The Hanoi People’s Committee has released a new regulation on the management over private tutoring, prohibiting to give extra lessons to primary school students, who go to school both in the morning and afternoon. However, educators still do not believe that the new regulation can help stop the compelled private tutoring.

Educators have every reason to doubt the feasibility of the new regulation. The Ministry of Education and Training released a legal document on the issue, stipulating that teachers must not force students to go to the extra classes run by the teachers themselves after school hours. However, the situation has not been improved yet.

In fact, Hanoi’s authorities also issued a similar document in 2007, the Decision 132, which had been effect until early April 18, before the new regulation became valid. However, concerned agencies still cannot control the implementation of the Decision No 132. Students still have been forced to go to extra classes run by the teachers at their schools.

Tien phong’s reporters interviewed eight parents from six primary and secondary schools in four districts in Hanoi accidentally, and all of them said that they still have to go to tutoring classes after school hours.

L, a parent, who has a daughter going to Kim Lien Primary School in Dong Da District, has confirmed that her daughter has to go to an extra class on weekend. The teacher hired a room near the school to organize tutoring classes. As there are too many students (60 students), the teacher divided the students into two classes, including one which gathers in the morning of Saturday, and the other on Sunday.

According to L, the tuition for private lessons was 50,000 dong per hour last year, but it has increased to 70,000 dong. It is estimated that the teacher can earn 15-16 million dong a month; a very high income, just from tutoring, after she pays room rentals.

“The income proves to be too attractive to every teacher, and no one would refuse to have private tutoring,” L commented.

Some parents say that their children go to extra classes on a voluntary basis, and that parents come forward and organize classes, and then invite teachers. However, many other parents said they have to send their children to extra classes. In fact, teachers do not say that students must go to their classes, but parents well understand that if they do not allow their children to go to the classes, the teachers will be not satisfactory with the students and give them bad marks.

When asked to make comments about the new regulation issued by the Hanoi authorities on the private tutoring management, all parents said they do not care about the new regulation, because the regulation is just a formality, while in fact, teachers will still do what they want.

New document, old provisions

Even school managers admitted that they cannot control the private tutoring of teachers.

Some of the managers say that the promulgation of the new regulation shows the strong determination of the city’s authorities to control private tutoring, but they feel discouraged when realizing that the new regulation is nearly the same with the Decision 132 issued in 2007.

“The city prohibits giving private tutoring to primary school students, but allows to practice student’s reading and writing skills. This means that the city allows private tutoring classes to exist, because first grade students go to the classes just to practice reading and writing skills,” Hoang, a state employee in the Hoan Kiem district, commented.

Headmaster of a primary school in Hai Ba Trung district, said that it is really difficult to control the private teaching, because of the lack of concrete regulations.

“Teachers would say that they do not provide private tutoring, they just help parents to take care for children. As such, private tutoring classes still  exist,” he said.

Meanwhile, education management officers said that the city has assigned management officers heavy tasks, while it has not clarified the budget for this work.

Source: Tien phong