The Department of Education and Training in the northern province of Bac Giang has issued a decision to take disciplinary action against 42 staff and teachers involved in the exam cheating case two months ago at the Doi Ngo Private High School.
The above mentioned teachers and staff belonged to Ly Thuong Kiet High School in Viet Yen District; Luc Ngan No. 2, Luc Ngan No. 4 and Son Dong No. 2 Secondary Schools; and Doi Ngo Private High School in Luc Nam District.
Among these, 23 school teachers of Ly Thuong Kiet, Luc Ngan 2, 4 and Son Dong 2 Schools, who were invigilating the final examination at the Doi Ngo High School, received disciplinary warning, while seven other teachers were severely reprimanded.
In addition, two school teachers of the Doi Ngo Private High School, Le Thi Hai and Nguyen Thi Kim Thoa, who were found prompting answers to the students during the exam, were fined VND5 million each.
Previously, six teachers had been sacked after the exam cheating incident, for prompting answers to students during the exam, which in the eyes of students and colleagues, was too harsh a punishment.
Parents and students all want good exam results, especially after students spend 12 years on learning and working hard. If they fail the exams, then they have to wait one more year to sit for the next final exam, and if they cannot graduate their careers suffer.
The desire to achieve is a deeply engrained desire in the education sector, where teachers try to give higher marks to their students, so that they will be hailed as good teachers, and rebuked if their students fail in the exams.
There were numerous articles in local newspapers which said that heads of education departments are blamed by provincial leaders for poor percentage of students in final exams.
People think that the problem has been occurring only at Doi Ngo, but instead is rampant in schools nationwide. Some believe that it is unfair to only single out Doi Ngo teachers for such stiff punishment.
