VietNamNet Bridge - Working at national standard schools turns out to be a heavy burden for many teachers.

 

‘National standard schools’ are understood as the best schools in the country with good teachers and good students who can enjoy better education and study in more favorable conditions than other schools. 

Casses are not overcrowded, while facilities are modern and students have lessons with advanced teaching aids.

However, in fact, a lot of problems still exist, which have discouraged many teachers.

A teacher of a national standard school has sent an email to Giao Duc Viet Nam Editorial Board, saying that the ‘achievement disease’ was the most severe at these schools.

‘Achievement disease’ is the phrase used by government officials and local newspapers to talk about the serious problem in which general schools try to “produce” more good and excellent students and embellish schools’ achievement records.

Working at national standard schools turns out to be a heavy burden for many teachers.

A school must satisfy five criteria, including education quality, to be recognized as a national standard school. 

When a new academic year begins, the school’s management board will set the targets about the number of excellent and good students. The targets must be attained when the academic year finishes, or teachers will be listed as ‘incapable’.

The teacher complained that producing excellent students sometimes was an ‘impossible mission’ for teachers, because this still depends on students’ abilities. 

However, since they are teachers of national standard schools, they have to fulfill the task at any cost.

In the past, when there was no title of ‘national standard school’, excellent and bad students existed at every school. The number of excellent students has soared recently, while there are fewer bad students.

However, the teacher commented, the changes in the quality of students only exist on paper. They are fabricated by teachers so as to create achievements.

“National standard schools are the places which encourage the development of the ‘achievement disease’, which has existed for years in Vietnam’s education,” the teacher commented. “With national standard schools, Vietnam’s education produces people who usually tell lies.” 

Do Quyen, an experienced teacher, wrote on Giao Duc Viet Nam that schools have to struggle hard and ‘play tricks’ to obtain and maintain the ‘honorable title’ of national standard schools.

Schools and teachers have to ‘play tricks’ to protect the title because they have to implement very difficult tasks: at least 90 percent of students must get five marks at minimum for geography, history and citizen education subjects; 75 percent of students must get the titles of ‘good’ and ‘excellent’ students; and 99 percent of students can go on to the next forms.


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