Guidelines for Circular 19 on the Content and Suggested Evidence for Assessing the Quality of Preschool Education

When defining the scope, analyzing criteria to find evidence, everyone should pay attention to the following requirements:

- Correctly and adequately identify the scope of indicators and criteria under the specific conditions of the school:

- Consider according to which regulations? The validity of these regulations within a 5-year cycle?;- Pay attention to the "Specific Objectives" of the school related to each scope of indicators and criteria;- In each criterion, indicators often have keywords or key phrases to determine the correct and adequate scope;- The school may set its own questions and answer them:- Does the school have a plan to meet the requirements?- How have the requirements met by the school compared to other schools under similar conditions? How do they compare to general requirements?- How has the school exceeded the requirements?- How does the school review and check the implementation of the requirements?- What evidence is there to confirm that the school has a plan, meets the requirements, and reviews and checks the implementation of these requirements,...?

- By answering these questions, the school has analyzed the criteria, directed the collection of evidence, and prepared for the next steps in the self-assessment process.

Everyone can refer to the illustrative example of defining the scope and analyzing suggestions to find evidence for Criterion 1.1 below:

Criterion 1.1: School Strategy and Development Direction

First, it is necessary to correctly and adequately identify the indicators for each level.

LEVEL 1:

a) Appropriate with the objectives of preschool education as stipulated in the Education Law, the socio-economic development orientation of the local area in each phase, and the school’s resources;

The scope of indicator a is identified as:

- Appropriate with the objectives of preschool education as stipulated in the Education Law (Article 22 of the Education Law 2005 stipulates: The objective of preschool education is to help children develop physically, emotionally, intellectually, and aesthetically, forming the first elements of personality, preparing children for admission to grade one.);- Appropriate with the socio-economic development orientation of the local area in each phase;- Appropriate with the school’s resources.

b) Formulated in writing and approved by the competent authority

The scope of indicator b is identified as:

- Formulated in writing;- Approved by the competent authority.

c) Publicly announced by being posted at the school or published on the school’s website (if any) or on local mass media, and the educational department’s website.

The scope of indicator c is identified as:

- Publicly announced by being posted at the school or published on the school’s website (if any);- Or published on local mass media, and on the educational department’s website.

LEVEL 2: The scope of the indicator: The school has solutions to monitor the implementation of the school strategy and development direction.

LEVEL 3: The scope of the indicator:

- Periodically review, supplement, and adjust the school strategy and development direction;- The organization of formulating the school strategy and development direction involves the participation of members of the School Council (Board of Directors for private schools), administrators, teachers, staff, parents, and the community.

Questions that may be raised for this criterion:

1. How is the formulation of the Strategy...?

2. Has the Strategy... met the requirements (appropriate, approved, publicly announced, monitoring solution, participation of various stakeholders,...)?

3. How does the current strategy compare to the school's previous strategy? Is the strategy... highly rated?

4. How does the school review, check, supplement, and adjust the strategy...?

5. What evidence is there to confirm that the school has formulated and implemented the plan; implemented requirements, reviewed, checked, and adjusted the implementation of the Strategy,...?

>>> For detailed guidance, see Official Dispatch 5942/BGDDT-QLCL dated December 28, 2018, on self-assessment and external evaluation of preschools.

- Anh Tu -

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