Unable to exceed 7 periods/day, many schools in Ho Chi Minh City have to stop teaching foreign language 2.

ngoại ngữ 2 - Ảnh 1. — Ho Chi Minh City students ask for Japanese calligraphy from a Japanese calligrapher - Photo: MY DUNG

"Last year I had three periods of French per week. This is my second foreign language, along with English as my first. I am very happy to learn French because I know a new language. But this year our timetable no longer has French, I am so sorry" - N., a 7th grade student at a middle school in Ho Chi Minh City, expressed.

Cannot arrange foreign language 2 in the timetable

Similarly, an 11th grade student at a high school in Ho Chi Minh City also said: "This school year, my classmates and I will no longer be able to learn Japanese as a second foreign language. We will only learn English as a foreign language. When we learn Japanese in addition to English, we have fun club activities and learn more about the unique culture of Japan.

In particular, I also started to improve my Japanese knowledge quite a bit and started to communicate a little in Japanese. This year, because of the regulation of teaching seven periods/day, the school no longer opened Japanese classes.

We really feel a bit disappointed. If foreign languages are not taught anymore, we will definitely lose the skills we have learned about Japanese over the past year."

The principal of a school said that the school complies with the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training on teaching seven periods per day, so it is temporarily unable to arrange a second foreign language in the students' timetable. Because a second foreign language is not a compulsory subject but a subject in the school curriculum.

"The school also knows that it is a pity to let students drop out of the second foreign language course halfway through. But the new regulation of only seven periods per day makes it difficult for the school to choose subjects and arrange time for students.

For grade 6, we can still teach a second foreign language to increase the opportunity for high school students to learn two foreign languages. For older grades, due to the many compulsory subjects, the school has temporarily suspended teaching a second foreign language for them," the principal of this school explained.

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ngoại ngữ 2 - Ảnh 2. — Japanese language students of Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted during the Japanese calligraphy request session - Photo: MY DUNG

In the 2018 General Education Program, foreign language 2 is an elective subject taught from grades 6 to 12 to provide Vietnamese students with the opportunity to learn another language in addition to their first foreign language.

The 2018 general education program also aims for students to be fluent in two foreign languages after graduating from high school. In that context, it is difficult for schools to implement the seven-period/day regulation and the goals of the 2018 program.

Since the 2018 General Education Program was applied, Minh Duc Secondary School (Cau Ong Lanh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) has started teaching a second foreign language to 6th grade students. After five years, the first batch of students studying two foreign languages from the school has entered 10th grade at high schools in the area.

Last school year, students of the school still learned two foreign languages, English and Chinese, of which Chinese was the second foreign language, taught three periods per week.

With what has been built in teaching foreign languages for students over a long period of time as above, in the 2025-2026 school year, this school continues to teach Chinese to all students of the school. However, before the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training, Minh Duc Secondary School has kept foreign languages for students by letting students study some lessons on LMS (online teaching software) such as experiential activities and local education.

"The school has eliminated all school programs such as talent and clubs to keep the second foreign language program on K12-LMS. If any class lacks lessons, we will add lessons to ensure lessons for students. Because if we eliminate the second foreign language, it would be a pity for the efforts of the past years as well as for the students who will have to drop out of the program," said Ms. Le Thi Thanh Giang, the school's principal.

Speaking to Tuoi Tre, principals of many secondary schools in Ho Chi Minh City said that the regulation of teaching seven periods per day is really not suitable for secondary and high school students in implementing the goals of the 2018 General Education Program, which includes encouraging students to learn and master a second foreign language in addition to the first foreign language.

On the other hand, that regulation is also very disadvantageous for secondary and high school teachers when all subjects are "double periods" (teaching two periods/lesson or exams lasting over 60 minutes).

"The regulation of seven periods/day is only suitable for primary school students. At secondary and high school levels, students have to study more subjects and the curriculum is more demanding, so I think it is necessary to arrange eight periods/day to meet the learning requirements of students as well as the requirements on student qualities and abilities that the 2018 program aims for" - the principal of a secondary school in Ho Chi Minh City expressed his opinion.

Depends on many factors

On September 10, the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City issued new guidelines on implementing seven-period teaching in Ho Chi Minh City, in which the seven-period teaching means that schools will implement the main curriculum (compulsory) in seven periods; and the school curriculum can be increased according to each school's plan.

On September 11, speaking with Tuoi Tre, some schools that have stopped teaching the second foreign language to students said they could not confirm whether they could "restart" the second foreign language for students or not. This depends on many other issues such as the contract with the second foreign language teacher has ended or has not been signed; the risks that if they continue to change, the school will be passive in implementing the study plan for students; the implementation time will be delayed...

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/khong-the-vuot-7-tiet-ngay-nhieu-truong-o-tp-hcm-phai-ngung-day-ngoai-ngu-2-20250911225601951.htm