'Heated' debate about the possibility of studying 2 sessions per day for middle and high school students

HA (according to Vietnamnet) • April 4, 2025 20:36

The information that secondary and high school students can study two sessions a day immediately received mixed opinions, including parents who expressed disagreement with the desire to give their children more time to be independent and study on their own.

On the afternoon of April 3, at the inspection and survey session of the Ministry of Education and Training on the implementation of digital transcripts, development of digital learning materials and organization of 2-session teaching/day for general education, Mr. Thai Van Tai - Director of the Department of General Education said that in the near future, the Ministry of Education and Training will amend and require secondary and high school levels to teach 2 sessions/day.

This information immediately attracted the attention and opinions of many parents, but there are still many very different opinions.

Mr. Nguyen Van Thanh (Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi) said: "If children can study 2 sessions/day at school, it would be great. Parents will not have to worry about having difficulty controlling their children when they stay home to watch TV or play video games..."

However, according to Mr. Thanh, if two sessions per day are implemented, the teaching program needs to be rearranged appropriately. In addition to studying the program of the Ministry of Education and Training, extracurricular programs, life skills, or letting students learn about historical sites and cultivate love for humanity should be combined. "The Ministry must have a specific plan to implement," Mr. Thanh expressed.

According to Mr. Thanh, if students study 2 sessions a day, teachers should consider letting students do their homework in class and only rest and relax at home. "If students study 2 sessions a day and then do homework late at night at home, they won't have time to play or rest," said Mr. Thanh.

Sharing the same opinion, Ms. Vu Thu Huong (Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi) said: If we study 2 sessions/day at school, it is great because parents do not have to worry about running around looking for extra learning centers for their children or fear that their children will lack knowledge. When their children study at school, parents are most assured.

On the contrary, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoa (Hoang Mai district, Hanoi) said that her family plans for her child to study abroad, so in addition to class time, her child studies with foreigners in some afternoons. Moreover, because of flexible work, she and her child also have more time to study talents together, strengthening family ties.

“I think the Ministry of Education and Training should not implement two-session schooling because many families have their own orientations and therefore their own learning methods. Not to mention, middle and high school students also have to make their own plans for studying, playing, self-improvement of knowledge, and participation in community and social activities. Teachers also need more time for their families or to participate in activities and courses to improve their skills. Moreover, not every school has enough classrooms to meet the requirements of teaching all day,” the female parent said.

Reader The Trung Nguyen wrote: "I agree to divide teaching time into 2 sessions/day to ensure less pressure in the morning and teach extra subjects for gifted students, so that parents can reduce the burden of extra teaching and learning at the centers."

However, many readers also expressed opposing opinions with their own arguments.

Reader Vu Truong expressed his opinion: “I have no need for my child to attend high school 2 sessions/day so that he can play sports. Reducing extra classes and studying all day at school is meaningless.”

Reader Anh Vu also thinks that middle school and high school only need 1 session/day. As for primary school, 2 sessions/day is needed because the children are still young, so parents don't have to worry at school.

Referring to the local reality, reader Thanh Nam said: "In my hometown, junior high school students study 2 sessions/day on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and 1 session/day on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, which means they have a break in the afternoon."

Also stating the reason why children should only study one session per day, a reader named Cuong said that children need to have time to relax and be creative. Studying all day at school, and then studying at night will make their minds dull.

Regarding these issues, a representative of the Ministry of Education and Training said that in May, the Ministry will issue instructions on teaching 2 sessions/day and clarify each content to facilitate schools in the new school year.

Department Head Thai Van Tai noted that when teaching 2 sessions/day, schools cannot combine teaching all subjects according to the 2018 General Education Program in the morning, but the timetable needs to be designed and arranged to spread evenly across both sessions to reduce pressure on students. In addition, it is necessary to exploit learning topics and subjects to turn knowledge into capacity for students. The topics and subjects are organized completely differently from the teaching of subjects of the 2018 General Education Program.

It is expected that there are 5 contents that schools must include in the educational content when organizing 2 sessions/day of teaching: Education to form digital skills for students; STEM education; Career education; Traffic Safety Law; Topics and educational activities to form students' capacity.