The Ministry of Education and Training needs to explain what it has, is doing and will do with History subject

Prof. Vu Minh Giang – Chairman of the Science and Training Council of Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Historical Science Association shared his observation that before carrying out the fundamental and comprehensive renovation work, education and training, History seems to be facing a fact that students don’t like.

“This is a terrible worry, not only of historians, but also of managers and leaders, because perhaps there is no other country in the world where history is more loved and important than Vietnam. Its important meaning we do not need to discuss further.

But in the face of the fact that students do not like to study and even fear History, it is clear that we must wonder how this subject has its right place.

Professor Giang said that the flow of opinions affirming that History is very important, compulsory to study and compulsory to take exams also comes from the heart, wanting this subject to be respected. History teachers also want the subject they teach to be the main subject. This is to promote History from the perspective of the public – that is, from the perspective of management and government.

The second point of view, according to Prof. Giang, is to fundamentally reform the education and training program.

“I have said more than once that History has to be at the forefront of innovation, has to be “prescribed” why students don’t like this subject.

That’s because the History subject we are teaching has too much knowledge to memorize. We are already stuck in content-based education – and History is the subject that suffers the most.

Besides, we must also realize that up to now, the teaching of History subject is a bit unobjective and has an imposing nature.

And another point is that History is rich, diverse, with many interesting things, but we have not brought that attraction into the history lesson but taught it in a dry way. Teachers are always afraid to teach the wrong way because they have to teach according to textbooks.

In this trend, I support the trend of how to make History more attractive, without teaching many specific things, but how to let students absorb and learn on their own. When students have interest and desire to learn, they will do everything they can to find out. That is the fundamental and comprehensive innovation “- Professor Giang analyzed.

Professor Vu Minh Giang also pointed out the fact that in the past, History was a compulsory subject from grade 1 to grade 12. However, there was a “turning point” in the education and training system as 38% of high school students. 2 do not enter high school but go to vocational training, go to work… Every year, 1 million students graduate from grade 12, not including these students.

“We have to take into account that all students studying in the general education system must be equipped with a complete, basic, systematic History knowledge. Since then, two stages were born according to the Party’s Resolution and the National Assembly’s policy: the compulsory period with History subject and the career guidance phase.

If we teach in the old way, that is, teaching compulsory history from grade 1 to grade 12, the pre-modern history period falls to the high school level, then students who attend lower secondary school but cannot continue to attend high school will lost that historical period. The reorganization of the History subject has taken account of this fact” – Prof. Giang pointed out.

Another important thing, according to Professor Giang, is that we really want to teach high school students, whoever they become in the future, they must have an understanding of their country, their people, and the traditions of their ancestors. me.

“I think what the top leaders of the Party and the state are doing is focusing on that. Throughout history, what has crystallized is culture. At the National Cultural Conference on November 24, 2021, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said “Culture is the soul of the nation”. Culture is the values ​​crystallized in the historical process. We are so interested in culture and history, so there is no reason to ignore History.”

Returning to the plan of teaching History in high school, this professor shared that he knew that when coming here, the Ministry of Education and Training will also have a roadmap for this subject, not change it immediately.

“For example, the current 9th graders have finished studying the period of Near Modern History, so when they enter 10th grade, they will continue to study that compulsory program. In the following years, the Ministry will have an implementation plan.

In my opinion, we should learn advanced education systems, in which there are countries with innovation not only once but carried out regularly.

We must have 3 moves with education: always have to look back on the past, summarize what has been and has not been, and then continue to innovate – then the construction of programs like this will be prepared. but it is not “unchangeable”.

Finally, Prof. Giang emphasized: “What is needed now is that the Ministry of Education and Training and responsible agencies must clearly explain to the people what we have been, are doing and will be doing. People just looking at the ‘one side wants to quit, the other wants to keep’ spiral is not true to the nature of the phenomenon we want to consider.”

Phuong Chi – Thuy Nga

What did the Chairman of the Evaluation Council say when he agreed that History was an elective subject?Associate Professor Tran Kieu said that the late Professor Phan Huy Le was very interested in teaching and learning History in high schools. The suggestions for his program are still recorded in the working minutes of the appraisal board.