Schools across the country have open ed early for student registration so they can use money from school fees for repairs and maintenance as soon as possible with the start of the new academic year today.
Vientiane-Hochiminh Friendship Upper Secondary School Director Mr Thong Ane Leumvatthana said on Friday his school usually opened for registration the week before the start of the new school year.
“This year many schools have opened for registration a week earlier than normal, such as this school, which has been crowded with old and new students for the past few days,” he said.
“The early opening is important so that schools can collect registration fees and start to use them for repairs and the purchase of school materials. They will then be ready for the start of the new school year.”
Mr Thong Ane said more than 1,500 students were ready to register at his school and there would be more students this year than last.
This year, the registration costs of 115,000 kip included school fees and documents, and had risen 10,000 kip from last year.
He said some schools may request extra from parents to pay for additional desks, chairs and other necessities.
Mr Thong Ane said his school was opening early to ensure there would be no teaching delays on September 1. Every student should wear the correct uniform and should have an appropriate hairstyle, he added.
“Schools are expected to start teaching from the first day of the school year so they need to be ready. Because they have already registered, students can go straight to class and begin learning after they sing the National Anthem.”
He said teaching would be delayed by a week or even a month in some schools after heavy rain and recent flooding had damaged buildings.
One parent, Ms Van, said she agreed with the small increase in school fees and felt it was appropriate given the current economic situation. But she said other parents might disagree with the increase.
Ban Hom Upper Secondary School Deputy Director, Mr Niew Vathnoy, said the number of students increased every year, which meant the school needed extra desks and chairs.
“We do not have enough equipment for our students so we need parents to pay not only the registration fees but some extra expenses as well,” he said.
A 14-year-old student at Ban Hom Upper Secondary, Nikone Manivanh, said his school opened for registration five days ago so he went to make sure he did not have to pay anything extra to register later on.
He said the school was increasing fees slightly this year because of the increase in the cost of consumer items and other expenses.
