Decision No. 21/2001/QĐ-BGDĐT on Issuing the Framework Curriculum for Secondary Vocational Education

Pursuant to …;

Regarding the issuance of the Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Education

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THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING:

Pursuant to Decree No. 29/CP dated March 30, 1994 of the Government on the tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Education and Training;

On the basis of Decree 15/CP dated March 2, 1993 of the Government on the tasks, powers, and responsibilities for state management of Ministries and ministerial-level agencies;

On the basis of Decree No. 43/2000/NĐ-CP dated August 30, 2000 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Education;

On the basis of the minutes of the review meeting dated February 7, 2001 of the Review Board for the Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Education;

At the proposal of the Director of the Department of Secondary Vocational Education and Vocational Training,

DECISION:

Article 1. The Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Education is hereby promulgated together with this Decision..

Article 2. This Decision shall take effect fifteen days from the date of signature. Any previous regulations that conflict with this Decision are hereby abolished.

The Director of the Department of Secondary Vocational Education and Vocational Training shall be responsible for guiding the implementation of this framework program.

Article 3. The Heads of the Office, the Director of the Department of Secondary Vocational Education and Vocational Training, the Heads of relevant units under the Ministry of Education and Training, the Heads of educational administrative bodies, and the Principals of secondary vocational schools and training institutions shall be responsible for implementing this Decision.

  

FRAMEWORK PROGRAM FOR SECONDARY VOCATIONAL EDUCATION

(Issued pursuant to Decision No. 21/2001/QĐ-BGDĐT dated June 6, 2001 of the Minister of Education and Training).

Chapter 1

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. The Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Education (referred to as the CTK-THCN) stipulates the overall content of educational activities throughout a course of study as a complete system and distributes time reasonably according to the Education Law to meet quality requirements and educational objectives.

Article 2. The educational objective of secondary vocational education is to train workers with knowledge and practical skills at the intermediate level, possessing professional ethics, conscience, discipline, industrial demeanor, and health, thereby creating conditions for workers to have job-seeking capabilities, meeting economic and social development needs, and reinforcing national defense and security.

Ministries and sectors shall coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training to determine objectives and develop the Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Education by sector (CTK-THCN by sector).

The Principals of secondary vocational schools shall be responsible for determining objectives and developing specific educational programs for sectors their schools train based on the provisions of this CTK-THCN and CTK-THCN by sector.

Article 3. The duration of a course of study is: one to two years for the system recruiting students graduating from general secondary school and three to four years for the system recruiting students graduating from lower secondary school. The CTK-THCN corresponding to these two recruitment systems within the same training sector must ensure equivalent basic professional knowledge volume so that both systems have the same standard level.

For special sectors in the cultural arts and sports fields requiring longer training periods than specified above and having a training system recruiting from primary school, relevant ministries and the Ministry of Education and Training shall cooperate to research and develop the CTK-THCN according to specific regulations based on Decree No. 43/2000/NĐ-CP dated August 30, 2000 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Education Law.

Article 4. The basic requirements of the CTK-THCN include:

1. The CTK-THCN must accurately reflect educational objectives. The structure of the knowledge system in the CTK-THCN must be consistent with the orientation of educational objectives.

2. The CTK-THCN must demonstrate:

a. The rationality of the training process.

b. The balance of training content volume between academic years, semesters within an academic year, and between theory and practice.

c. The reasonable distribution of examination subjects and assessments according to semesters and academic years, in accordance with examination, testing, and graduation examination procedures.

3. The CTK-THCN must be feasible, capable of anticipating changes to ensure timely implementation and adjustable when changes occur.

4. The CTK-THCN must have continuity,分流后的第二部分继续准确翻译：

Article 5. The basic purposes of the CTK-THCN include:

1. For ministries and sectors, the CTK-THCN serves as the basis for developing the Framework Programs for Secondary Vocational Education by sector.

2. For schools, the CTK-THCN and the CTK-THCN by sector serve as the basis for:

a. Developing the school's educational program and teaching plan.

b. Implementing training content, establishing training procedures and methods.

c. Preparing teacher work plans.

d. Preparing teaching materials, facilities, and organizing other activities to support teaching and learning processes.

3. For educational administrative bodies, the CTK-THCN serves as one of the bases for managing educational activities, conducting inspections, audits, and evaluating training outcomes.

Chapter 2

CONTENT AND TIME ALLOCATION FOR ACTIVITIES IN THE COURSE

Article 6. Educational and training activities during the course include:

1. Teaching general secondary school subjects (applicable only to the system recruiting lower secondary school graduates).

2. Teaching common subjects.

3. Teaching foundational and specialized subjects.

4. Internships during academic years and final internships.

5. Extracurricular educational activities.

Article 7. Extracurricular educational activities include field trips, special topic reports, social activities, participation in experiments, scientific research, and other activities. These activities must serve educational goals and be decided by the Principal.

Article 8. The duration of a course of study is calculated in years and months. Except for special sectors, courses are defined as follows:

1. The system recruiting lower secondary school graduates includes courses of: three years; three years six months; four years.

2. The system recruiting general secondary school graduates includes courses of: one year; one year six months; two years.

The specific duration of each course for the two recruitment systems within the same training sector shall be determined by the ministry or sector after consultation in writing with the Ministry of Education and Training. Local secondary vocational schools have the responsibility to implement the training duration regulations set by the ministry or sector.

Article 9. A one-year course is applicable only to:

1. Students who have completed long-term vocational training courses or short-term vocational courses with a training period of over one year (in the same field) and hold a General Secondary School Certificate, a Vocational Secondary School Certificate (previously issued), or an equivalent cultural supplementary certificate.

2. Students who have completed a Professional High School program or a higher level in another field.

Article 10. Each academic year is divided into two semesters. The shortest semester within the program must have a minimum duration of 17 weeks. In one semester, no more than eight subjects shall be scheduled.

The time for activities within the program is calculated in weeks.

The teaching time for theoretical and practical subjects is calculated in periods. Each period lasts 45 minutes. Each day is scheduled for one to two sessions. On days with only one session, no more than six periods shall be scheduled per session. Each week shall not exceed 32 theoretical class periods.

The time for internships, final internships, and production work (if applicable) is calculated in hours, with no more than eight hours scheduled per day.

Article 11. The content of activities within the program and the corresponding time distribution for two student admission systems, those who have completed high school and junior high school, are specified in Table 1 of the Curriculum for Technical and Vocational Education (CTK - THCN) to ensure that students graduating from each field meet the prescribed knowledge and skill standards. Principals of schools have the authority to select activity times within that range based on educational goals and specific circumstances of each school.

Article 12. Common cultural subjects include Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Literature - Vietnamese Language, History, and Geography, which are divided into three main groups. Group I includes the subjects: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Literature - Vietnamese Language; Group II includes the subjects: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Literature - Vietnamese Language; Group III includes the subjects: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Literature - Vietnamese Language, History, Geography. Depending on the nature of the technical and vocational education field, at least four common cultural subjects must be arranged, including three graduation examination subjects as stipulated in Article 13 of the CTK - THCN.

After completing the common cultural subject program, schools have the right to organize separate graduation examinations for three common cultural subjects and retain the results until the end of the program for graduation assessment and ranking.

Article 13. The selection of common cultural subjects must be consistent with the educational objectives of the field. Group I applies to fields in the Industrial and Economic sector. Group II applies to fields in the Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Health, and Physical Education sectors. Group III applies to fields in the Cultural Arts, Tourism, and Administrative Legal sectors.

Among the graduation examination subjects, the three common cultural subjects are defined as follows:

1. Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry if the common cultural subject program is applied according to Group I.

2. Mathematics, Chemistry, and Biology if the common cultural subject program is applied according to Group II.

3. Literature - Vietnamese Language, History, and Geography if the common cultural subject program is applied according to Group III.

Article 14. For fields with unique characteristics not suitable for the above groups, the Principal shall consider combining two or three groups to select subjects while proposing three graduation examination subjects, and this can only be implemented after approval in writing by the Ministry of Education and Training.

Article 15. The teaching time for common cultural subjects is 1200 to 1380 periods. The minimum level (1200 periods) applies to a three-year program. Programs of three years and six months, and four years apply from the minimum to the maximum level depending on the specific field and decided by the Principal.

In the CTK - THCN, the standard time for common cultural subjects for different programs is specified in Table 2.

Article 16. Common subjects include National Defense Education, Politics, Physical Education, Computer Science, Foreign Languages, and Legal Education, which are mandatory for all training fields under both admission systems.

The foreign language specified in this CTK - THCN is English, Russian, French, and Chinese. If other foreign languages are selected to be included in the CTK - THCN, they must be approved by the Ministry of Education and Training.

Article 17. The CTK - THCN regarding the distribution of teaching time for common subjects is specified in Table 3. The number of periods stipulated for National Defense Education, Politics, and Legal Education for each program is the minimum requirement for all training fields. The number of periods for Physical Education, Computer Science, and Foreign Languages is set at the minimum or within a range from the minimum to the maximum. Principals of vocational high schools have the authority to choose the number of periods for each subject within the specified range.

Article 18. The training time for basic subjects and specialized subjects, internship time, and final internship time are regulated by relevant ministries in the CTK - THCN of each field. Subjects, internship activities, and final internships throughout the program must be reasonably arranged in a scientific sequence according to the time schedule and decided by the Principal.

Article 19. The Framework Program on basic subjects, specialized subjects, and corresponding time distribution for each subject in a training program shall be compiled and issued uniformly throughout the industry by the Ministry or sector after consultation with the Ministry of Education and Training.

Article 20. For industries that offer specialized training, the specialized training period constitutes 30% of the total time allocated for basic and specialized subjects.

Article 21. The Ministry of Education and Training is responsible for issuing uniformly the programs for general cultural subjects, common subjects, and coordinating with other Ministries to issue common subject programs for multiple industries.

Article 22. Ministries and sectors are responsible for issuing the programs for basic subjects, specialized subjects, and specialized subjects after consultation with the Ministry of Education and Training.

For each subject, the Ministry or sector stipulates from 70 to 75% of the fundamental content (hard components), and from 25 to 30% of the elective content (soft components) determined by the Principal, depending on the specific characteristics of each school.

Article 23. Examinations, assessments, and the corresponding course credit ratios in each semester, as well as graduation examinations, must be carried out according to the Regulations on "Examinations, Assessments, Promotion, and Graduation in Secondary Vocational Schools" issued by the Ministry of Education and Training.

Chapter 3

FRAMEWORK PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

Article 24. The Ministry of Education and Training is responsible for issuing general regulations and the Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Schools for the entire industry.

Based on the Framework Program, Ministries and sectors are responsible for coordinating with the Ministry of Education and Training to develop and issue the industry-specific Framework Programs for secondary vocational schools under their jurisdiction and local secondary vocational schools within the same industry. Issued industry-specific Framework Programs must be submitted to the Ministry of Education and Training for monitoring and management.

Article 25. Principals of secondary vocational schools are responsible for:

1. Implementing the provisions in the Ministry of Education and Training's Framework Program and the industry-specific Framework Programs issued by various Ministries and sectors.

2. Developing comprehensive education programs and teaching plans for the fields their schools train.

3. Appointing teachers to participate in the compilation of textbooks and teaching materials organized by Ministries and sectors for uniform application within the industry.

4. Organizing the compilation of textbooks for subjects without existing common textbooks.

5. Reporting to the Ministry of Education and Training the education programs for the fields of study and the basic and specialized subject programs of the fields currently being trained at their schools as a basis for educational management, inspection, and evaluation work.

Article 26. Ministries and sectors, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities have the responsibility to:

1. Direct and create conditions for subordinate schools to implement the Framework Program for Secondary Vocational Schools and the industry-specific Framework Programs issued.

2. Inspect and supervise comprehensive education programs, annual teaching plans, and the implementation of training regulations issued by the Ministry of Education and Training for subordinate schools and schools located within their administrative areas.

Chapter 4

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 27. This Framework Program applies to regular full-time training programs at secondary vocational schools (including public, semi-public, private, and private schools) and vocational training institutions nationwide.

Table 1. Provisions on activities during the academic year

 

Table 2. Provisions on Teaching Time for General Cultural Subjects

 

Table 3. Provisions on Teaching Time for Common Subjects