VietNamNet Bridge – Education authorities in the Mekong Delta informed that soon after the Tet Festival, the number of school dropouts increased to 1,000, either because of poor academic results or for the purpose of finding jobs to earn much needed money.

Many children in Vinh Thinh Commune of Bac Lieu Province  have quit school to earn a living. (Photo: SGGP)

Many school going children in Vinh Thinh Commune in Hoa Binh District of Bac Lieu Province have quit from primary schools. For instance, To Van Nghiep, 64, has eight children and 10 grandchildren, but only his eldest daughter has finished the first grade and just three of his grandchildren are learning at a primary school.
 
The situation is the same at the coastal commune of Luu Hoa Thanh of Dam Doi District in Ca Mau Province where people live in and around forest areas and travel on rivers. Most of the residents are too poor and have low awareness of the importance of education.

At the beginning of the academic year, the numbers of students were 451 but that figure has dropped drastically. Two dropouts have gone with their parents to work in Ho Chi Minh City and the southern province of Binh Duong.
 
In An Giang Province, soon after the Tet Festival got over, more than 1,750 students dropped out of schools, to go with their parents to work in industrial parks or do part-time jobs like harvesting in fields.
 
The regional educational authorities said Ca Mau, Kien Giang, Long An, Soc Trang and Tra Vinh have the most number of dropouts due to inconvenient traffic for students coming from distant areas, low awareness of parents towards education  and poor exam results.
 
The provincial education and training departments have ordered schools to work with local governments in encouraging students and their families to return to schools. Local governments should help disadvantaged families to find ways to raise incomes and awareness of education.

Source: SGGP