Education
Learning for all
- English
- Tiếng Việt
Challenges
Education is a basic factor in children’s rights. Learning for all means a system that welcomes and supports every child – no matter their abilities or socio-economic conditions.
While Viet Nam’s education system has proven transformational for many, some vulnerable groups are still left behind.
The numbers tell the story. Just under half of children from rural areas and one-third of those from the poorest households complete upper secondary education. Only one-in-10 children with disabilities attends secondary school and just one-in-five ethnic minority students reach upper secondary school or higher.
Getting education back on track means a child’s gender, ethnicity, disability, household income or location should not determine learning opportunities. Every child should have equal access to quality education and opportunities to realize their potential and become productive members of society. This requires tackling equity gaps in learning, curriculum implementation and gender as well as closing the digital divide, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic causing the biggest disruption to learning in recorded history. This is essential to provide the transferable and digital skills that are key to thrive in the 21st Century rapidly transforming world.
For girls and boys, LGBTIQ+, children with disabilities and ethnic minority students, schools should be safe spaces to learn without bullying and marginalization, while children’s mental health and wellbeing challenges should not be met with silence. This is critical as mental health diseases continue to cast a shadow over many Vietnamese adolescents, with one-in-five impacted and just 5 per cent of parents recognizing their adolescent needs help for mental health issue.
Solutions
Education is for all. That is why UNICEF will not stop until every child in Viet Nam, no matter their situation, has access to inclusive education.
This means system strengthening so education is fit for purpose for all children by realizing inclusive, equitable and quality schooling that unlocks life-changing learning opportunities.
"UNICEF will not stop until every child in Viet Nam, no matter their situation, has access to inclusive quality learning."
Inclusive education translates into no child being left behind. UNICEF works so all children – no matter their gender, ethnicity, disability or location – have access to quality learning opportunities from early childhood through to completion of upper secondary education and meaningful transitions from school to work. Getting more ethnic minority children into preschool to start a full cycle of learning through the education system requires breaking down language barriers with Mother Tongue-Based Bilingual Education. At the same time, Inclusive Education Resource Centres provide children with disabilities with much needed specialized learning opportunities and act as a bridge to mainstream schools.
Skills and learning for all is essential for today’s generation of children to seize opportunities and confront challenges of a rapidly changing world. To prepare them for tomorrow, we work to ensure they receive transferable, digital, green and job-specific skills to future-proof their lives.
To thrive, children need safe learning environments. UNICEF supports child-centred education approaches that tackle gender-based violence, bullying, discrimination and corporal punishment through children’s empowerment to influence social norms that harm vulnerable peers, such as those who are LGBTIQ+, ethnic minority and with disabilities. We work with teachers and school administrators to ensure trained psychosocial support networks are available to children and adolescents who need it.
Explore our Programmes
You can be the change for children!
Help UNICEF provide children and families with critical essential services for health and nutrition, education and protection.
Impacts
UNICEF sees a future where, by 2026, education for all means children and adolescents in Viet Nam can access and benefit from safe, inclusive and innovative learning environments that deliver skills and knowledge for all. These centres of education, especially for those most vulnerable including ethnic minorities and children with disabilities, will be free from stigma and discrimination. Importantly, they will also support the health and mental wellbeing of all students to allow each child and adolescent to future-proof their lives with a meaningful education.