What are the conditions for organizing ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam?

What are the conditions for organizing ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam?

Under Article 2 of Circular 32/2021/TT-BGDDT, the conditions for organizing ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam are stipulated as follows:

- Ethnic minorities in the locality have the desire and need to learn ethnic minority languages in educational institutions.

- The script of the ethnic minority language taught and learned in educational institutions must be a traditional script that has been widely circulated and used within the ethnic community, identified by a specialized agency, and approved by the People's Committee of the province or centrally governed city (hereinafter referred to as the provincial People's Committee) or a script issued by the Government of Vietnam. For ethnic minority languages with multiple scripts, the selection of the script for teaching is decided by the Ministry of Education and Training.

- The ethnic minority language program is issued by the Ministry of Education and Training, and the ethnic minority language textbooks are approved by the Ministry of Education and Training.

- Teachers teaching ethnic minority languages must meet the standard training qualifications for the corresponding education level as stipulated in Article 72 of the Education Law 2019. In cases of a shortage of qualified teachers, individuals meeting the teaching conditions for the education level and possessing a certificate of training for teaching ethnic minority languages may be utilized.

- Facilities in ethnic minority language classes should be equipped like regular classes, meeting the general education program. Teaching equipment for ethnic minority languages shall be provided as per the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training regarding the minimum teaching equipment list for each ethnic minority language education program.

What are the conditions for organizing ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam? (Image from Internet)

What is the process for organizing ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam?

According to Article 3 of Circular 32/2021/TT-BGDDT, the process for organizing ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam is implemented as follows:

- Primary schools and lower secondary schools consolidate the demand for learning ethnic minority languages and report to the Division of Education and Training; upper secondary schools, continuing education centers, and vocational education-continuing education centers consolidate the demand for learning ethnic minority languages and report to the Department of Education and Training.

+ The Department of Education and Training consolidates the demand for learning ethnic minority languages of learners from the Division of Education and Training and affiliated educational institutions in the province or centrally governed city; based on specific teaching organization conditions of the locality, it develops a plan and advises the provincial People's Committee to submit an application requesting the Ministry of Education and Training on teaching ethnic minority languages in educational institutions.

- The provincial People's Committee prepares an application and submits one set of applications via one of the following methods: directly, by post, or online submission, requesting the Ministry of Education and Training to approve the organization of ethnic minority language classes in educational institutions in the locality. The application includes:

+ Official Dispatch requesting the organization of ethnic minority language classes from the provincial People's Committee (Form No. 01 in the appendix attached to Circular 32/2021/TT-BGDDT);

+ Consolidated report of the desire, and demand for learning ethnic minority languages; facilities, teaching equipment; implementation plan, organization of teaching; a team of ethnic minority language teachers (Form No. 02 in the appendix attached to Circular 32/2021/TT-BGDDT);

+ Decision on approval, issuance, or selection of the ethnic minority script as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 2 of Circular 32/2021/TT-BGDDT.

- The Ministry of Education and Training considers the conditions for teaching ethnic minority languages as requested by the provincial People's Committee and notifies in writing to the provincial People's Committee within 30 working days from receiving the complete valid application.

- In cases approved by the Ministry of Education and Training, the provincial People's Committee issues a decision on teaching ethnic minority languages in educational institutions in the locality.

What are the forms of organization of ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam?

The forms of organization of ethnic minority language classes in general educational institutions in Vietnam are stipulated in Article 5 of Circular 32/2021/TT-BGDDT as follows:

- The Ethnic Minority Language subject shall follow the curriculum of each educational level, utilizing elective time in the current general education program to organize teaching within educational institutions.

- The learning of ethnic minority languages is organized in classes as regulated in the charter of primary schools, charters of lower secondary and upper secondary schools, and schools with multiple educational levels, as well as the regulations on the organization and operation of continuing education centers.

For each ethnic minority language, if all learners in the class want to study, then the ethnic minority language class will be organized within that class; if only some learners in the class want to study, then a separate ethnic minority language class may be organized, which can be combined with another class if the number of students is insufficient. The minimum number of learners in a class is 10 (ten) people.