Over 50 years of construction and development, Sao Do University (Ministry of Industry and Trade) has trained over 100,000 masters, engineers, bachelors, technical workers, vocational instructors, and technicians of different majors, contributing to the cause of industrialization and modernization of the country. In the course of training, along with improving the professional quality, the University has attached importance to defense and security education for students, aiming to build a comprehensively high-quality human resource to meet the requirements of building and defending the Fatherland in the new situation.
To implementing this issue, first of all, the University has focused on leading and directing to raise the awareness and sense of responsibility for the objects on defense and security education and considered this as the most important solution. The University has always done well the grasping and educational work so that officials, lecturers, and students are fully aware of the Party and State's strategic guidelines on defense and security education, legalized subject of defense and security education, and the University task for this important work. In particular, the Universitey has focused on thoroughly grasping the National Defense and Security Education Law, superiors’ circulars and directives directly related to the organization of defense and security education for students. With the guideline of: defense and security education for students must be associated with the cause of education and training, the University has strengthened the leadership over this subject and directed functional agencies to closely coordinate with Military Region 3’s Military School in training and fostering military skills. Concurrently, it has also directed the functional departments and faculties to closely follow and coordinate in implementing to ensure all aspects for performing this task, take care of spiritual life for students, build a safe and friendly education environment, organize several activities within the University, such as the project entitled "Safe schools for security and order", and participate in the local military, defense, and security activities, etc. to raise awareness and sense of responsibility for defense and security education for cadres, lecturers, and students of the University.
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| Students of Sao Do University in a defence and security course |
In recent years, the negative impacts the market economy and social networks on students have affected the education and training process in general, defense and security education for students in particular. Recognizing that, the University has paid much attention to educating and building up students with a strong political will, proper learning motivation, and good professional ethics to immunize against negative social impacts. After students start their academic year, the University immediately organizes the "Citizens week for first-year students" with many useful and practical activities. In particular, the contents include sea and island sovereignty; talks on the situation of political security, social order, and safety; prevention of crime and conspiracies and tricks of "peaceful evolution" of hostile forces; people's war and construction of the all-people national defense, all-people defense posture associated with people's security posture in the new situation, etc. It, thereby, has help students have a right view and be more aware of the task of defending the Fatherland as well as the position and roles of defense and security work and the defense and security education.
Pursuant to Joint Circular No.18/2015/TTLT-BGDĐT-BLĐTBXH issued on September 8th, 2015 by the Ministry of Education and Training and Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs stipulating the organization of teaching, learning, and assessment of results of defense and security education and based on the characteristics and conditions of facilities and human resources, especially the University's training ground and equipment, that have not met the requirements of the subject, the University has coordinated with the Center for Defense and Security Education, Military Region 3 Military School, in organizing the subject. Accordingly, the subject is conducted in 2 phases. Phase 1: Theoretical study, is conducted at the University in order to promote its existing teaching staff and take advantage of facilities, especially the modern specialized lecture halls. Phase 2: Training and drilling on military and security skills, is conducted at the Center for Defense and Security Education, Military Region 3 Military School to ensure that students can train and practice in the true military school environment.
In order to well implement the contents of the subject, the University has attached much importance to strengthening the Faculty of Political and Physical Education that plays a core role in the teaching of theoretical content on defense and security education. In recent years, the University has developed numerous measures to build, foster, and consolidate the teaching staff of the subject to ensure sufficient quantity and gradually standardize on quality. Besides, the University has directed the innovation in teaching methods of defense and security education for students. The University’s lecturers have focused on applying positive teaching methods, making the most of modern teaching facilities, designing electronic lectures integrated with many materials, images and movies, actively researching and updating the lectures with new developments in defense, security, and national protection. Notably, the University has promoted the advantage of standing in the area with many historical monuments to organize extracurricular activities for students to visit, research and study at Con Son. - Kiep Bac historical relic, Luc Dau Giang Victory Monument, etc. Thereby, the national pride, national self-respect, patriotism, and political consciousness for students have been practically built.
Phase 2, military skill training and drilling at the Military Region 3 Military School's Center for National Defense and Security Education, is the main practical training phase to help students train and form necessary military knowledge and skills, such as: military regulations and individual infantry techniques and tactics, at the same time, experience and practice styles, living regimes, organization, and disciplines. Due to the short time students spend at the Center, intense learning and training content, and rigorous requirements, in order to well implement this content, the University has worked closely with the Center in developing plans, handing over students to the Center thoughtfully, and focusing on doing well the ideological work for students before starting training. Along with that, the University has assigned full-time officials of the Military Steering Committee to regularly accompany and “eat and live” with students. The officials and trainers of the Center have also been closely coordinated with to manage the number of students, grasp the situation of learning and training to promptly encourage, urge, remind, and solve all difficulties and problems of the students. As a result, for many years, the quality of defense and security education for students at the Center has always achieved good results and has been increasingly improved. In the academic year 2018-2019, the University and the Center have jointly organized defense and security education for 634 students. The results were 100% of satisfaction, including 73% of fairness and excellence.
From the practice of directing and organizing the implementation of defense and security education for students, the University has drawn some basic experiences as follows:
1. Defense and security education for students should be considered as an important task in the overall training work of a school. It is necessary to overcome the thought of making light, making perfunctoriness, formality, or unrealistic evaluation of results, that make students not really focus on the subject.
2. The leadership and direction of the party committees and the heads of all levels in the school on defense and security education for students must be conducted in a positive way, while responsibility on each specific position should be promoted and attached.
3. The implemention of defense and security education for students should be flexibly applied with forms and methods, especially the close combination between regular classes and extracurricular fostering sessions during the training process to create a comfortable thought for students that they can absorb content in a proactive manner.
4. It is required to resolutely implement standardization of teaching staff of defense and security education according to the criteria as prescribed because this is the decisive force to the quality of teaching. Meanwhile, attention should be paid to improving professional qualifications and pedagogical skills and building bravery and model behavior of teachers associated with the characteristics of the subject.
These above experiences and also the solutions have been promoted and practically implemented by Sao Do University, that have contributed to training high-quality human resources with full quality, personality, and revolutionary ideals to meet the requirements of construction and protection of the Fatherland.
Doctor Nguyen Thi Kim Nguyen and Doctor Pham Van Du, Sao Do University