VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Education and Training has urged educational departments and local authorities to quickly re-examine the facilities standards at all private pre-schools to assure the safety of children, head of the ministry's Preschool Education Department Nguyen Ba Minh has said.

Children at the Co Loa pre-school, Dong Anh District, Hanoi. (Source: VNA)

Local educational authorities must take responsibility for the implementation of safety regulations at their local pre-schools. Any schools found lacking equipment to secure children's safety would be shut down, he said.

The move followed a number of scandals occurring at private pre-schools, causing concern for parents who seek more safety measures.

Early this month, a one-year-old girl suddenly died after having lunch at Little Angels Private Pre-school in Hanoi's Long Bien District.

Another two-year-old boy drowned in a manhole at Nghi Truong Commune's Pre-school in central Nghe An Province.

"I have to send my son to a private pre-school for work, as all public pre-schools near my house refuse to take children under two," Nguyen Minh Huong, mother of a one-year-old son said.

"I have checked the school's facilities and curriculum carefully, but honestly, I don't feel quite comfortable with the fact that a teacher would be in charge of four kids. Children are very naughty," she said.

In the past several years, there has also been an explosion of private pre-schools in big cities due to high demand by city parents. In Hanoi, there are more than 900 pre-schools (202 of which are private) not including thousands of groups temporarily opening as private businesses.

In HCM City, the number of private pre-schools is 411. Parents must pay between 1.6-3.5 million VND (75-164 USD) per month for each child.

Hoang Thanh Huong, head of the Hanoi Department of Education and Training's pre-school education division said these kinds of pre-schools, without proper licences and standards of facilities, are usually located in crowded residential areas.

The professional knowledge of the teaching staff at these pre-schools remained low, she also said.

According to Huong, the department has strengthened inspections over the operation of private pre-schools with three inspections per academic year.

The standards of pre-school teachers should be higher and private pre-schools should be encouraged to open in urban areas to prevent unlicensed business groups from operating.

Source: Vietnam Plus