To Lam dedicated time to discuss pressing issues surrounding the draft Law on Educators.
General Secretary To Lam emphasized the strategic importance of education and training in human resource development, highlighting the indispensable role of teachers. He stressed the need to identify breakthrough and priority areas within education and training.
According to the General Secretary, education plays a vital role, with teachers as its cornerstone. The draft Law on Educators must effectively address the balance between teachers and students.
"The State has a significant policy of universal education, progressing from primary to secondary school. All children of school age should have the right to education. Moving forward, the State should waive tuition fees and provide full support for school-age children. Progress means achieving this!" the General Secretary stated.
He highlighted that achieving these goals requires resolving the issues of teacher shortages and inadequate school infrastructure. "If there are teachers, there must be students, and if there are students and teachers, there must be schools. Planning must ensure this," he emphasized.
The General Secretary pointed out that the current favorable conditions in Vietnam, such as population data, allow for precise planning of resources for school-age children, enabling proactive teacher recruitment and school preparation.
The General Secretary also discussed the need for Vietnam's education system to integrate into the global community. He raised pertinent questions about the English proficiency of teachers, especially in the context of universal English education.
"How can students learn English if their teachers lack proficiency? Math teachers, literature teachers—all must integrate into this new reality," he noted. Additionally, he highlighted the need for policies ensuring that foreign educators comply with the Law on Educators.
The General Secretary addressed policies for lifelong learning, questioning rigid retirement age rules for teachers. He emphasized the importance of flexibility, allowing teachers to continue contributing if they wish.
Regarding educators in remote or mountainous areas, the General Secretary underscored the unique challenges they face, such as persuading children to attend school and providing care and support. He called for tailored policies to acknowledge their sacrifices and contributions.
Concluding his remarks, the General Secretary stressed the importance of crafting the Law on Educators in a way that inspires teachers to embrace it with enthusiasm, ensuring their profession is honored and supported.
Empowering teacher recruitment to address regional disparities
NA deputy Deputy Thai Van Thanh, representing Nghe An Province, emphasized the need for autonomy in teacher recruitment during discussions on the draft Law on Educators. He proposed granting the education sector greater authority over hiring and managing teachers to facilitate resource allocation and improve local planning.
According to Deputy Thanh, allowing education authorities to take charge of recruitment and staffing would enable proactive workforce development, including hiring, evaluation, and training. This approach would also address regional disparities in teacher availability by facilitating transfers, assignments, and secondments.
Currently, recruitment bottlenecks often result in some districts having surplus teachers while others face severe shortages. “The education sector’s lack of authority over staffing quotas exacerbates this issue,” Thanh explained.
Deputy Thanh revealed that approximately 120,000 teaching positions remain unfilled nationwide, with 72,000 awaiting recruitment. He attributed these delays to excessive bureaucracy, with multiple layers of approval causing significant slowdowns.
“The recruitment process is convoluted, often cycling between the internal affairs department and the education office multiple times. This inefficiency means that even at the start of the academic year, many schools are still without teachers,” Thanh noted.
Deputy Thanh emphasized that empowering the education sector to manage staffing would ensure smooth operations, including planning for workforce needs, setting professional standards, and ensuring compliance with the qualifications required for educators.
Without such autonomy, Thanh argued, the sector cannot effectively plan for the future, particularly when training institutions may produce graduates with no available teaching positions due to bureaucratic mismanagement.
“Granting control over staffing quotas to the education sector would create a legal framework to enhance teacher quality while addressing the chronic issues of overstaffing and understaffing,” Thanh concluded.