The 2018-2019 academic year finished in late May. Students will return to school on August 20 to prepare for the new academic year opening on September 5.

Thanh Huong, an office worker in district 6, HCMC, said her daughter, a second grader, is staying with her grandmother who came from Tra Vinh province last week. However, the grandmother is leaving because she has fieldwork in the native village. She still has not found any solution for child care.

“My colleagues sent their children to the countryside. But my daughter insists on staying in HCMC,” she complained. “I know there are some training courses on life skills and English organized by international schools. But I cannot afford the expensive courses.”

Hoang Thuy Loan, a parent in Cau Giay district in Hanoi, said she promised to bring her son to a swimming class this summer, but she still cannot arrange time to do this.

“I am free in the evening, but there is no evening class,” she explained.

As a result, she has to take the boy to the office every day.

“I don’t want him to play games all the time. But I have no other choice. At least, when he plays games, I can be sure he is safe,” she said.

Nguyen Anh Tuan, a colleague of Loan at the same office, also said that he just wants to be sure his children, a fifth and a second grader, stay safe in summer.

“I know children want to play during summer break. But I would rather send them to English class than leave them somewhere which is out of my sight,” he said.

He complained that in previous years, summer holiday lasted one month only and students would go back to school to attend extra classes from June 15. But the policy has changed.

In fact, even if parents can find classes to send children, they are still busy.

“I have to take my kid to a music class in the morning and I have to leave the office to pick her up at 11 am,” a parent complained on her Facebook.

The parent works as a freelance translator, so she has more free time than office workers. However, she still complains that she cannot have a reasonable working schedule.

Kim Chi 

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