Parents take their children to the province to protest school merger

Parents brought their children to stand in front of the gate of the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee headquarters to protest the merger of schools in Ngoc Son commune, Thanh Chuong district - Photo: DOAN HOA

Parents worry about the long distance to school after the merger

In recent days, due to the lack of consensus on merging the Thanh Nam satellite school of Ngoc Son Primary School, Thanh Chuong District, Nghe An into the main school, some parents are letting their children stay home from school.

On April 12 and 15, about 20 students and many parents traveled more than 40km to stand in front of the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee headquarters on Truong Thi Street, Vinh City to petition to maintain the satellite school as it has been for a long time.

Information from parents who do not agree with the school merger policy said that the main school is far away, picking up and dropping off children is extremely difficult due to difficult economic conditions of the family, with everyone working far away.

Parents hope that social funds will be mobilized to rebuild the Thanh Nam satellite school so that their children can study closer to home.

Regarding the parents' petitions, Mr. Thai Van An - Chairman of the People's Committee of Ngoc Son commune - said that Thanh Nam satellite school has 5 classrooms with 159 students, built in 1976 and is now degraded.

The classrooms are damp, dark and humid, not conducive to teaching.

In 2022, the Party Committee and People's Committee of Ngoc Son commune issued a plan to merge Thanh Nam school into the main school.

In August 2023, when proposing the merger roadmap, the leaders of Ngoc Son commune, representatives of the commune's primary and preschool schools, and the advocacy committee held a meeting with people from 3 hamlets with students studying at the Thanh Nam satellite school to listen to the thoughts, wishes and suggestions of parents.

Students at Ngoc Son Primary School, Thanh Chuong District, Nghe An in the new computer room with full facilities - Photo: BUI AN

According to Mr. An, to prepare to welcome students to the main school, from July 2023, the District People's Committee and Ngoc Son Commune People's Committee have focused on investment resources, mobilizing socialized educational funding sources to upgrade facilities and purchase additional teaching equipment.

Through that, 6 new classrooms, yard, fence, school gate were built, office and 5 functional rooms were renovated and upgraded; 30 new computers, 11 televisions, 70 sets of tables and chairs were purchased, and artificial turf was built. The total investment value for these projects is more than 8.8 billion VND.

However, on April 10, when the merger was officially implemented, 28 students had not yet gone to school because many parents objected, citing reasons such as the long distance.

"The distance from the hamlets with children in the remote area to the farthest main school is only 3km, closer than many other hamlets in the commune. Traveling is also easy because in addition to Highway 46, there are three other concrete roads in the hamlet, convenient for parents to take their children to school," said Mr. An.

Better learning environment for students

Mr. Bui Xuan An - principal of Ngoc Son Primary School - said: "When merging the satellite school into the main school, our biggest wish is to give the students a better learning environment, ensuring their safety, especially during the rainy and stormy season. The school will continue to encourage parents to send their children to school, to avoid children being disadvantaged."

Talking to Tuoi Tre Online , Mr. Trinh Van Nha - Chairman of Thanh Chuong District People's Committee - said: The merger of schools and schools aims to create a better learning environment and improve the quality of comprehensive education. This is also the policy of the district and commune that has been approved and supported by the majority of people.

If we oppose the merger and do not allow students to go to school, it is a violation of children's rights, their right to education and learning. The district will continue to propagate and mobilize people to send their children to school."

In the 2024-2025 school year, in addition to merging Thanh Nam Primary School, Thanh Chuong district also merged 4 other schools, including 3 primary schools and one kindergarten of Ngoc Son commune.

Nghe An has merged many schools.

In Nghe An, in 2014, people in Quang Son commune, Do Luong district let their children stay home from school to protest the merger of the Van Ha village satellite school into the main Quang Son commune primary school.

In early September 2022, hundreds of parents in Khai Son commune, Anh Son district also did not send their children to school to request local leaders and the school to resolve their objections to the merger of Lang Son and Khai Son Middle Schools into Khai Lang Middle School.

The local government then held many dialogue sessions with parents, finding solutions to bring students back to school.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cha-me-dua-con-len-tinh-phan-doi-sap-nhap-truong-20240416161822148.htm