Vietnam - More students means not enough schools or teachers

HCM City is in desperate need for more teachers and schools in order to serve increasing students in the new school year.

Lack of teachers

The municipal Department of Education and Training plans to employ an additional 4,681 teachers at all levels for the 2011-2012 school year. However, even though schools from primary to high school levels started the new academic year on August 15, the department has recruited half the number of expected teachers.

Outlying districts, including Binh Chanh and Hoc Moon, are in desperate need of teachers. In Binh Chanh District, the education sector has employed only 27 out of expected 42 preschool teachers and 67 out of expected 150 primary school teachers.

In order to offset the teacher shortage, the education sector has required current teachers to work overtime, along with re-employing those who have retired.

“The stagnation in teacher employment results from the low pay of the profession. There have also been disparities in payment for teachers in different areas, so they often consider where they would like to be employed based on this,” said Cao Thi Tuyet Mai, Head of District No. 4’s Office of Education and Training.

Phan Van Keo, head of the Hoc Mon District’s Office of Education and Training said many teachers from the surrounding areas come to work in the district for a short time. When they find better opportunities, they move to other places. Many others decide to work at better-paying private schools.

Overcrowded classes

Many schools in HCM City are overcrowded due to the sharp increase in the number of students this year. The city has recorded a rise of over 30,000 students for the 2011-2012 school year.

Like previous years, District No. 12 is in desperate need of schools, which has forced 40% of students in the district to study in neighbouring Go Vap District. Other districts are in the same situation.

Tran Trung Hieu, Head of District No. 12’s Office of Education and Training emphasised the desperate need to upgrade education infrastructure, particularly building schools, to keep up with the soaring number of students.

Hoc Mon District is also in desperate need for new school as it reports a rise on nearly 6,000 students in the 2011-2012 school year. In the meantime, projects to build primary and secondary schools have been lagged behind schedule due to stagnant site clearance.

Le Hong Son, Director of the municipal Department of Education and Training, said that the city reported an increase of between 30,000 and 35,000 students.

In order to meet the rising demand, the city has to build at least 1,000 more classrooms, Son noted.

However, he shared that more schools, particularly private schools, should be built in order to ease the overload.

Source: Dtinews

Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Consulting, Investment and Management, focusing three main economic sectors: International PR; Healthcare & Wellness;and Tourism & Hospitality. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programs. Sign up with twitter to get news updates with @SaigonBusinessC. Thanks.