The variety of the educational systems in the world depends on the number of countries and cultures round the globe. The educational systems of different countries are developed to respond to the needs of the definite society and state.
Nevertheless, the globalization process makes people pay more attention to the comparison of the educational systems in different countries in relation to their effectiveness to provide the well-educated young people with the strong knowledge and developed skills and abilities. Modern young people use the education as the effective start for their further career. The problem is in the fact that there is the significant difference in opportunities provided for the students in developed and developing countries.
The comparison of the educational systems of Vietnam and Belgium presents the evidence to state that the educational system of Belgium is more developed, and it provides young people with the opportunities to use the received knowledge during their further career when the educational system of Vietnam is based on the outdated curriculum and traditional approaches of teaching.
The Educational System in Vietnam
Education is an important element in the social and economic development of a country. The formal education includes basic education. The whole period of the basic education is twelve years. During this period, the majority of the school age children are enrolled in school. Despite the efforts made by the Vietnamese government regarding the full enrollment of children in schools, there are issues and challenges associated with the country’s education system.
The main problem of the public schools is the lack of the governmental funding. The economy of the country is not developed, and this fact influences the social development (London). Many children who are in their school age do not attend schools because of the poor conditions of their families.
The overall quality of education in the country is low in comparison with the other Asian and European countries. The governmental educational standards are not correlated with those ones required in the developed countries. The outdated curricula are used in schools and in the sphere of the higher education.
The school curriculum of the secondary level is rather compulsory, and it includes a wide range of disciplines such as literature, mathematics, and technology. Vocational education provides courses that should develop students’ practical skills. 1-3 and 2-3 year vocational programs that train individuals in technical education with the quality being monitored by the government are implemented (London).
However, students do not receive the necessary knowledge on the modern communication technologies, and no technologies are used in teaching. Teachers are oriented to use the outdated approaches and methods of lectures to conduct a lesson. As a result, students do not develop the necessary skills, and the education process in schools and institutes is not connected with the professional practice.
To improve the quality of education, the Vietnamese government focused on teacher training. Definite programs are developed to establish learning institutions that can contribute to promoting the academic achievement along with focusing on the emotional, physical and psychological development of students because many students feel uncomfortable within the learning environments. The specific of teacher-student and student-student relations is based on the principles of Confucianism (Cargo).
Education in Belgium
The educational system of Belgium is developed in relation to the needs of the Flemish, French, and German speaking communities. The basic principles of these communities’ school systems are similar. In Belgium, the start of the pre-school education is associated with the age of three years. It is not compulsory for persons to take a child to pre-school institutions. Children start to attend the primary school at the age of 6, following the next six years of basic education.
Reading, writing and arithmetic classes are typical for the primary school. The secondary education is divided into four sections that are the humanities, technical disciplines, arts, and professional disciplines. The secondary education has an objective to prepare students for the university education with the professional section allowing students to choose the profession they would like to pursue in their life (“A Report on Belgian Education”).
All the financial questions associated with the education are regulated by the local communities. The country spends 6.3% of the GDP on education. The level of enrollment in tertiary education is 27% of the population while enrollment in secondary level education is about 88% (Capron).
The local communities pay much attention to the development of the educational systems in order to educate the highly-qualified human resources who can compete within the developing human resources market. From this point, the equality of access to education is important as well as the quality of the education provided.
The educational system of Belgium can be discussed with references to Functionalism theory because the accents are made on the practical significance of the received knowledge. Students are expected to use the knowledge and received skills in their everyday work practice in order to contribute to the community’s welfare. Much attention is paid to the technical education because this sphere of knowledge responds to the global demands.
The curricula according to which the educational systems work are developed in relation to the interests of the communities. The concept of ‘digital divide’ is relevant to discuss the educational system of Belgium. Innovative communication technologies are used in schools and universities in order to create the necessary conditions for the students’ effective study (“A Report on Belgian Education”).
Similarities and Differences in the Educational Systems of Two Countries
It is necessary to determine several factors according to which it is possible to compare the educational systems in Vietnam and Belgium. The first factor is equality of access to education. In Belgium, education is available for all children and young people because the government guarantees that every child is able to attend school regardless the financial state or belonging to the minority group.
The situation is different in Vietnam where poor children cannot afford attending schools, and moreover, many public schools are also not funded appropriately.
The next aspect is the practical importance of education. The secondary education in Belgium prepares students for university education as well as career life, and it is divided into four sections that address these concerns (“A Report on Belgian Education”).
The professional aspect deals with the ability of students to identify their careers early in life, and it is closely linked to the technical aspect of Belgium’s education. However, the secondary education in Vietnam is not oriented to the same purpose. Students begin developing their skills only in institutes. Therefore, the education system in Belgium produces more skilled employees in comparison with the education system in Vietnam.
Students in Vietnam and Belgium overcome the similar socialization processes and face similar risks while being enrolled in the new school environment. However, the principles of Confucianism help teachers in Vietnam regulate these processes (Cargo).
All the modern technological communications are available for students in Belgium when students in Vietnam can not have the access to the necessary books and learning materials.
Education in Belgium is characterized by setting clear goals, the adequate funding, using quality academic programs, developed parent involvement. Moreover, the accents are made on high expectations from students and adequate school facilities along with productive school climate when the situation in Vietnam is quite different (Ballantine and Hammack).
The Impact of Differences on Students and Educators
The negative consequences of differences discussed earlier are associated with the educational system in Vietnam. Thus, students do not receive the necessary education for developing their career, and the rate of unemployment in the country increases because young people have no developed practical skills to start working.
The next negative consequence for students is the obscure chance to compete effectively within the global human resources market. Today, the Vietnamese government develops the alternations for the educational system in order to focus on teaching the English language in the country as the first step to meet the international requirements.
Moreover, Confucianism as the social philosophy used in the education practice prevents a lot of Vietnamese students from taking the independent decisions and from participation in the debates. As a result, the Vietnamese students are passive in relation to their career and further life.
The processes of socialization in the Vietnamese schools are based on the behavioral patterns according to which students can interact with each other and teachers. The social control limits the independence of the students’ thinking, but it contributes to increasing the role of the teacher’s authority.
In Belgium, teachers cooperate with students, and the process of teaching is the student-centered one. As a result, students develop their skills and abilities in relation to the career path which can be chosen by them even in the early school age. In spite of the usage of the more democratic style of communication within the classroom, the quality of the education in Belgium is higher than in Vietnam, and students have more opportunities to receive their higher education and develop career in the future.
The governmental control and funding in Vietnam also do not provide the opportunities for teachers to perform effectively. They suffer from the lack of financing, and they are responsible for teaching according the outdated curricula with the lack of the necessary education materials.
The educational systems of Vietnam and Belgium have a lot of differences and few similarities, and this fact can be explained with references to the culture of the countries, the situation in societies, and economic development of the countries. Referring to the example of Belgium, it is possible to conclude that the economic development and the well-organized structure of the educational system can guarantee the higher quality of education and its practical importance for the young people’s further career.
The current state of the educational system of Vietnam does not provide opportunities for the social and economic development of the country because these processes are interdependent. The educational system in Vietnam requires significant reforms to modernize it according to the global standards and with references to the cultural heritage.
Works Cited
A Report on Belgian Education. 2006. PDF file. Web.
Ballantine, Jeanne, and Floyd Hammack. The Sociology of Education. USA: Pearson, 2011. Print.
Capron, Henry. The National Innovation System of Belgium. USA: Springer, 2004. Print.
Cargo, Duncan. Rethinking Vietnam. USA: Routledge, 2004. Print.
London, Jonathan. Education in Vietnam. USA: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2011. Print.