The Tank - Armoured Officer College (its forerunner was the 10th Training Battalion under Tank - Armoured Corps founded on June 22^nd, 1965) is responsible for training Tank - Armoured officers at detachment level for the Vietnam People’s Army and foreign ones. Over the past 55 years of construction, combat and development with the tradition of “Unity, self-reliance, creativity, initiative in overcoming difficulties, teaching well, studying well, being regular and exemplary - to fight is to win”, the College has been awarded many noble rewards by our State, Lao People's Democratic Republic and Cambodian People's Republic. In particular, on May 30^th, 2009, the College was granted the title of "Hero of the People's Armed Forces in the Renewal Period".

However, in the new situation, the College has to face the increased requirements of education and training along with the diverse groups of cadets. Its foreign cadets, especially the Laotian and Cambodian ones are not proficient enough in Vietnamese language; therefore, interpreters are required for training and educating them. Furthermore, logistics and technical support for education and training remains limited. Weapons and technical equipment are degraded and asynchronous, whereas training fields get narrowed. Meanwhile, the planning of army schools under the policy by the Ministry of National Defence adversely affects the ideology of the College’s cadres, lecturers, and employees. Against that backdrop, the College’s Party Committee and Board of Directors bring into play the synergy of organizations and forces, while synchronously adopting solutions to enhance education and training quality.

First of all, the College promotes the role of party committees, party organizations and key cadres at all levels in raising the quality of education and training. It thoroughly grasps superiors’ directives and resolutions, directly the Resolution 978-NQ/ĐU by the Corps’ Party Committee on "Improving education and training quality in the new situation". The Party Committee of the College issues Resolution 16-NQ/ĐU on leadership over the formulation of "Strategy for education and training development in the 2011-2020 period". At the same time, affiliated party committees and organizations are directed to identify breakthroughs in enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in accordance with the functions and tasks of each agency, faculty, and unit. The College attaches great importance to raising the quality and effectiveness of political and ideological education for cadres, lecturers and cadets, particularly party committees and presiding cadres at all levels, so that they could thoroughly grasp educational tasks, take responsibility, create proper teaching - learning motivation and prevent negative phenomena from creeping into the College.

In the process, the College directs the party committees and organizations to closely associate the implementation of the 12^th Party Central Committee’s Resolution No.4 on building and rectifying the Party and the Directive 05-CT/TW of the 12^th Politburo with the Campaign on promoting tradition, dedicating talents and deserving to be "Uncle Ho's Soldiers" in the new period, which furthers unification of awareness and motivates cadres, lecturers and cadets to overcome difficulties, heighten their responsibility, remain active and creative in learning, teaching, scientific research and school construction.

With a view to improving education and training quality, the College places emphasis on its teaching staff and educational management cadres, ensuring this contingent’s quantity and quality, proper structure and military expertise to meet task requirements. The College’s Party Committee and Board of Directors strictly implement regulations on management, comment, evaluation, promotion, salary, mobilization, appointment, deployment and dispatch of officers and lecturers for further training. Simultaneously, regulations and procedures for recruiting lecturers are formed and closely maintained. On-the-spot training courses are combined with ones at domestic and foreign schools. The College also provides opportunities for cadres and lecturers to visit, study and exchange experiences with Tank - Armoured units, academies and schools inside and outside the Military. The College proactively sends cadres and lecturers for field training in combat units, especially ones equipped with new weapons, enabling them to acquire knowledge, gain experience, practise methods, leadership style and teaching skills. Moreover, cadres and lecturers are encouraged to actively attend postgraduate, foreign language and informatics courses as a foundation for research into new weapons and equipment, qualification acquisition, pedagogical capacity and teaching standards. The College’s faculties maintain the order for pedagogical activities, such as lesson plan validation, sample lecture, teaching competition, experience sharing, methodological day, etc. to enhance lecturers’ pedagogical levels. As a result, the College’s cadres and lecturers remain stable with a proper structure, political steadfastness, professional ethics, and pedagogical competence. Currently, 100% of the College’s cadres and lecturers hold bachelor’s degree, nearly 50% of them are postgraduate.

To realize the goal of building a "standardized and modernized school", the College always attaches great importance to renewing and standardizing training content and programs, teaching - learning methods, examination and assessment. The College’s Party Committee and Board of Directors also direct agencies and faculties to build and review all programs, processes and duration of training, ensuring standardization in accordance with the regulations by the Ministry of National Defence. The curriculum is well-balanced and interconnected between blocks of knowledge, constantly updated in fields of knowledge and equipment. The College reduces theoretical study, while enhancing practical and night training. Up to now, the College has formulated 11 framework programs and 27 detailed ones, reviewed and promptly detected inappropriate issues to propose adjustment, supplementation, and completion of 24 programs, developed 6 new programs and 515/515 modules and subjects. It brings in force the content of technical training, mechanized infantry tactics, and field training. It also centers on the application of information technology in preparing lesson plans and lectures with format uniformity, the process of drafting, validating lesson plans and lectures, with a view to reducing workload for lecturers and improving the legitimacy of coaching consultancy. Pieces of 3D-simulation software of machine assemblies and weapons are utilized while learner-centred approach is applied. In addition, the College provides sufficient content, programs, and full-time training for all groups of learners, simultaneously strengthens extracurricular training, increases loaded training marches and applied swimming according to the regulations at each level and focuses on improving cadets’ practice capacity, revision quality and self-study.

A theoretical training session for cadets

To ensure actual teaching and learning, the College stringently maintains the order for investigation and inspection of training, with a focus on driving, shooting, and tactical skills. Currently, the College has built, accepted, put into use, and managed an exam bank with 735 sets of questions for mid-term, final and graduation exams for every group of learners, published test scores and settled complaints according to the regulations and guidance by the Ministry of National Defence on education and training. The College has applied 5 forms of exam and assessment of learners' results (essay: 36%, oral tests: 32%, practice: 22%, multiple choice: 08%, essay writing and exercises: 02%), conducted centralized test marking and reviewed 5 to 7% of exam papers, thereby ensuring objectivity, strictness and rightness. Through the inspections of the General Staff and the Tank - Armoured Command in education and training, the College regularly achieves good grades, with 58/61 criteria satisfying the accreditation of education and training. Annually, field surveys are organized to get feedback from the Tank - Armoured units about the quality of cadets after graduation, in order to verify, supplement, and perfect the program and content. As a result, the College's training quality has constantly improved. 100% graduation exam results are average and above, 80.6% of them are good and very good. Graduate officers are all qualified enough for their initial positions.

Consideration is given to scientific research, technical innovations and improvements and facilities modernization as well. The College focuses on theoretical and practical research, especially the art of using tanks and armoured vehicles in new combat conditions and in face with the enemies’ use of high-tech weapons. The quantity and quality of theses and initiatives are raised, many of which are valuable and highly effective when put into practice. In order to encourage cadres, lecturers and students to participate in scientific research, technical innovation and improvement, the College takes this field as a criterion for selecting and nominating teachers' titles as well as rewarding and commending collectives and individuals annually. From 2011 to 2020, the College has implemented 23 sectoral theses, 18 theses at grassroots level, 15 sectoral initiatives and 107 at grass-roots level, compiled 134 textbooks (7 electronic textbooks, 38 documents, 17 corrected documents). In particular, the thesis entitled "Researching and perfecting the design and technology of manufacturing the 23 mm barrel gun in replacement of 100 mm cannon on tanks" has been assessed as excellent by the Ministry of National Defence’s Acceptance Council.

Besides, the College lays the emphasis on gradually modernizing its facilities and teaching equipment in line with scientific and technological development. Up to now, the College has built 18 specialized classrooms, 3 laboratories, 8 basic classrooms, 1 practice workshop, 1 synchronous, modern room for centralized score marking and management, while upgrading small shooting ranges, building more than 3,000 m² of swimming pool, over 1,500 m² of multi-purpose gymnasiums, and 3 physical training fields. Tunnels, trenches, fortifications of tactical training grounds are arranged consecutively, making contributions to fulfilling education and training tasks. Moreover, the College improves material and spiritual lives of cadres, lecturers and cadets within its capability.

Upholding the 55-year tradition of construction and development, the College’s cadres, lecturers, cadets and employees are always united, proactive, creative, and strive for teaching well, learning well, and building a comprehensively strong, "typical and exemplary" school, thus greatly contributing to training and building a contingent of “both red and expert” Tank - Armoured officers, deserving to be a top center of teaching and scientific research of the Tank - Armoured Corps.

Senior Colonel NGUYEN NGOC LINH, PhD, Rector of the College