VietNamNet Bridge
07-03-2008

114,000 students nationwide gave up school from September to December 2007, an alarmingly high level.

The southern province of An Giang led the country in the number of drop-out students, 17,000, including 8,600 high school students. The Cuu Long River Delta had 45,000 drop-out students at both secondary and high education.

Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Vinh Hien attributed the sharp increase of drop-out students to the ‘revolution’ in education, especially the movement of “saying ‘no’ to wrongdoings and students’ sitting in wrong classes”.

By the end of February 2008, the number of drop-out high school students in Lam Dong province had increased by 2%.

1,700 drop-out students (3.6%) proved to be the surprising figure for Lam Dong, according to Huynh Quang Long, Chief of the Secretariat of Lam Dong Education and Training Department.

According to Long, most of drop-out students study at non-state schools and live in poor areas. The students are the key money earners in their families. As the coffee price keeps increasing, it seems to be better to help parents to pick up coffee beans than going to school.

“Even the well-off families also tell their children to give up school,” Long said.

In the central province of Nghe An, 10,700 students did not go to school when the new academic school year started. However, 3,500 of them had turned back to school by the end of the first semester.

According to Dao Cong Loi, Chief of the Secretariat of Nghe An Education and Training, most of drop-out students live in mountainous areas. More than 500 primary school pupils live with their parents in Ky Son districts, and many of them have gone with their parents to Laos to earn their living.

To deal with the drop-out problem, An Giang Education and Training Department has suggested impose a fine on the families who have children drop-out. In the province, poor families only get social allowance if they bring their children to schools.

Ly Thanh Tu, Chief of the Secretariat of An Giang Education and Training Department, said that the department would submit to the provincial authorities the plan to prevent students from giving up school. For example, local authorities only grant business registration certificates, driving license or allow to go working abroad to the ones, who finish secondary schools at least.

In Lam Dong Province, the local authorities may cut the preferences now being given to poor families if the families have members giving up schools. Meanwhile, the parents, whose children drop out, may be named and criticized before the public.

Hien from MOET said that the ministry will pay attention to develop the vocational school system. The students, who cannot keep studying at high schools, may shift to study at vocational schools to get careers and find jobs.

Bao Anh