Vietnamese educators begin training at UNE

June 06, 2007

Seventy-one Vietnamese educators embarked on four weeks of training programs at the University of New England on Monday 4 June after the University secured a competitive contract, sponsored by the World Bank, worth almost $300,000.

The educators (with their six translators) will stay on-campus at UNE, undertaking training by UNE academics in educational management and teaching methodology through the Primary Education Development Program, which is administered by the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training.

Members of the group, which includes senior government officers, school principals, deputy principals, teachers, curriculum specialists and university lecturers, will also get some first-hand experience of teaching in rural NSW by visiting local schools in Armidale and Uralla.

The program aims to improve the quality of primary schools in Vietnam through enhancing professional standards, offering specialised training, introducing new quality assurance measures and revising terms of service regarding teaching standards. The skills acquired at UNE will assist the teachers to train others on their return to Vietnam.

The Head of the Primary Division in Education in the Ninh Binh province of Vietnam, Mr Nguyen Van San, visited Australia last year as part of a delegation learning about more general education management, but said he was looking forward to undertaking this more specialised focus on primary education at UNE. (Mr Nguyen Van San is pictured here with the Vice-Chancellor of UNE, Professor Alan Pettigrew.)

"We are at a different stage of development in Vietnam compared to Australia," he said. "We have a lot of difficulties; however, we hope to apply the use of technology, teaching practices and education management we learn here to improve education in Vietnam."

UNE's Professor Victor Minichiello, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Dean of the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies, who will soon travel to Vietnam, said that the project was a clear indication of the reputation that UNE had established there over the past five years.

"We have specifically designed pathways that allow international students to undertake studies in educational management and leadership, and, to date, have enjoyed considerable success with Vietnam through the development of partnerships with local universities," Professor Minichiello said.

Vietnam has launched an ambitious program of reform and further development of its education system using training like that being undertaken at UNE. The past two decades have seen impressive economic and social development, with annual growth rates of between 6 and 8 per cent. Vietnam was recently admitted to the World Trade Organisation.

Photos from the visit can be found by clicking here.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at June 6, 2007 04:38 PM