Fully grasping and implementing the Resolution of the 13^th National Party Congress on “…fundamental and comprehensive renovation of education and training, improving high-quality human resources, attracting and employing the talented”, the Party Committee and Board of Directors of the Air Force Officers College have focused on leading and directing the improvement of education and training quality to meet the requirements and tasks.

As one of the leading educational institutions in the Army in general and in the Air Defence – Air Force Service in particular, over the past 60 years, the Air Force Officers College has always upheld the spirit of self-reliance, proactively overcome difficulties, thus fulfilling well the task of education and training, especially the training of military pilots. Since its establishment, the College has organised training on 13 types of aircraft, more than 100 courses with more than 1,000 pilots, more than 60 courses of command and staff, political, technical as well as parachute - search and rescue officers with more than 10,000 cadets; has trained and transferred level for 58 courses in Aviation Engineering at college, intermediate and elementary levels with more than 5,000 cadets. Besides, the College has also provided 50 air force training courses for the Lao People’s Army and the Royal Cambodian Army as well as the Naval Air Force, provided joint training for pilot cadets of Corps 18 and military training for students attending Vietnam’s civil aviation courses. In recognition of their achievements, the College, the Air Force Regiment 910 as well as 26 cadres and teachers were conferred and posthumously bestowed upon the title of Hero of the People’s Armed Forces by the State.

Currently, the College has received the attention of the Central Military Commission, the Ministry of National Defence and the Air Defence – Air Force Service and has been equipped with modern technical equipment. The implementation of the Project of “Investing in technological equipment to build a smart school model” keeping up with the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Scheme on building a “revolutionary, regular, standardised and modern” college have posed an increasing demand for the task of education and training, especially the training of military pilots, parachute – airborne search and rescue officers, etc. Therefore, the college needs to take creative, dynamic and comprehensive measures to improve the quality of education and training. Thoroughly grasping and implementing the Resolution of the 13^th National Party Congress on fundamental and comprehensive renovation of education and training, thus improving high-quality human resources to meet the requirements of national Defence in the new situation, the College’s Party Committee and Board of Directors have focused on leading and directing the work of education and training by means of several main measures as follows:

First, stepping up cognitive education to raise the awareness of cadres, teachers, and cadets of the position, role, significance, and necessity of continuing to renovate, create and improve the quality of education and training. This acts as an important measure to create unity of will and efforts in the entire College, thus building up motivation, attitude and responsibility for these subjects in fulfilling their tasks. The educational content focuses on thoroughly grasping the Party’s guidelines and viewpoints on education and training in keeping with the spirit of the Resolution of the 13^th National Party Congress, the Resolution of the 11^th Military Party Congress, the Resolution of the Service’s Party Congress and the Resolution of the 12^th College’s Party Congress (for the term 2020 - 2025).  Continuing to fully grasp and strictly implement the Strategy for education and training development in the Army in the 2021 - 2030 period and Resolution No.404-NQ/ĐU issued on 17^th January, 2019 by the College’s Party Committee on “Leading to improve the quality of education and training until 2020 and beyond”. At the same time, promoting the synergy of organisations and forces, thus determining to successfully implement the breakthrough aspect: renovating and improving the quality of education and training, especially in mastering new technical equipment as well as attaching importance to flight training and flight safety assurance. Building a qualified teaching staff meeting standardisation requirements; continuing to renovate training programmes and contents in association with renovating training methodology, hence improving teaching quality to meet the requirements and tasks.

Commandant and cadets of the College at the class-2021 convocation

Second, encouraging the roles and responsibilities of all-level party committees and commanders in renovating, creating, and improving the quality of education and training. Thoroughly grasping the viewpoints of the 13^th National Party Congress on “synchronising institutions and policies to effectively implement guidelines for education and training” and higher echelons’ resolutions and directives, the College’s Party Committee has always correctly identified the synchronous, feasible guidelines, directions, and measures for their resolutions to renovate, create and improve the quality of education and training. Strengthening inspection, supervision, thus detecting and resolving any difficulty, along with promptly supplementing guidelines and measures to constantly improve the quality and effectiveness of different stages, steps and assurances in the process of renovation and creativity. Sticking to the breakthrough aspect of “renovating and improving the quality of education and training, especially in mastering new technical equipment as well as attaching importance to flight training and safety assurance”, party committees and commanders at all levels identify the breakthrough aspect and have appropriate leading measures according to their functions and tasks; completely resolve its weaknesses, contributing to the improvement of education and training quality to meet the requirements of building a “revolutionary, regular, standardised, modern” College, which is one of the key colleges in the Army.

Third, comprehensively and synchronously renovating training programmes and contents in association with renovating teaching methodology as well as improving teaching quality. In order to well implement the concept of “synchronously renovating goals, training programmes, contents, methods and methodologies of education and training in the direction of modernisation, international integration, and comprehensive human development”, the College regularly updates, supplements, and perfects documents, curricula, programmes, training contents, thus retraining its subjects in the direction of standardisation and modernisation. During implementation, the College’ Party Committee and Board of Directors request party committees and commanders at all levels to stick to the implementation of Resolution No. 537-NQ/ĐU issued on 5^th July, 2019 by the College’s Party Committee on “Leadership on overcoming weaknesses and shortcomings to improve the quality of flight training and assure flight safety”. Firmly grasping each of the subjects, forces, technical weapons and equipment, means mobilised in each task and each period to develop proper plans; both focusing on training cadets according to their progress and training the teaching staff. At the same time, improving the effectiveness of the direction, inspection and monitoring of functional bodies as well as improving the operational efficiency of the methodical council in flight operations; continuing to renovate teaching and learning methodology in the direction of: being positive, modern and suitable for each subject and type of training in order to bring into full play the qualities and abilities of learners; ensuring that graduates well meet the requirements of training tasks, combat readiness, can exploit and master increasingly modern weapons and equipment of the Service, thus successfully fulfilling their tasks under any circumstances.

Fourth, building the teaching staff and education management cadres meeting the requirements and tasks. Fully grasping the viewpoint of “focusing on building the teaching staff and education management cadres is the key step”, the College determines to consolidate and retrain the teaching staff and education management cadres, thus improving their quality. In implementation, the College adheres to Decision No. 89/ QĐ-TTg issued on 18^th January, 2019 by the Prime Minister on approving the Project of “Improving the quality of the teaching staff and management of higher education institutions to meet the requirements of fundamental and comprehensive renovation of education and training in the 2019 – 2030 period”, laying the foundation for consolidating and developing the teaching staff and education management cadres in terms of quality and quantity, with a proper structure, ensuring to meet the development requirements of the College in both short and long term. Striving that by 2025, 100% of research, teaching and education management staff of the College have university degrees and higher; more than 60% of the teaching staff have post-graduate degrees (in which doctoral degrees account for 7-10%, striving that some individuals will be entitled Excellent Teachers and Associate Professors).

Fifth, well ensuring modern facilities for education and training in the new situation. This serves as an important content, affecting the outcome of the College’s renovation, creativity, and improvement of education and training quality in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the rapid development of military science and technology. Therefore, along with ensuring sufficient textbooks and materials for teaching and scientific research in Aviation, the College has also proactively and actively invested in upgrading the system of specialised classrooms, laboratories, flight simulators, and the system of factories, airports, training grounds. Indeed, it has also upgraded modern and synchronous teaching and learning materials and equipment towards the “smart school” model, meeting the requirements of digital transformation in education and training. At the same time, the College has created favourable conditions for cadres and officers to use modern IT equipment in accordance with education and training regulations. Strictly managing the exploitation and use of the Internet, transceiver and transmission equipment according to regulations and subjects. Proactively and actively fighting against the plots and tricks of hostile forces, thus contributing to the protection of the Party’s ideological foundation as well as building a clean and healthy pedagogical environment.

Improving the quality of education and training is the central political task of the Air Force Officers College. The main responsibility of all-level committees and commanders, cadres, teachers and cadets of the College is to thoroughly grasp and successfully implement the guidelines, viewpoints, resolutions, especially the Resolution of the 13^th National Party Congress in education and training in order to well implement the motto “Training quality of schools is the combat readiness level of units”, thus meeting the requirements and tasks of managing and safeguarding the Fatherland’s sky under any circumstances.

Senior Colonel NGO VINH PHUC, Rector of the Air Force Officers College