VietNamNet Bridge – A recent decision by the Ha Noi People's Council to develop a pilot programme to elevate 18 State-owned schools to a higher quality level has created controversy among parents and educators.

The new breed of State schools will use high tuition fees to pay for modern teaching methods and well equipped classes.

"They will also meet a huge demand for this type of school," said Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, deputy chairwoman of the capital's People's Committee.

"High-quality schools will be inspected annually by the Ministry of Education and Training and only those with high standards of infrastructure and teaching qualifications will be allowed," she said.

Ngoc added that the schools would also have to comply with regulations for State-owned schools.

Among those supporting the programme, Le Xuan Trung, principal of the three-months' old Le Loi high-quality school in Ha Dong District, said his aim was to create global citizens.

"Besides basic subjects, such as Math, Physics, Literature, and History, we focus on foreign languages, informatics, and soft skills so as to help students keep up with global developments," Trung said.

In addition to domestic teachers, the school is hiring specialists and lecturers from prestigious universities at home and abroad to teach its students - and teachers.

However, some educators and parents have expressed concern about the existence of "schools for the rich," saying that they would lead to discriminatory treatment among students.

"If the State budget is not enough to upgrade all State-owned schools, it would be advisable to allow enterprises to open more private schools instead of developing schools with sky-high tuition fees", said Tran Xuan Nhi, former Minister of Education and Training.

"If 18 schools supply high quality education, what do the rest supply? Are they offering low-quality?" Nhi asked.

On July 7, the Ha Noi People's Council passed a resolution on the financial mechanisms for establishing high-quality kindergartens, primary and secondary schools.

Accordingly, the ceiling school levels for kindergartens and primary school in the 2013-14 academic year is now VND2.9 million ($130) a month while the level for high schools is VND3 million ($140).

Having a son studying at a primary school in Hai Ba Trung District, Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, 29, said that in the current economic downturn, such an amount was a burden for parents.

"It is an unspoken rule that if a student wants to be enrolled at a school, he must be a permanent resident in the area where the school is located. So if the school where my son is studying suddenly is developed into a high-quality school, I won't know what to do as I cannot afford it - or pay to send him to another school," Trang said.

In HCM City's District 3, Le Quy Don High School was ordered to develop into a high-quality school in the 2006-07 academic year, but the attempt has been considered a failure.

After collecting tuition fees tens of times higher than at other State-owned schools, the school still asked parents to pay extra fees for water use, exam papers, exam question copies. They were also asked to donate to school and class funds.

Source: VNS