Korean language school in baguio

Korean will be taught at Tran Phu High School in Hai Phong City. Photo for illustration

The Korean class at Tran Phu High School will enroll 35 students each year according to a decision announced by the city People’s Committee.

The Ministry of Education and Training has recently decided to pilot German and Korean as the first foreign languages at local schools.

As such, German and Korean will be taught as the first mandatory languages for students from third grade to twelve grades on the trial basis beginning this year.

Besides the pilot teaching of German and Korean, it is mandatory for Vietnamese students to learn one of the five foreign languages including English, Russian, French, Chinese and Japanese. Local students can opt for one among these languages to study.

The 2021 high school graduation examination will basically maintain as 2020. The main goal of the examination is to evaluate the student’s learning results according to the educational objectives of the high school education program.

By Phan Thao – Translated by Anh Quan

South Korean singer Han Sara will perform at the Korean Culture Day in the central province of Quang Nam. Photo courtesy of Korean Cultural Centre

The event will be held at the An Hoi Sculpture Garden, featuring an array of cultural performances, cuisine, and traditional arts of Korea and Hoi An.

“Vietnam and Korea are making our ‘family relationship’ better,” said South Korean ambassador Park Noh-wan.

“I’m glad to introduce Korean culture to people in Quang Nam. I hope this year’s event will bring the people of the two countries closer over the barriers of culture and language.”

Visitors will have the chance to experience Korean culture and cuisine from 3pm-6pm on April 10 and 11 including handicrafts, games and a lucky draw.

From 7pm to 9pm, music shows will entertain event goers with performances by Korean and Vietnamese artists.

Violinist JMI Ko is popular in Vietnam with her music video Xin Chào Việt Nam (Hello Vietnam) featuring beautiful landscapes including Hoi An.

She has been living and working in HCM City for ten years.

Singer Han Sara participated in Giọng Hát Việt (The Voice of Vietnam)’s season 4. Her songs are popular among young listeners.

The South Korean Embassy in Hanoi has cooperated with the People’s Committee of Quang Nam Province to host the National Taekwondo Clubs Championships – Korean Ambassador Cup 2021 from April 7 to 14.

The tournament is co-hosted by the Korean Cultural Centre in Vietnam with the support of the Vietnam Taekwondo Federation, the provincial Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism, and the People’s Committee of Hoi An with the participation of nearly 1,000 taekwondo athletes, coaches and staff.

The UNESCO-recognised world heritage Hoi An and the International Mask Arts & Culture Organisation and Andong City of South Korea inked an agreement to promote cultural exchanges, exhibitions and friendship visits from 2017.

It aimed to boost diplomatic ties between South Korea and Vietnam, as well as the central province of Quang Nam.

Hoi An is one of the most popular destinations in Vietnam, attracting a large number of visitors, especially South Korean tourists who are the top five sources of foreign visitors to Quang Nam.

VNS

Members of a language group in Vietnam have been spending their leisure time in local coffee shops on learning foreign languages.

The BlaBla Language Exchange (BLE) started out as a group of 30 members in Hanoi, who set up the team to help each other in their acquisition of the French language.

The group was founded by Florian Ziegler, a French teacher, in February 2016, and has now become a large community with a variety of local and foreign members.

Several BLE platforms were then established in Ho Chi Minh City, the central Vietnamese city of Da Nang, Switzerland’s Zurich City, and many other cities across the world.

According to Ziegler, the community offers opportunities for foreigners and local people to connect and exchange knowledge in terms of culture and lifestyle.

In each country, local youths with passion for learning foreign languages are chosen to manage the groups, the French teacher stated.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the BLE often organizes their meetings in a friendly and casual environment at local coffee shops.

During a gathering at Bon Café in District 1 in the middle of June, nearly 30 members had already arrived at the location an hour earlier than the prearranged time.

Several national flags of corresponding languages were put on each table, before participants picked a language and started socializing with each other at their corners.

A total of ten language groups were offered at the meeting, namely Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, and Russian.

Learning for integration

According to Tu Anh, 24, a member of the Saigon BlaBla Language Exchange management team, about 150 to 170 participants, mainly young people, attend their regular meetings.

English, Chinese, French, and German are the four most popular languages among members of the Saigon BLE, Anh elaborated.

Man Tan Phat, 22, considered the group a helpful place to sharpen his English and spoken Japanese.

“Foreign languages are necessary in the era of international integration. Aside from learning a language, we are able to know more about different cultures and enhance our confidence in communicating with international friends,” Phat said.

Members are able to learn new vocabulary, adjust their accent while talking with native speakers, Nguyen Hoai To Nhu, 22, elaborated.

Meanwhile, Barry James, a teacher from the United Kingdom, often comes to the BLE gatherings to learn Vietnamese.

Frequent interaction with native speakers is an effective approach to acquiring a new language, James stated.

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Students seek information about universities enrolment at an event organised in Vinh University. in Nghe An Province in January.

At least 30 universities have announced they would prioritise or enrol students who have IELTS certificate score from 4.0 to 6.5 and use the English language proficiency certificates as part of admission criteria.

Many people support the move to help improve the quality of enrolment.

Vu Thi Hien, head of the Department of Training Management under the Foreign Trade University (FTU), said the FTU would admit students based on their high school performance and English competency.

Hien said many training programmes in universities use English as the main language, even the language of instruction.

For example, the FTU has 17 out of 32 training programmes taught in foreign languages, including 14 in English. Therefore, it is important to select candidates with foreign language competency to study these programmes.

“International English certificates such as TOEFL and IELTS are highly reliable, so admission based on these certificates will be a trend of universities”, Hien told VOV2 (The Voice of Vietnam).

Concurring with Hien, Tran Trung Kien, head of the Admissions Department of Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST), said the use of international English certificate is a common trend of many universities worldwide, not just in Vietnam.

The assessment of students’ foreign language ability would not only increase their opportunities but also help them gain advantages for their future studies, he said.

Candidates for HUST’s majors in English and economic management must have an IELTS certificate score of at least 6.5 or an equivalent international language certificate and an average academic score of 8.0 at high school

Phan Thai Son, a student from the High School Education of Sciences under Education University (Vietnam National University), said admitting students based on English competency would diversify assessment methods.

“We have more options and the door to enter the university is open to us,” he said.

Bui Dieu Anh, another student, said: “As soon as being informed of IELTS scores, I prepared necessary skills to adapt to the new environment at the university.”

Caution

Vu Khac Ngoc, a well-known online teacher, said since 2015, the high school graduation and university entrance exams have been combined into one national exam to determine enrolment eligibility. Thus, he said, the use of international English certificates was an important base for making enrolment decisions.

Giving priority or admitting candidates with international English certificates such as TOEFL and IELTS may promote studying English in high school. However, Ngoc said, it might create inequality for students in rural or remote areas.

He said students in these areas faced more difficulties accessing English learning programmes.

“Many parents let their children participate in TOEFL and IELTS preparation courses very early to have a priority certificate for admission to 10th grade and university. This has a positive side, but sometimes it is a burden,” Ngoc said.

He said some students from nearby provinces such as Bac Ninh or Hung Yen had to travel long distances to English centres in Hanoi to practise for IELTS exams and to study with native English speaking teachers every week.

“Not many families can afford that,” Ngoc said.

He suggested careful consideration should be made regarding enrolling students based on international foreign language certificates so as not to hinder disadvantaged groups in society.

“Using IELTS scores for university admission could take opportunities away from students who lack IELTS or relevant certificates,” Nguyen Thanh Binh, a Hanoian mother of a 10th-grader, told Việt Nam News

According to Ngoc, if universities really care about the students’ English competency, the Ministry of Education and Training or universities should organise English proficiency tests for students. Thus, their competency will be measured through a general test that is not as costly as international English certificates.

However, Nguyen Thi Hoa, an English teacher in Hanoi, said people should not too worried about the issue as universities allocate 10-20 per cent of their enrolment quotas to students who have high school results and either an IELTS or TOEFL certificate.

Hoang Minh Son, deputy minister of Education and Training, agreed, saying: “I don’t think assessing applicants based on their international language certificates will pose a risk of inequality because the total enrolment quotas are still the same.”

VNS