Deputy Prime Minister Le Tien Chau recently outlined a plan to address teacher shortages and surpluses, emphasizing the critical link to the quality of teacher training. Speaking at a meeting on 24/9, he urged the Ministry of Education and Training to reorganize the teacher training institution network by consolidating operations and concentrating resources.

The Deputy Prime Minister's directive focuses on developing a select number of key teacher training universities. These institutions must adhere to clear standards and criteria, receiving substantial and superior investment. Mr. Chau stressed, "Key teacher training institutions must develop robustly based on three pillars: training, scientific research, and technology transfer." He also proposed that the education sector standardize curricula and graduate output standards, ensuring uniform application across the entire teacher training system.

A crucial aspect of this reform involves tightening graduate output standards. Mr. Chau stated that actual competencies of graduates should be a key criterion for evaluating institutions, moving beyond reliance on the number of doctoral degrees or current accreditation programs. He added that key institutions must commit to specific outcomes in training, research, and technology transfer.

"The government leadership hopes that, based on research results and practical experience, institutions will proactively offer ideas and propose solutions to enhance education quality, rather than merely focusing on training or scientific publications," Mr. Chau said.

Furthermore, teacher training institutions are encouraged to collaborate with local authorities to identify specific needs. This shift aims to increase customized training, transitioning from a mindset of "training what is possible" to "training according to societal needs." The process for professional development and issuing teacher training certificates must also be streamlined, flexible, and standardized to attract skilled individuals from other sectors into teaching roles.

Deputy Prime Minister Le Tien Chau at the meeting on the afternoon of 24/9. Photo: VGP

Deputy Prime Minister Le Tien Chau at the meeting on the afternoon of 24/9. Photo: VGP

Currently, Vietnam has over 100 teacher training institutions, comprising 65 universities and the remainder being colleges. The Ministry assesses that the system is unevenly distributed, with a concentration of large institutions in major socio-economic centers. Consequently, the role of teacher training colleges has become increasingly diminished.

In 3/2025, the Prime Minister approved the Master Plan for the Network of Higher Education and Teacher Training Institutions for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050. This plan anticipates that by 2030, the number of universities training teachers will be 48-50, marking a reduction of 15-17 institutions from the current count.

Scale of teacher training at key universities

Thanh Hang