What are the conditions for merging primary schools in Vietnam?

What are the conditions for merging primary schools in Vietnam?

According to Article 51 of the Education Law 2019 on the merger, division and dissolution of schools in Vietnam:

Merger, division and dissolution of schools

1. Merging, full division, partial division and dissolution of schools shall satisfy the following requirements:

a) Suitable with the planning of socio-economic development and of the educational institution network as prescribed in the Law on Planning;

b) Meeting the requirements of socio-economic development;

c) Ensuring rights and benefits of teachers and learners;

d) Contributing to the improvement of quality and efficiency of education.

2. A school shall be dissolved in the following cases:

a) It seriously violates regulations regarding management, organisation or operation of the school;

b) It fails to rectify the violation that leads to its suspension by the deadline;

c) Its operating objectives and contents in the establishment decision or establishment permission are no longer suitable with the requirements of socio-economic development;

d) It fails to ensure quality of education;

dd) The dissolution is requested by the founding organisations and/or individuals.

3. The decision on merger, division and dissolution of schools must specify the reasons and measures to ensure rights and benefits of teachers, education managers, learners and labour workers in the school, and must be publicly announced via mass media.

Thus, the conditions for merging primary schools in Vietnam are as follows:

- Being suitable with the planning of socio-economic development and of the educational institution network as prescribed in the Law on Planning;

- Meeting the requirements of socio-economic development;

- Ensuring rights and benefits of teachers and learners;

- Contributing to the improvement of quality and efficiency of education.

Additionally, the decision to merge primary schools must specify the reasons and measures to ensure rights and benefits of teachers, education managers, learners and labour workers in the school, and must be publicly announced via mass media.

What are the conditions for merging primary schools in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

Who has the power to establish a primary school in Vietnam?

Under Clause 1, Article 52 of the Education Law 2019 which regulates the power and procedure of establishment or establishment permission; permission of educational operation, suspension of educational operation; merger, division and dissolution of schools:

Power and procedure of establishment or establishment permission; permission of educational operation, suspension of educational operation; merger, division and dissolution of schools

1. The following persons have the power to establish public schools or to grant permission to establish people-founded and private schools:

a) Chairman of district-level People's Committees have the power to decide establishment of junior kindergartens, senior kindergartens, primary schools, lower secondary schools, multi-level schools whose highest level is lower secondary, and day schools for ethnic children, except for the cases prescribed in point d of this clause;

b) Chairman of provincial People's Committees have the power to decide for upper secondary schools, multi-level schools whose highest level is upper secondary, boarding general education schools for ethnic children, vocational secondary schools under provincial administration, except for the cases prescribed in point c and point d of this clause.

c) Ministers, Heads of ministry-level agencies have the power to decide establishment of vocational secondary schools under their direct management;

d) The Minister of Education and Training has the power to decide establishment of pre-university schools, pedagogical colleges and schools under ministerial management; junior kindergartens, senior kindergartens, primary schools, lower secondary schools, upper secondary schools as proposed by foreign diplomatic representative agencies and/or intergovernmental international organisations;

dd) The Minister of Labour - War Invalids and Social Affairs has the power to decide establishment of colleges, except for pedagogical colleges;

e) The Prime Minister has the power to decide establishment of institutions of higher education.

Therefore, the Chairman of the District-level People's Committee and the Minister of Education and Training have the power to establish primary schools. To be specific:

- The Chairman of the District-level People's Committee decides on primary schools;

- The Minister of Education and Training decides on primary schools as proposed by foreign diplomatic representative agencies and/or intergovernmental international organisations.

What are the objectives of primary education in Vietnam?

Under Article 29 of the Education Law 2019 which specifies the objectives of general education:

Objectives of general education

1. The objectives of general education are to help learners develop comprehensively by acquiring morals, knowledge, physical health, aesthetic values and other basic skills, develop personal abilities, flexibility and creativeness, with a view to forming the socialist Vietnamese personality and the civic duty, to preparing them for further studies of higher education, vocational education or entering the workforce, participating in the building and defending of the Fatherland.

2. Primary education aims to help students form initial foundations for moral, intellectual, physical and aesthetic development and capacity, preparing them for entering lower secondary education.

3. Lower secondary education is directed towards students' consolidation and development of the outcomes of primary education, provision of general and basic knowledge along with introductory understanding on techniques and career orientation to enter upper secondary education or vocational education.

4. Upper secondary education is directed towards the provision of civic knowledge; students' consolidation and development of the outcomes of lower secondary education; completion of general education and acquisition of common understanding on techniques and career orientation; provision of opportunities for students to develop their personal abilities in order to choose their development direction, to enter higher education, vocational education or the workforce, contributing to the building and defending of the Fatherland.

Thus, the objectives of primary education in Vietnam include:

The first objective is to help students form initial foundations for moral, intellectual, physical and aesthetic development and capacity;

The second objective is to prepare students for entering lower secondary education.