Professor Ho Ngoc Dai recently gave a keynote speech about the general situation of education in our country: “At school, I do not rank, do not reward, do not grade”. At that time, I thought, what do people think when comparing Vietnamese education and world education in this era?
Why Vietnam’s education system has not yet developed
Vietnam’s education still has many shortcomings
Students across the country have just welcomed the start of the new school year in excitement. Vietnam is still considered a promising country with development potential compared to other countries. However, after becoming officially independent in 1975, it seems that education is still “treading water” after experiencing many ups and downs. Comparing Vietnamese education and world education is not valid because there has been no change in the past 35 years. According to some people’s views, the main reasons are mentioned as follows:
Language system
The Vietnamese alphabet used to be Nôm but the work of Alexandre de Rhodes has popularized the national language as we learn it today. Vietnamese has the disadvantage that it is not popular because it is an independent language system and only we use it, while most countries such as the Philippines and Indonesia still use English as the 2nd language after their mother tongue. Moreover, we are just new in reforming foreign language education for our children.
Curriculum
It is easy to recognize that most of our country’s curricula are compiled by the Ministry of Education, not international. Therefore, the degree is less recognized in the world. With such a “closed” education, it will cause many obstacles in the process of global integration. The quality of the curricula has also not improved the initial limitations, which are heavy in theory and have little practical application.
Exams and achievement diseases
In the Vietnamese education system, there are “unwritten” rules that everyone must know. Every year, exams always make students “half-dead” because of pressure from families and schools. The exam process still has many shortcomings leading to evils like cheating, … to get points that do not show students’ real ability. Furthermore, many people are willing to spare a large sum of money to get excellent and good degrees. I have heard that when they receive a diploma, it does not seem to help them in their future work.
Teacher
Of course, we cannot equate all teachers in Vietnam with selling out their professional consciences for personal gain. Many of them are very dedicated to the profession of teaching and always want to bring knowledge to students. However, there have not been many changes in the way of teaching or individual teaching methods.
Some of the best education in the world
What should Vietnam learn from the world’s progressive education?
When comparing Vietnamese education and world education, we need to learn a lot from quality education in the following countries:
Finland education
Finland education is recognized by the whole world for its quality of teaching. One of the most outstanding advantages of Finland education is that it is student-centered and adjust the curriculum accordingly. Students in Finland enter school later than in other countries, do not sit for exams to avoid achievement diseases and have the right to choose the program of study that suits their abilities.
American education
The United States is the country with the highest total GDP in the world, with the world’s top-quality teaching. It has produced many talents and outstanding inventions that make the whole world admires. The core value of education in the US is freedom as a foundation for development.
Japanese education
Many people around the world appreciate Japanese education because the moral value system here is highly valued. What is worth learning from this country of cherry blossoms is the rules of conduct, the spirit of national self-respect, and social responsibility. Children here have always been morally educated from a young age, so they have a very high sense of self-discipline.
Japanese students in group discussion sections
Australian education
The education system in Australia is always at the top of the good quality education systems in the world. The government is always aiming for fairness, promoting creativity and innovation. It encourages students to pursue their passions and interests.
Singapore Education
Although born late, education in Singapore is quite developed compared to other countries in the region. What is worth learning from this country is that the education system divides the hierarchy quite clearly, and the competence of teachers is always evaluated regularly.
What does Vietnam need to learn from top education?
Facing great difficulties and challenges, our country’s education system is stagnant and slow to develop. We have to identify problems and take better measures. I think we need to learn from our fellow countries through these following lessons:
- Learn from the Japanese education system to take moral and personality education as the basic foundation.
- Learn from the Finnish education system to adopt “learns less, practice more”
- Learn from the American education system to create freedom and fairness.
- Learn from the Australian education system to promote creativity and differentiation.
- Learn from the Singapore education system to invest in technology and teacher quality.
The comparison of Vietnamese education and world education helps us see the limitations that need to be removed for more complete reforms. Education is the basis for assessing the level of people’s knowledge as well as the development of a country.
Source: UK Academy Blog (uka.edu.vn)