DECISION

APPROVING THE SCHEME ON UNIVERSAL PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN AGED FIVE YEARS IN THE 2010-2015 PERIOD

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;
Pursuant to the June 15, 2004 Law on Child Protection, Care and Education;
Pursuant to the June 14, 2005 Law on Education;
Pursuant to the June 19, 2009 Resolution No. 35/2009/QH12 of the XIIth National Assembly, on policies and orientations for renewal of a number of financial mechanisms applicable to education and training from the 2010-2011 school year to the 2014-2015 school year;
At the proposal of the Minister of Education and Training,

DECIDES:

Article 1. To approve the Scheme on universal pre-school education for children aged five years in the 2010-2015 period with the following principal contents:

I. VIEWPOINTS

1. The State shall manage and invest in preschool education development, increasing supports in material foundations and teacher training: prioritize investment in regions meeting with exceptional socio-economic difficulties, mountainous, deep-lying, remote, island and border regions in the direction of building solid public schools up to standards.

2. The universalization of preschool education for children aged five years is a task of first priority in preschool education, aiming to make best preparations for children to enter grade 1 for all regions nationwide.

3. The responsibility to let all children aged five years go to pre-school institutions ans classes rests with administrations at all levels, sectors, families and the entire society. To step up the socialization with greater responsibility of the State, the society and families for the development of preschool education.

4. To renew the preschool education curriculum and methodology on the principle of ensuring the synchronism, conformity and advance in association with the renewal of general education, positively contributing to raising education quality.

II. OBJECTIVES

1. General objectives

To ensure that all children aged five years in all regions are sent to school for full-day education (two sessions/day) within a schoolyear with a view to making good physical, intellectual, sentimental, aesthetical. lingual and psychological preparations for their entrance into grade 1 with good quality.

2. Specific objectives:

a/ To consolidate and expand the network of schools and classes, ensuring that by 2015, 95% of children aged five years enjoy full-day schooling;

b/ To raise the nurturing and educational quality for preschool classes of children aged five years, reducing the malnutrition rate; to strive for the target that by 2015, 100% of children in preschool education institutions take the new preschool education curricula, making good psychological and intellectual preparations for them to enter grade 1;

c/ To train, foster and raise the quality of the contingent of preschool teachers, ensuring that 100% of teachers of five-year-old preschoolers will meet training standards by 2010. 50% of teachers will reach preschool pedagogical college or higher level by 2015 and 80% of teachers reach the above-average professional standards;

d/ To prioritize investment in material foundations, teaching equipment and instruments as well as toys for five-year-old preschool classes in mountainous, deep-lying and remote regions. To build preschools up to national standards in poor districts as models and places for training in and exchange of professional experience in preschool education;

e/ To raise the rate of provinces reaching standards of universal preschool education for children aged five years from 55% in 2010 to 85% in 2012 and 100% in 2015.

III. CONDITIONS AND STANDARDS FOR UN1VERSALIZATION OF PRESCHOOL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN AGED FIVE YEARS

1. Universalization conditions

a/ Having adequate solid and standard classrooms;

b/ Schools and classrooms are equipped with minimum teaching equipment sets for leaching under the new preschool education curricula: and. for regions endowed with favorable conditions, additionally with toy sets and softwares on computer games, acquainting children with computers for learning;

c/ Having adequate teachers reaching training standards or above; teachers enjoy income and other regimes in accordance with the wage table and scale for preschool teachers;

d/ Children in preschool institutions are entitled to current regimes and policies, to care and education under the new preschool education curricula; ethnic minority children are prepared in Vietnamese language before their entrance into grade 1.

2. Universalization standards

a/ For communes, wards, district towns

Meeting the conditions on teachers, material foundations, documents, equipment and toys in five-year-old preschool education institutions and classrooms;

Mobilizing 95% of children aged five years or more to go to school, with at least 85% of them enjoying full-day schooling within a schoolyear (9 months) under the new preschool education curricula promulgated by the Ministry of Education and Training; children in regions meeting with exceptional difficulties and ethnic minority regions are prepared in Vietnamese language for entrance into grade 1;

- Rate of regular school attendance: 90% or higher;

- Rate of malnourished children: below 10%.

b/ For rural districts, urban districts, provincial towns and cities

To ensure that 90% of communes, wards and district towns reach the standards of universal preschool education for children aged five years.

c/ For provinces and centrally run cities

To ensure that 100% of rural districts, urban districts and provincial towns reach the standards of universal preschool education for children aged five years.

IV.TASKSAND SOLUTIONS

1. To step up the propagation and dissemination of the universal preschool education for children aged five years.

a/ To step up the propagation so as to raise the awareness about and responsibilities of authorities at different levels, sectors, families and communities for the policy, purposes and significance of universal preschool education for children aged five years in raising the educational quality and developing human resources;

b/ To combine various communication forms and media such as distribution of publications and video tapes; central and local newspapers and radio stations; conferences and seminars, for dissemination of the contents of the Scheme on universal preschool education for children aged five years, creating conditions for social organizations, socio-professional organizations, parents and the entire society to participate in the universalization of preschool education for children aged five years.

2. To actively mobilize children aged five years to go to classes

a/ Annually, to mobilize almost all children aged five years to preschool classes for full-day care and education and to maintain the number of under-five children going to preschool establishments in various forms. By 2015, the number of children aged five years sent to preschool classes nationwide will be 1,378,600, including 1.097,700 children at public institutions, accounting for 79.6%. and 280.900 at non-public establishments, accounting for 20.4%; to maintain the percentage of 70% of three- to four-year-old children sent to kindergartens and 25% of children to creches.

b/ Annually, to include the norms of universal preschool education for children aged five years in local socio-economic development programs and plans for direction of implementation; to include the results of universalization of preschool education for children aged five years in the criteria for assessment of grassroots Party organizations, administrations, mass organizations, for consideration and recognition of cultured families and cultured units. Local Party Committees and administrations shall assign local organizations and associations to coordinate in mobilizing families to send their children aged five years to school for full-day schooling;

c/ To support VND 120.000/month (for 9 months) for lunch at school for children aged five years in preschool education institutions, whose parents reside in border, high-land or island communes or communes facing exceptionally difficult socio-economic conditions; whose parents have died or are disabled, meeting with economic difficulties; or whose parents fall under the category of poor households under the State's regulations, children in difficult plight at private preschool establishments will be partially supported by the State in school fees, with a view to raising the percentage of children going to school;

d/ To bring into full play innovations of people and communities and mobilize parents to register and send their children to preschool institutions and classes for universalization of preschool education for children aged five years ;

e/ To organize appropriate schools and classes creating conditions for five-year children to be sent to schools: From 2010, 100% of children aged five years in difficulty-hit regions, mountainous, deep-lying, remote, border and island regions, in northwestern, Central Highland and Mekong river delta provinces will be sent to public schools. In rural delta areas, the majority of children will be sent to public schools with the collection of school fees. To maintain the percentage of under-five children sent to public classes not lower than the current one, to develop non-public preschool education in places where conditions permit.

3. To renew the preschool education curricula and methodology

a/ To realize on a large scale the new preschool education curricula for 39,400 preschool classes for children aged five years , with a view to raising the quality of care and education of children aged five years;

b/ To step up the application of information technology at preschool institutions so that by

2015 at least 30% of preschool institutions will have access to information technology and foreign languages;

c/ To formulate programs and documents on preparation of Vietnamese language for preschool classes of ethnic minority children aged five years;

d/ To promulgate and guide the application of the set of standards on development of children aged five years .

4. To build and raise the quality of the contingent of preschool teachers and administrators

a/ To enhance the capacity of pedagogical schools for quantitatively and qualitatively fostering and training preschool teachers in order to meet the requirements of preschool education universalization and renewal.

- To raise the qualification of or train 22.400 teachers, ensuring that by 2015, there will be adequate preschool teachers as required. To increase the percentage of ethnic minority teachers, training via nominated enrollment 2,000 teachers for difficulty-hit regions, who are recruited from boarding ethnic minority schools and among upper secondary graduates in hamlets;

- To build and develop the model of teaching ethnic minority languages for teachers working in areas of ethnic minority people, with credits on ethnic minority languages for nominated trainees in pedagogical schools;

- To renew the contents and modes of regular fostering of the contingent of teachers and administrators, updating knowledge and skills for teachers to realize the new preschool education curricula. To attach importance to raising the quality of ethnic minority teachers through refresher courses.

b/ To formulate appropriate policies and ensure resources for implementation of policies for teachers and administrators

- The State provides budgetary supports for periodical salary increase and payment to teachers and administrators at people-founded preschool education institutions according to wage tables and scales. Private preschool establishments shall pay salaries to their teachers not lower than those in public and people-founded preschool institutions and fully implement regimes and policies applicable to teachers according to current regulations.

- Localities are encouraged to apply new school-fee mechanism, increasing lawful revenues in areas where conditions are favorable and parents can afford their children's schooling in order to implement the regimes and policies applicable to preschool teachers of under-five children.

- To issue a decision amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Prime Minister's Decision No. 161/2002/QD-TTg of November 15, 2002, on a number of policies for preschool education development in conformity with the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Education Law, and the National Assembly's Resolution No. 35/ 2009/QH12of June 19, 2009.

5. To build material foundations, invest in equipment and ensure budgets for preschool classes of children aged five years

a/ To build adequate rooms for preschool classes of children aged five years

- To build adequate rooms for preschool classes of children aged five years in difficulty-hit, border, island and ethnic minority regions.

- To ensure that all difficulty-hit communes and ethnic minority areas will have their own schools with at least 3 classrooms each in their centers and separate classrooms solidly built up to standards;

- To build 11,000 classrooms under the program on solidification of schools and classrooms. To additionally build 11,600 new classrooms and about 1,570,000 m2 of functional rooms up to the standards defined in the Charter on Preschools, ensuring enough 39,400 classrooms by 2015 for all preschool classes of children aged five years;

- To build 86 preschools up to national standards of grade I in 62 difficulty-hit districts on the list under the Government's Resolution No. 30a/2008/NQ-CP, on the program to support fast and sustainable poverty reduction for 62 poor districts and 24 mountainous districts of 6 provinces bordering on the Central Highlands, as models and places for training and exchange of professional experience for preschool education in mountainous areas meeting with difficulties.

b/ To ensure adequate equipment and toys for realization of the new preschool education curricula, raising the quality of preschool education for children aged five years

- To supply the minimum equipment set for 39,400 preschool classes of children aged five years for realization of the new preschool education curricula and interior equipment sets used commonly for different classes, to supply adequate equipment for groups/classes of under-five children as conditions for realization of the new preschool education curricula;

- To supply 8,800 software packages on games for schools and classes with conditions so as to acquaint children with computers.

- To supply 6,600 sets of out-door games so that by 2015, about 70% of schools will be equipped with outdoor game sets.

c/ To ensure regular expenditure budget for care and education of under-five preschool children

- The State will incrementally increase the regular expenditure level for under-five preschool children to VND 7.3 million/child/year by 2015, ensuring that about 20% of preschool education budgets will be spent on professional activities.

- In difficulty-hit, ethnic minority, deep-lying and remote regions, the State will organize public preschool education institutions and classes and fully supply budgetary funds for regular expenditures and arrange adequate teachers in order to raise preschool education quality;

- In rural areas, the State will organize public preschool institutions and classes with partial self-financing of their activities and supply 75%-80% of the fund from state budget for regular expenditures while the rest will be contributed by parents.

- For cities, provincial towns, economically developed areas, the State will provide budgetary supports for regular expenditures for partially self-financing public schools at different levels while the rest will be contributed by parents. For people-founded establishments, the State will provide supports for periodical salary increase and payment to teachers according to salary tables and scales prescribed for preschool teachers.

6. To step up the socialization of universal preschool education for children aged five years

a/ To incorporate different programs in the same locality and reasonably mobilize people's resources for the universalization of preschool education for children aged five years: parents shall coordinate with schools in nurturing, taking care of, and educating children;

b/ To encourage and create conditions for individuals, enterprises, social organizations and socio-professional organizations to invest in the development of non-public preschool education institutions and classes in the spirit of the Government's Decree No. 69/2008/NQ-CP of May 30, 2008, on policies to promote the socialization of activities in the fields of education, vocational training, healthcare, culture, sports and environment;

c/ In difficulty-hit regions, appropriate solutions will be worked out to mobilize people's labor contributions together with state budget for construction of preschool institutions and classes; to combine local policies with the State support policies for organization of semi-boarding or implementation of program on school lunches for all children aged five years with a view to facilitating the teaching of Vietnamese language for children;

d/ To convert semi-public preschool education establishments into schools of appropriate forms according to regulations, which are suitable to local conditions, thus ensuring adequate schools and classes for the universalization of preschool education for children aged five years .

7. To step up international cooperation

To make full use of assistance of donors and international organizations for implementation of an ODA project on universalization of preschool education for children aged five years.

V. FUNDS

The fund to implement the Scheme will be VND 14,660 billion for 4 projects:

a/ Project 1: Construction of classrooms and functional rooms in accordance with the Preschool Charter

- Major contents

+ To build 11,600 new classrooms, fully meeting the demand for preschool classrooms of children aged five years;

+ To build 1,570,000 m2 of functional rooms up to the standards defined in the Preschool Charter;

- Estimated fund: VND 9,200 billion.

b/ Project 2: Procurement of equipment and toys

- Major contents:

+ To procure 39,400 sets of equipment and toys, 39,400 sets of interior equipment will be commonly used for preschool classes of children aged five years in implementation of the new preschool education curricula;

+ To procure 6,600 sets of outdoor games and 8,800 sets of equipment for children to acquaint themselves with information and foreign languages in service of the implementation of the Scheme on universal preschool education for children aged five years.

- Estimated fund: VND 2,200 billion.

c/ Project 3: Training and fostering of teachers and supports for poor children

- Major contents:

+ Fostering to raise the qualification of 11,300 teachers from primary to intermediate pedagogical level for preschool education; the training duration will be 15 months; collegial-level training of 11,100 preschool education teachers;

+ Lunch supports for 394,00 children/year for children aged five years in highland and border regions and children of poor families.

- Estimated fund: VND 2,900 billion.

d/ Project 4: Construction of preschool institutions up to national standards in difficulty-hit districts

- Major contents: Construction of 86 preschool institutions up to national standards of grade I for 86 difficulty-hit districts as professional training models for communes;

- Estimated fund: VND 360 billion.

Of the total fund:

1. State budget: VND 11,930 billion, including:

a/ Regular expenditures: VND 2,542 billion;

b/ Investment expenditure: VND 4,740 billion;

c/ National target programs : VND 2,340 billion;

d/ ODA loan capital: VND 2,307 billion.

2. Other funding sources: VND 2,730 billion, including:

a/ Public school fees: VND 780 billion;

b/ Non-public school fees: VND 1,042 billion;

c/ Aids and contributions of communities at home and abroad: VND 909 billion,

Article 2. Organization of implementation

1. Implementation roadmap:

a/ The 2010-2012 period

- To propagate and disseminate the Scheme in order to gain support from administrations at all levels, organizations and people, aiming to mobilize 90% to 93% of children aged five years in all regions to go to school for universal preschool education;

- To focus on ethnic minority children, children in difficulty-hit and rural areas, ensuring that 90% of children in ethnic minority and difficulty-hit areas have the schooling with two sessions/day; to mobilize 92% of children aged five years in rural areas to go to school for universal preschool education;

- To regularly allocate annual budgets, ensuring 100% of funds for children in mountainous, deep-lying and difficulty-hit regions and public schools; to implement the policy to support school children of poor households or policy households according to regulations;

- To build 7,300 classrooms (with fund from the approved school solidification fund) for children aged five years in difficulty-hit, border, island, ethnic minority and rural communes; all public schools and classes will ensure the rate of 1 class/ classroom;

- To transform semi-public schools and classes into ones of appropriate forms according to regulations; to additionally establish private schools in cities, provincial towns, regions with favorable conditions;

- To realize the new preschool education curricula for about 37,200 preschool classes of children aged five years, including 11,600 in cities and provincial towns; 15,800 in rural delta regions and 9.800 in mountainous, deep-lying and ethnic minority regions;

- To provide essential equipment sets for 37,200 preschool classes of children aged five years in implementation of the new preschool education curricula; to provide 5,300 sets of toy and game softwares for children to acquaint themselves with information technology application in schools or classes where conditions permit;

- To foster 8,900 preschool teachers of primary level up to or above the standards, and additionally train 6,400 teachers, including ethnic minority trainees recruited from ethnic minority boarding schools;

- To supplement policies and regimes so that non-public preschool teachers are salaried according to wage tables and scales applicable to preschool teachers;

- To create conditions for communities and enterprises to contribute more resources to raising preschool education quality; to review and complete legal documents.

b/ The 2013-2015 period

- To further focus on children in difficulty-hit and rural regions in order to mobilize 95% of children aged five years to go to preschools for universal presschool education;

- To regularly allocate annual budget, ensuring the fulfilment of the task to universalize preschool education for children aged five years;

- To build 4,250 new classrooms and 2,200 additional ones at stage II;

- To train and foster about 2,400 preschool teachers up tocollegial standards and additionally train 4,600 others; to further supply 550 sets of toys and game softwares for children to acquaint themselves with the application of information technology to schools or classes where conditions permit;

- To supply the essential equipment sets for 2,200 preschool classes of children aged five years for implementation of the new curriculum;

- To apply reasonable policies for teachers and administrators;

- To raise the quality of classes under the new preschool education curricula, especially in mountainous, deep-lying and remote regions.

2. Responsibilities of ministries and sectors a/ The Ministry of Education and Training shall:

- Act as the standing body for implementation of the Scheme;

- Assume prime responsibility for, and coordinate with other ministries and sectors in. implementing projects under the Scheme on universal preschool education for children aged five years in the 2010-2015 period; direct and guide localities in formulating detailed plans and materializing the contents of this Scheme for implementation;

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance in formulating investment projects under the national target program on education in the 2011-2015 period and submitting them to the Government for consideration and approval;

- Formulate and promulgate a set of standards on development of children aged five years; conditions, specific criteria and the process for recognition of universal preschool education for children aged five years;

- Review, supplement and complete legal documents, creating legal bases for the universalization of preschool education for children aged five years;

- Organize, examine, assess and sum up the results of implementation of the Scheme and annually report thereon to the Prime Minister.

b/ The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall:

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training, other ministries, ministerial-level agencies and localities in intensifying communication work and social mobilization for universalization of preschool education for children aged five years and preschool education development, protecting children's right to fully take the preschool education program before their entrance into grade 1;

- Assume prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, directing and supervising the implementation of social insurance and health insurance regimes as well as other social policies towards preschool children and teachers.

c/ The Ministry of Health shall:

- Assume prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, formulating and finalizing programs on medical services, healthcare and nutrition to be incorporated in the training and fostering of preschool teachers;

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in inspecting and supervising healthcare- and nutrition-related activities in preschool institutions and classes for children aged five years according to universalization objectives; disseminating knowledge and skills and providing services on care and education at home.

d/ The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall:

- Assume prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, summing up and appraising projects under the Scheme on universal preschool education for children aged five years in the national target program on education in the 2011-2015 period and submitting them to the Prime Minister for approval;

- Assume prime responsibility for allocating investment capital to localities for implementation of the Scheme on universal preschool education for children aged five years,

e/ The Ministry of Finance shall:

- Allocate budgets for regular expenditures and target programs on preschool education in order to achieve the objectives and schedule for implementation of the Scheme; to conduct financial examination and inspection according to the State Budget Law.

- Assume prime responsibility for, and coordinate with other ministries and sectors in, realizing new financial mechanisms for education and training in the 2010-2015 period.

f/ The Ministry of Home Affairs shall promulgate new policies for preschool teachers, study, amend and supplement mechanisms and policies applicable to preschool teachers and administrators in schools of various types; arrange adequate teachers for preschool establishments.

g/ People's Committees at all levels shall:

- Formulate programs and projects to materialize the objectives, tasks and solutions of the Scheme for direction and implementation in their respective localities;

- Direct the implementation of planning on preschool networks, plans on teachers' training and fostering and mobilization of children to school;

- Direct the reserve of land for construction of adequate classrooms, creating favorable conditions for attraction of local children to school, invest in material foundations, equipment and toys as required for implementation of the new preschool education curricula; promulgate policies on development of local preschool education; allocate adequate budgets for universal preschool education for children aged five years and for payment to preschool teachers in general according to regulations;

- Direct the implementation of regimes and policies on training, fostering and recruitment as well as other regimes and policies applicable to preschool teachers in their respective localities according to regulations;

- Mobilize resources for comprehensive construction of material foundations, recruitment of teachers and organization of school meals for ethnic minority and mountainous children for quality universal preschool education for children aged five years;

- Inspect, supervise and assess the universalization of preschool education for children aged five years in their respective localities.

h/ Vietnam Fatherland Front, Vietnam Women's Union. Vietnam Learning Promotion Society, mass organizations and associations shall actively participate in developing preschool education, mobilizing children to school and implementing the Scheme on universal preschool education for children aged five years.

Article 3. This Decision takes effect on the date of its signing.

Article 4. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and chairpersons of provincial-level People's Committees shall implement this Decision.-