Hanoi shuts down English center, fines teacher for calling student 'pig brain'
Wednesday, May 09, 2018, 10:20 GMT+7
An unlicensed English center in Hanoi has been closed down while its teacher has been fined VND5 million (US$220) after she was caught on camera calling a student “pig brain.”
The inspectorate from the municipal Department of Education and Training on Tuesday imposed the fine upon Nguyen Thi Kim Tuyen, a teacher at the MST English, for insulting her student.
Tuyen was also required to stop all teaching activities.
During a working session with competent authorities on Monday, Tuyen could only present a copy of her bachelor’s degree in accounting, according to news outlet VnExpress.
The center was closed down after a previous probe revealed that it had not obtained a license to operate as a foreign language training facility from the education department.
The MST Education System JSC, whose director is Tuyen, was also fined VND20 million ($880) for operating the English center without permission from local authorities.
A video clip capturing a fierce argument between Tuyen and one of her learners was uploaded on Facebook on Saturday last week.
As of Wednesday morning, it has attracted nearly 2.5 million views.
According to the nearly two and a half minute footage, the verbal confrontation broke out after Tuyen demanded that the student pay VND100,000 ($4.4) as he had broken the center's rules by not handing in homework on schedule.
After the learner called her a “fraud,” the teacher started yelling at him and using offensive words, including calling him “pig brain” and “pig face.”
“No [English] center out there is capable of turning a pig like you into a human,” she said in the video.
“This is my playground, where my rules apply. You either pay the fine or get out of my class,” the teacher asserted.
The English center highlights on its official website that “discipline of steel” reigns at the facility, stressing that fines from VND50,000 ($2.2) to VND100,000 must be paid if learners fail to hand in their homework on time.
Learners are required to sign a commitment to comply with such rules at the beginning of the course.
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