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Pre-school teachers participate in a training course held by ECCE project. Photo N.H |
New Zealand Government-sponsored “Early Childhood Care and Education” project (ECCE) has aided 58 mountainous and remote communes in Binh Dinh in building schools. ECCE project is expected to improve the education quality and create favors for children in underprivileged areas.
Several years ago, kindergartens in not only underprivileged areas but cities weren’t paid attention to. There was less investment in upgrading the infrastructure.
At present, this has been gradually changing. The pre-school education in disadvantaged areas showed the effectiveness of ECCE project.
Van Canh District has seven kindergartens which are under the project. Each includes 1-2 classrooms with the system of sanitation and clean water.
Besides the aid from the project, Van Canh District also invested in building walls and gates. Kindergartens in hamlets of Binh Long, Canh Giao, and Hiep Ha are fully operational.
Similarly, kindergartens in Districts of Hoai An, Vinh Thanh, Tay Son, An Nhon, and Phu My are in use now. In Vinh Thanh District, the construction is being promoted.
Local people also participated in the construction, helping speed up the progress. This can be understood as “the State and people take care of pre-school education together.”
The encouraging sign of pre-education in underprivileged areas was showed by not only training courses for teachers and officials but the construction of kindergartens in 58 disadvantaged communes.
“In the new 2008-2009 academic year, all hamlets in An Lao District have kindergartens for children, including three-year-children,” said Truong Tu, head of An Lao District Education and Training Division.
The project was expected to develop the pre-school education in Binh Dinh, particularly in mountainous and remote areas, said Doan Thi Trung Hieu, project manager.
Previously, preschool students had to study at warehouses or primary schools due to the lack of classroom.
ECCE project solved the problem, helping increase the number of preschool students in underprivileged areas in the 2008-2009 academic year.
Parents of preschool students showed their belief in the effectiveness of project and policies of the State and Party.
Currently, kindergartens in mountainous and remote areas could meet all demands. There are only, however, five kindergarten nationally standardized in Binh Dinh. The percentage of standardized kindergarten is expected to rise in the coming time.
How to effectively use the infrastructure is still problematic. It’s necessary to mobilize all people to participate in the construction and maintenance for the long-term effectiveness.
