President attends new school-year ceremony in Long An
President Truong Tan Sang on September 5 joined teachers and students at Hau Nghia high school in southern Long An province’s Duc Hoa district to attend an inaugural ceremony of the newly-built school and welcome the beginning of the 2014-2015 academic year.
Speaking at the ceremony, President Sang expressed his hope that the school’s teachers and students will try their best to gain excellent achievements to contribute more to the country.
The new school was built at a cost of VND117 billion (US$5.5 million) under the sponsor of the Lien Viet Post Bank.
Covering an area of more than 2.5 hectares, it comprises 43 classrooms, 19 others for particular purposes, one library, a kitchen area and a swimming pool.
On this occasion, President Sang presented scholarships, learning aid and gifts to the school’s needy students who have outstanding performance in their study and social policy beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, about 21.6 million Vietnamese students started the new academic year, with official ceremonies held across the country on September 5.
Party and State officials attended a number of the ceremonies throughout the nation, particularly in rural areas and ethnic minority communities.
Vietnam currently has more than 13,800 nursery schools, 15,300 primary schools, 10,800 junior high schools, and 2,700 senior high schools.
The 2014–2015 school year is considered particularly important since it will see the implementation of comprehensive educational reforms.
The sector will develop new curricula, design new textbooks, pilot the granting of autonomy to State-run universities, and set up a joint high school graduation and university entrance examination.
In primary education, teachers will provide comments on students’ performance rather than marks, while high school students will be able to become involved in creative activities to enhance their soft skills and moral compass.