Post by : Shakul

Vietnam’s Ministry of Education and Training is preparing a new legal framework to regulate the exploitation and use of open educational resources in higher education institutions across the country. On May 8, 2026, the ministry announced that it is seeking public feedback on a draft Circular designed to support digital transformation in higher education and improve access to academic resources for students, teachers, and researchers.

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, open educational resources are considered one of the most important foundations of modern digital higher education systems. Officials believe that developing a national framework for open learning materials will help universities improve teaching quality, support lifelong learning, reduce educational costs, and increase equal access to knowledge for learners across Vietnam.

The draft Circular has been developed based on the Law on Higher Education 2025 and related government regulations. It also follows the direction outlined in Decision 1117/QD-TTg issued in September 2023, which focused on building and developing open educational resource models in Vietnamese higher education institutions. The ministry stated that the new policy aims to create a consistent and unified legal system for managing and sharing digital learning resources nationwide.

At present, Vietnam’s digital educational resource system remains fragmented and lacks strong coordination among universities and training institutions. Officials noted that many higher education institutions still face shortages of high-quality digital learning materials to support teaching, research, and online education. The government believes that open educational resources can help solve these issues by creating a more connected and accessible learning ecosystem.

Under the draft regulations, open educational resources include textbooks, lecture materials, online courses, multimedia learning tools, research data, open-source software, and other educational content available in digital or physical formats. These materials may exist in the public domain or be protected by copyright but released under open licenses that allow users to access, reuse, modify, combine, and redistribute the content according to specific licensing conditions.

One of the most significant new proposals in the draft is the creation of a National Open Educational Resources Access Portal. This nationwide digital platform would allow universities and educational institutions to connect, integrate, and update shared learning resources in one centralized system. The ministry believes the portal will improve resource sharing, make academic materials easier to search and access, and strengthen cooperation among universities across the country.

The draft also introduces strict quality standards for open educational resources. Educational materials must meet scientific, academic, and pedagogical requirements while also complying with laws related to intellectual property, information security, and personal data protection. Universities and educational institutions will be required to establish internal review procedures and evaluate materials carefully before officially publishing them for public use.

In addition, the proposed regulations clearly define the rights and responsibilities of organizations and individuals using open educational resources. Users will have the right to access, share, edit, and use learning materials under open license rules. However, they must also respect copyright regulations, properly cite sources, and avoid using educational materials for illegal purposes or in ways that distort academic content.

The Ministry of Education and Training emphasized that open educational resources will become an important part of Vietnam’s future digital education system. Universities will be encouraged to invest in information technology infrastructure, train teachers and students to use digital learning platforms, and cooperate with businesses and international organizations to expand access to global knowledge resources. Officials believe the proposed regulations will help improve the quality of Vietnamese higher education while supporting innovation, international integration, and long-term digital transformation in the education sector.

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