It does not try to prohibit them from offering constructive suggestions and criticisms, according to Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Thi Nghia.

Nghia gave the explanation after educators voiced their disagreement with the newly released code of conduct in schools, saying that theh Ministry of Educatin and Training (MOET) is breaking the law by requesting teachers and students not to speak ill of schools and the national education system.

The new regulation, to take effect on May 28, 2019 stipulates that teachers and students must not make bad comments on social networks which have adverse effects on the schooling environment.

Do Thi Dung from Duong Lieu Secondary School in Hanoi lauded the new regulation.
“Students swear at each other very often on social networks, and then they come to school to fight each other,” Dung said.

Dung agrees with Nghia that the new rules do not aim to prohibit students and teachers from raising their voice against misbehavior.

“If MOET doesn’t set strict rules, students may post untrue stories which will cause immeasurable consequences, even though the stories remain unproved,” Dung said.

Phan Thi An, an informatics teacher at a high school, also thinks the new regulation is necessary in the current conditions.

“There is too much information about bad things in the national education, while good things have been ignored. This makes people lose confidence in the education system and teachers,” An commented.

Nguyen Dinh Thi Thuy, a teacher at Hoai Duc A High School, said the new regulation will in no way affect the behaviors and working style of the teachers with professional ethics.

“They have the right to express their views,” she said, “and the views and comments should be encouraged if they are useful and constructive.”

The teacher went on to warn that if students are prohibited from showing their views, management officers and school management board will not be informed about problems to improve education quality.

Nghia said that when compiling the regulation, MOET thoroughly considered current laws and regulations and referred to experts’ assessments about the impact of social networks on youth.

She believes that parents will support the MOET code of conduct because many of them are worried about the way their children use social networks.

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