Many parents said the Ministry of Education and Training should not ban the teaching of foreign languages for pre-school students.

A for class pre-school students in HCM City

Nguyen Thi Nga, of HCM City, said that the age of students at nursery school is a “golden” time for learning languages, and children of this age should not be denied this opportunity. Nha added that learning foreign languages at nursery school will help children get familiar with the languages before studying them in earnest later in life.

Mrs. Bui Thi Huong said she registered a foreign language training course for her child when he was just three years old. Her son now can say some words in English, and he is less shy to speak.

However, parents said that nursery schools should select teachers who have good pronunciation skills to teach so children get a good foundation for further study.

Mr. Dinh Tran Hoang whose child is now at nursery school, said, instead of enforcing a ban, the Ministry of Education and Training should have methods to help kindergartens to education children in the best way, including proper teaching programmes.

Tran Minh Nguyet, Deputy Head of District 3’s Board of Education and Training, said around 10 local nursery schools have taught foreign languages to children based on parents’ desires, not the department’s instruction. The teaching method is mostly based on games and picture books to guide children in getting familiar with English.

"We just heard about the ministry’s ban through the media, but have not yet received any official information. If the ministry’s ban is official, we will wait for HCM City’s Department of Education and Training’s instruction to issue special guidelines to local nursery schools,” she added.