VietNamNet Bridge – Under the new regulations, visiting lecturers at universities must have one of three things: a professor or associate professor title, a degree from a pedagogical university, or a certificate of pedagogical training. Universities are complaining that the regulations are too strict.

A closed-door policy

A lecture with foreign businessman at the Hanoi University

Universities say that it is difficult to invite lecturers in any case, and that they sometimes have to use private relationships to lure lecturers. Therefore, no university dares ask a lecturer to show a pedagogical certificate before teaching, and they say it is absurd to demand they take training courses to get a certificate.

Dr Nguyen Thi Thoa, Dean of Journalism at the Academy for Journalism and Communications, has called this a rigid regulation and a closed-door policy.

Thoa said that in fact, journalists, when acting as visiting lecturers, just relate stories about their career and share experience with students; therefore, they do not really need to have pedagogical knowledge. Before inviting journalists to act as lecturers, their personalities, morals and working abilities are always researched, he added.

After the lecturers of journalists, students are asked what they learned. If the students turn out to have learned nothing, the lecturers are not invited back again.

Associate Prof Dr Nguyen Van Minh, Dean of E-commerce Faculty at theTrade University, said that it is necessary to require pedagogical certificates from lecturers who will teach both theoretical and practical lessons. However, it is not advisable to require certificates of businessmen who come to share practical experience.

“Most visiting lecturers are leaders of businesses or those who have been very successful in the market. Therefore, they always have to give presentations before the public and they have strong communication skills,” Minh said, adding that a lot of businessmen even prepare lecturers in slides and give lectures in a careful way like official university lecturers.

Dodging laws?

Nguyen Ngoc Hoa, Deputy Headmaster of the Hanoi Law University, said that if the ministry insists on requiring pedagogical certificates from visiting lecturers, the university will invite experts to give lecturers under the mode of extra lessons or knowledge exchange.

Pham Le Thu Nga, MA, Dean of the Business Administration and Tourism under the Hanoi University, agrees that visiting lecturers need to have pedagogical knowledge. However, Nga said that it is necessary to set up flexible regulations in order to pave the way for universities to invite professional experts.

Nga said that instead of requiring pedagogical certificates, universities could themselves devise procedures to evaluate the capabilities of lecturers. The Hanoi University, for example, asks lecturers to give a test lecture, and then undergo an interview.

Dr Nguyen Thanh Chuong also said that it is necessary to set up standards for visiting lecturers, and requiring a pedagogical certificate is a part of professionalising teaching.

However, Chuong said that appropriate pay needs to accompany professionalism.

Universities are now trying to pay lecturers the highest possible level, VND30,000/period. This means that a lecturer earns VND500,000 if he teaches one class for one semester. Meanwhile, he also has to pay 10% personal income tax. The wage, in short, is …unprofessional.

Lan Huong