My child is in the group with the least extra classes in the class, but every month I still lose more than 13 million VND.

(Dan Tri) - Out of 50 parents participating in the survey, 31 parents said that if they had the money, they would let their children take more and better quality classes.

Mother spends 13 million VND per month on extra classes but still feels guilty towards her child

Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha has two children studying at a public secondary school in Ba Dinh district. The older child is in 9th grade and the younger child is in 7th grade. The monthly tuition fee for the two children is 13.22 million VND.

Ms. Ha lists details as the table below:

When asked why her child still takes extra math and English classes outside of school despite taking all three subjects at school, Ms. Ha said: "I'm not comfortable. All the parents I know let their children take extra classes both at school and outside of school."

To buy peace of mind, Ms. Ha hired a home tutor for her child in math and English. As for literature, she let her child study with her grandmother, a retired teacher, to save on expenses.

In addition, the older child in grade 9 still maintains the schedule of studying Japanese as a second foreign language, piano and basketball. The younger child studies piano with his brother but plays another sport , badminton.

"Compared to other 9th graders, my child is in the group that takes the least extra classes. Each subject is only studied once a week. The extra classes at school do not count because the whole class takes them.

In my class, most of you have extra classes for each subject 2 sessions/week, full schedule every evening from Monday to Saturday. There is even a student who has 2 teachers for one subject.

So, even though it costs 13 million VND per month, I still feel guilty for not giving my child the best learning conditions.

I just encourage my child to try their best. The whole family is also aiming for a high school with a moderate admission score so that my child will not be under too much pressure.

If I had better financial conditions, I would let my child study more, with better teachers," Ms. Ha shared.

Students have extracurricular activities at the museum (Photo: Hoang Hong).

Sharing the same sentiment, Ms. To Van Anh (Nam Tu Liem, Hanoi ) spends about 9 million VND/month for her two children to study extra but always feels dissatisfied because it is "too little".

Her two children both attend English intensive classes at public schools, with tuition fees of about 2.5 million VND, including boarding fees.

However, she still lets her children learn English outside to improve their listening and speaking skills. In addition, they learn musical instruments and modern dance.

As for the older child in grade 8, he has the goal of taking the entrance exam to a specialized school, so he has to study 3 more subjects: math, chemistry, and biology.

If calculating the total cost of studying, Ms. Van Anh spends about 15 million VND, accounting for 3/4 of her total income.

Being a single mother, her ex-husband's child support was not enough, so Ms. Van Anh had to take on extra work at home at night and on weekends.

Is extra learning the main learning?

Of the 50 parents who participated in a survey with Dan Tri reporters, only 2 parents did not let their children take extra English classes.

One parent taught their child themselves, the other parent sent their child to private school from elementary school.

9 parents let their children learn English with a fee of less than 1 million VND/month/child.

23 parents let their children learn English with fees ranging from over 1 million VND to under 2 million VND/month/child.

At the level of 2-3 million VND/month/child, there are 7 parents. At the level of 3 million VND/month or more, there are 9 parents.

Notably, there are 3 parents who spend 4 million VND/month/child for their children to study for the IELTS certificate exam.

In addition, there are 5 parents who let their children learn 2 foreign languages. Of these, 2 parents let their children learn Japanese and 3 parents let their children learn Chinese. The cost of learning a second foreign language is about 1-1.6 million VND/month.

A survey of 17 parents with at least one child in secondary school found that the highest cost for English tuition was 8.2 million VND/month. 9/17 parents spent over 3 million VND/month.

Tuition and English tuition costs of 17 parents with at least 1 child in secondary school (Table: Hoang Hong).

16/50 parents above send their children to private schools. 12 parents send their children to both public and private schools depending on the level of education. The remaining 22 parents send their children to public schools.

However, the cost of extra classes between parent groups does not have a significant difference.

Although students learn English in school, parents consider learning English as their main study.

"If children only study at school, their grammar will not be solid enough to pass important exams, let alone be able to use it in real life," said Ms. Nguyen Phuong Thao (Cau Giay, Hanoi).

Regarding cultural subjects, 50 parents surveyed agreed that they could not feel secure if their children only studied at school. They considered extra classes as the place to help students master knowledge and skills.

A parent whose child attends Thanh Xuan Secondary School said: "Students at key schools still attend extra classes as usual.

After 6 years of not taking extra classes, my child had to ask me to register him for math and literature classes when he entered 7th grade. He felt that he was falling behind his friends who had to take extra classes every week."

Another parent analyzed: "Your child may be good and can study very well on his own. But who can guarantee that other people's children are not as good as yours?

Specialized schools and selective classes are only for a few thousand students. Meanwhile, the number of excellent students like your child can be in the tens of thousands. So do you choose to let your child learn by himself, find his own way or do you find a good teacher to open up and show him the way?

Ms. To Van Anh shared that she had received a lot of advice to let her children study less so that she could have less trouble with money. However, she believed that letting her children take extra classes was justified.

Students visit the Hanoi Information Technology and STEM Festival (Photo: Hoang Hong).

"No matter what anyone says, I cannot cut down on my child's tuition fees. I cannot force him to study by himself to pass the entrance exam to a specialized school because that is an illusion. I also cannot cut off his dream of taking the entrance exam. The gifted subject is both something he loves and a useful means of entertainment. It is not wrong to say it is not necessary, but I do not want him to lose to his friends.

The living needs of city children cannot be compared with those of rural children. The level of study and examinations in the city is also different. When everyone goes to extra classes, the level is raised.

If your child does not have the special qualities to be able to study on their own and still do well, they will be left behind. Is there any parent who accepts that their child is normal and is left behind?", Ms. Van Anh asked.

Ms. Van Anh personally does not accept it. She believes that most parents do not accept it either. Everyone wants their children to do well in school. Normal parents will invest in their children's education to the best of their ability.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/con-thuoc-nhom-hoc-them-it-nhat-lop-moi-thang-me-van-mat-hon-13-trieu-dong-20241030001307068.htm