VietNamNet Bridge - Educators believe that poor facilities and unreasonable curricula are why students dislike physical education lessons. But others blame it on laziness. 

Nguyen Tung Lam, headmaster of Dinh Tien Hoang High School, said that students and curriculum designers are mistaken about the role of physical training. He said everyone, from preschool to university, needs physical training and exercises specifically designed for their age.

Lam said students need to be given opportunities to play volleyball, football or aerobics. 

Students at university practice physical exercises just to attend exams, he said. 

Nguyen Hong Mai, who graduated from Hanoi National University, said she disliked the physical exercise lessons.  

“I usually could not fulfill exercises and had to take a make-up. Lecturers gave a ‘pass’ to me just because I failed so many times before,” Mai said.

“I just want to do physical practices at a reasonable level to become healthier. I don’t intend to become an athlete. I had to practice hard as if I was going to attend a national tournament,” she said.

A survey found that students find physical practice lessons too boring. They spend most of their time on science subjects, and consider physical education as an auxiliary learning subject.

Meanwhile, an official of the training division of the Transport Technology University said that students don’t want to exercise because of laziness and that the lessons are not difficult. 

About 10 percent of students have to take the exam again, he said, adding that the students cannot graduate from school because of the subject.

Not only university students but general school students do not attach much importance to physical education. A survey found that students find physical practice lessons too boring. They spend most of their time on science subjects, and consider physical education as an auxiliary learning subject.

A primary school teacher in Hanoi said that Vietnamese in general and students in particular were not aware of the importance of exercise. At school, students only have one physical training period a week, so it is understandable why students don’t spend much time on the subject.

“A first grader told me that he will earn his living as a ‘brainworker’ and won’t subsist on manual labor, so he doesn’t need to play sports and he needs to focus on science subjects to be able to enter university,” she said. 

The Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has said it plans to raise the number of physical practice lessons to two per week, including first graders as well.

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