The Government has issued Decree No. 271/2026/ND-CP on free general education textbooks and the waiver of tuition fees and course materials for national defense and security education subjects at higher education and vocational education institutions.
The decree provides free textbooks for general education students and learners at educational institutions implementing programs issued by the Ministry of Education and Training, including the General Education Program, the Continuing Education Program for lower and upper secondary levels, and the Literacy Program.
The decree stipulates a borrow-and-return system to enable textbooks to be reused multiple times. Existing textbooks will be prioritized and redistributed through an inter-library mechanism among educational institutions within the same locality before new books are purchased. The policy aims to reduce pressure on the state budget, protect the environment, minimize waste, and improve public asset management.
From the 2029-30 school year, free textbooks will be provided to all students nationwide.
Localities with sufficient budget capacity, or those able to mobilize social resources, are encouraged to implement the policy earlier. Priority will be given to border, island, ethnic minority, mountainous, and areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions, in line with local financial capacity and practical conditions.
From June 29 to July 24, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, in coordination with the Vietnam Education Publishing House, is organizing training sessions for school administrators and teachers on implementing the unified Ket noi tri thuc voi cuoc song (Connecting knowledge with life) textbook series from the 2026-2027 school year.
At the primary level, Nguyen Thanh Tin, head of Grade 4 at Nguyen Binh Khiem Primary School in Saigon Ward, said the introduction of a unified textbook series would not create difficulties for teachers because the curriculum remains unchanged under the current general education program.
In previous school years, teachers were already given the flexibility to choose teaching materials from different textbook series according to their students' needs. This year, he said, using the new textbook series provides an opportunity for teachers to become more familiar with new teaching materials and prepare confidently for the new school year.
Alongside the textbook training, subject departments are continuing discussions and research to develop digital learning resources and a learning management system (LMS) compatible with the new textbook series. They are also designing experiential learning activities and specialized programs that expand the use of artificial intelligence to improve teaching effectiveness.
With schools using a single textbook series, accompanying resources including teachers' guides, electronic lesson plans, question banks, and instructional videos have been developed in a coordinated manner by the publisher. This gives teachers easier access to official reference materials, reduces lesson preparation time, and facilitates more practical collaboration among schools, as all teachers work with the same content and knowledge framework.
