Under the new general education programme, from next year there will only be five compulsory subjects, and the rest will be elective.

History will be among the elective subjects with other social sciences like geography, economics and law.

The new regulation has evoked both excitement and concerns from educators. Some say it will give students the flexibility to choose subjects and slightly reduce their workload, giving them more time to focus on the subjects they have chosen. Others are concerned that only a few students would register for history, as it is a difficult subject.

At the recent meeting with the Central Publicity and Education Commission, the ministry said Resolution 29-NQ/TW requires that, under the new general programme, students at secondary schools must have basic general knowledge. Students at high school must prepare for future careers.

It also required the building and standardising of the content of general education to modern and high-quality standards. Furthermore, the number of compulsory subjects should be reduced and the number of electives increased.

The National Assembly issued Resolution 88 on November 28, 2014, on the renovation of general education curricula and textbooks.

It stipulated that the 12-year general education consisted of two stages: the basic education stage, made up of five years in primary education and four years of secondary education, followed by three years in high school that are oriented towards careers. 

Under the new general education programme, history is tasked with educating in patriotism and national pride.

History will be taught at secondary schools for all grades from six to nine. Students will be equipped with basic knowledge of world and Vietnamese history.

History will be taught with in-depth content in high school education, helping students better understand the knowledge they had learned. The subject is among five social science subjects.

The content of regional history is compulsory from grades 6 to 12.

The ministry said the new syllabus could meet the role of history education for students.

Under the new education programme, high-school students will study 12 instead of 13 subjects from the next academic year. There are seven compulsory subjects, including literature, mathematics, foreign languages, physical education, national security education, regional workshops, and career counselling workshops.

Elective subjects are divided into three categories; social sciences (history, geography, economics and law), natural sciences (physics, chemistry, biology), and technology and arts (technology, computer science, art). 

Source: Vietnam News