Dr. Dao Minh Quan - Deputy Head of the Training Department - shared an overview of online teaching activities in the first semester. Accordingly, the university implemented 1,345 classes on both online platforms: the VNU's LMS and the university's UPM, an increase of 300 classes compared to the previous semester. The Training Department conducted training for 23 classes on using online platforms for teaching and learning. Overall, after two years of implementing online teaching, the faculty and students have used the UPM system stably and proficiently. Despite the prolonged pandemic, training activities in the past semester were assessed as successful in both aspects: ensuring the health and safety of faculty and students, and maintaining the progress of the curriculum and the quality of training.
This success was achieved thanks to many reasons: the close and flexible guidance and management of the Vietnam National University, Hanoi, the Party Committee, and the School's Board of Directors; the proficiency and mastery of online teaching and learning skills of both teachers and students, which have been gradually improved over time; a professional and proactive team of management and technical support staff; good infrastructure, technology, and technical foundations that effectively support online teaching and learning; and the UPM platform facilitating inspection and auditing work…
In addition, online teaching still faces challenges: maintaining both the LMS and UPM systems simultaneously makes management, inspection, and supervision difficult; organizing online exams with a large number of classes and students is not easy for organizers and managers; and the development of digital learning resources does not yet meet the requirements of online teaching…
In the second semester, the total number of courses across the university is 1,076, and it is expected that both online platforms, LMS and UPM, will continue to operate in parallel. Regarding teaching content, the Training Department and the Inspection and Legal Affairs Department have coordinated to disseminate specific content to ensure that lecturers comply with the regulations of Vietnam National University, Hanoi on online teaching. The management and quality assurance of training will continue as in the first semester, based on close coordination and proper functions and responsibilities among all parties, from department heads and training assistants to functional departments that will supervise and support lecturers during the teaching process.
Regarding the results of the inspection and supervision of training activities, Mr. Dang Quang Thai, Deputy Head of the Inspection and Legal Affairs Department, stated: The inspection was conducted in accordance with regulations and yielded positive results. Faculty members fully participated in all classes, adhering to the timetable and schedule, and fully reported any absences and make-up classes. During the recent inspection of postgraduate training activities at Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU), the school received recognition and high praise from VNU for its efforts in managing and implementing online teaching… Regarding semester exams, from December 9th to January 4th, the school organized exams via online platforms in various formats: written exams, oral exams, and multiple-choice tests, with 161 examination rooms, 61 exam sessions, and 402 invigilators, supervisors, and technical staff. From October 23rd to 28th, the school conducted its first online postgraduate entrance exam, which received positive feedback from the public. In particular, the UPM online platform is considered effective and meets the requirements for teaching, especially in supporting training inspections. Inspectors can easily check the situation of classes, from information about subjects, course content, announcements to learning materials, forums, assignments, exam rooms, etc.
Concluding the meeting, Vice Rector Lai Quoc Khanh delivered a speech, affirming the successes of the training work in the first semester in many aspects. However, relevant units need to continue exchanging ideas and finding solutions to both maximize the advantages of technology for online teaching and ensure compliance with the directives and regulations of Vietnam National University, Hanoi. The Vice Rector suggested gradually standardizing management and training support activities after each semester to increase professionalism for the entire system and to promptly develop learning plans for the next semester. In particular, periodic surveys should be implemented to evaluate the effectiveness of online platforms for teachers, students, and management staff; and to compare the effectiveness of different forms of examinations and tests suitable to current conditions… as a basis for proposing improvements to processes and regulations and developing training plans for the next phase. Simultaneously, functional units will continue to maintain training activities on the use of online platforms LMS and UPM for teachers and students; and training on implementing teaching in accordance with the spirit of Decision No. 4318 (dated December 27, 2021) of the Director of VNU. The Department of Politics and Student Affairs is assigned the task of updating information and closely monitoring the vaccination status of students in localities, and proactively developing plans to support them when the actual situation changes.
