A new era for the Education Sector (Part 2): Resolution 71 opens up a new, modern, and humane space for development
WVR - Prof. Dr. Huynh Van Son, Rector of Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, shares his perspective that Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW (Resolution 71), with its legal reform directions, strong decentralization, and focused investment in the teaching workforce, will open up a new development space.
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| Prof. Huynh Van Son. (Photo: Courtesy by author) |
Identifying and planning to resolve bottlenecks
Resolution 71 is seen as a groundbreaking, comprehensive, and strategic document for the education sector. How do you perceive its political and social significance in affirming the determination to make education and training a key driver for national development?
Resolution 71 is not merely a policy document; it is a strong political declaration, demonstrating a commitment to fundamentally, comprehensively, and profoundly reform the national education system.
As the country enters a new development phase, with increasing demands for quality human resources and integration, this resolution reflects a consistent policy of considering education and training as a top national priority.
The guiding principles show a connection between tradition and modernity, ensuring the educational tenets and philosophy of our country. Moreover, the resolution presents updated orientations, creating major policies to plan educational development in a breakthrough direction in the new context.
The political significance is further highlighted as educational goals are defined with both vision and quantifiable measures, showcasing strong thinking and comprehensive coverage. The goals set for 2035 and the vision for 2045 indicate systematic and methodical attention to forecasting and expectations. Socially, this is a timely call to inspire trust, reinforce the aspiration for learning, and foster sustainable development within the community.
The resolution sets the goal for Vietnam to be among the top 50 countries with high-quality education by 2030. This is not just an expectation but a strategic action commitment, with a vision beyond term-based thinking. Breakthroughs in institutional reform, digital transformation, and international integration are also evidence of the resolution's stature in making education a key driver for national development in the 21st century.
One of the highlights of Resolution 71 is addressing the long-standing "bottlenecks" in the education system. In your view, what are the major "bottlenecks" that the resolution will resolve, and how will this open up new opportunities for Vietnam's education sector?
One of the standout values of Resolution 71 is clearly identifying and planning to resolve the long-standing "bottlenecks" in Vietnam's education. With 8 tasks, solutions, and 6 guiding principles, it can be said that the bottlenecks are addressed systematically and accurately to "position" correctly; "handle" closely, and "prescribe" effectively.
It is also important to affirm that every education system has areas that need attention during operation. Building on the successes of implementing Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW dated November 4, 2013, by the Central Committee of the 11th Party Congress "On fundamental, comprehensive reform of education and training to meet the requirements of industrialization and modernization in the context of a socialist-oriented market economy and international integration"; as well as the achievements and results obtained, the "screening", "clarifying", or "diagnosing" the bottlenecks is a highly valuable step with great significance.
| "Educational reforms not only meet integration requirements but also lay the foundation for forming a generation of global citizens with Vietnamese identity, ready to work effectively, unafraid of competition, and eager for innovation and creativity". |
Three major bottlenecks to address include: Inconsistent institutional frameworks, uneven quality of the workforce, and an education management mindset heavily reliant on administration. Overlapping legal frameworks often disrupt the implementation of reforms; the quality of the teaching workforce, especially in remote areas, lacks both expertise and working conditions. Meanwhile, education management has not kept pace with the demands of digital transformation and autonomy, which need to be addressed.
Resolution 71, with its legal reform directions, strong decentralization, and focused investment in the teaching workforce, will open up a new development space: A more flexible, modern, and humane education system. When bottlenecks are resolved, development opportunities will not only come to the sector but also to each learner, each family, and society as a whole.
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| Teachers are not just knowledge providers but should become guides, inspirers, and companions in character development. (Photo: Vu Minh Hien) |
Resolution 71 has clearly defined trends and policy directions for Vietnam's education in the coming period. Can you analyze the most prominent new points, especially in fundamentally and comprehensively renewing education towards integration and creativity?
Resolution 71 affirms a strong shift from knowledge transmission education to comprehensive human development education, emphasizing self-learning capacity, critical thinking, and creativity. A particularly noteworthy new point is the emphasis on open – flexible – integrated education, with a focus on building a learning society and lifelong learning.
Additionally, digital transformation in education is no longer just a slogan but has become a strategy and a comprehensive solution, from management to teaching, from learning materials to assessment. Emphasizing digital competence, artificial intelligence, and global skills has brought Vietnam's educational vision closer to international standards and identified "key points" for integration and direct competition.
| "In the digital era and amid globalization, what matters is not merely ‘knowing a lot,’ but understanding and practicing how to live rightly, cultivating the ability to self-learn and to grow, and acting authentically to uphold Vietnamese values in a multidimensional world.”. |
Moreover, the resolution also calls for a strong renewal in student assessment: From focusing on scores to focusing on the process of personal capacity development. Along with that, in task - solution 6, when directly addressing vocational education, it must continue to reform and modernize as well as create breakthroughs in developing a highly skilled workforce, indicating that skills and vocational competencies become important destinations.
These innovations not only meet integration requirements but also lay the foundation for forming a generation of global citizens with Vietnamese identity, ready to work effectively, unafraid of competition, and eager for innovation and creativity.
Fostering character and courage in the young generation
To turn the spirit and content of the resolution into reality, how should the roles of educators, education managers, and the community be promoted, in your opinion?
To realize Resolution 71, a synchronized effort is a prerequisite, but the core remains the educators and education managers. Teachers are not just knowledge providers but should become guides, inspirers, and companions in character development.
Right in task - solution 1, the issue of raising awareness, renewing thinking and action, and determining strong political determination is placed first. Thus, more than anyone else, each educator, especially management staff and experts, must lead and decisively implement with a system of solutions – measures ensuring legal basis and practical actions in the right direction and target. Or in task - solution 5, focusing on building the teaching workforce and infrastructure shows that people are always a concern, but they must be people who work, think while working, and create while working.
| "Resolution 71 not only aims to train knowledgeable individuals but also creates an environment to foster character, courage, and national spirit in the young generation". |
This requires training - fostering - rewarding policies to be substantive, beyond formality. For education managers, it is necessary to shift from administrative management to professional, flexible governance, considering learners as the center and innovation as the driving force.
On the social side, the roles of parents, businesses, and community organizations need to be mobilized through an open educational ecosystem. Education is no longer the sole responsibility of the sector but a shared responsibility of the entire society, especially in the current context of digital transformation and globalization.
When specific and strong policies are in place to concentrate the strength of the entire community, with sponsorship funds, international cooperation, and deep integration with experts both domestically and internationally, and with the wholehearted efforts of the entire community, the strength of education will multiply when it becomes a collective endeavor of the entire people and society. We have role division and responsibility allocation, but by contributing and working together, each bottleneck or knot will be resolved when approached.
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| Education is no longer the sole responsibility of the sector but a shared responsibility of the entire society. (Photo: Minh Hien) |
As an education manager and psychology expert, what are your expectations for Resolution 71 in fostering well-rounded Vietnamese individuals — not only knowledgeable, but also rich in character, courage, and national spirit — in the context of globalization and the digital era?”
I believe that Resolution 71 will be thoroughly understood or guided for implementation. Therefore, each person will understand more about the spirit of the Resolution and "master" the guidelines following the Resolution.
From a personal perspective, fostering well-rounded Vietnamese individuals, not only knowledgeable but also rich in character, courage, and national spirit in the context of globalization and the digital era is the aspiration of each person, each parent, each teacher, manager, and even each ordinary Vietnamese. It is not only a matter of conscience but also a responsibility and a duty.
We can expect that Resolution 71 not only aims to train knowledgeable individuals but also creates an environment to foster character, courage, and national spirit in the young generation. In the digital era and amid globalization, the important thing is not just "knowing a lot", but understanding and practicing how to live rightly, cultivating the ability to self-learn and to grow, and acting authentically to uphold Vietnamese values in a multidimensional world; understanding where we are and being decisive with specific plans that have "outcomes" in action results to change and continuously develop.
Emphasizing soft skills, emotional-social education, value education, and global citizenship are very positive signals for us to assert our identity while remaining steadfast, confident, and diverse to integrate globally. We can expect that Vietnamese education will no longer be exam-heavy but will shift to "liberal education", where each student is holistically developed: Intelligent, compassionate, and responsible for themselves and the community.
Additionally, ensuring cultural security in education with foreign elements in general, along with encouraging and supporting the opening of branches and representative offices to implement Vietnamese education programs abroad, expanding Vietnamese language teaching abroad shows clear innovation towards development, strategic dissemination, and targeted outreach... All of this contributes to building a foundation for a sustainably developing nation, not diluted in a flat world.
