I'm delighted to introduce this first newsletter of Vietnam's teacher and trainer network (VTTN). As you will probably know, the British Council is working closely with the Ministry of Education and Training on this project and so we were all very pleased when the VTTN project was officially approved by MOET on 24 May 2000. The network aims to support teachers of English in upper secondary schools and universities, and has been designed to provide a forum for teachers to exchange practical teaching ideas and materials that you can use in your classrooms every day.
VTTN is run primarily by Vietnamese teachers and trainers with financial and professional support from the British Council for the first three-year phase of the project. We hope to
continue to expand the network to include more upper secondary school teachers in other provinces in Vietnam.
The project was launched in August with national workshops in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The first provincial workshops were held in Nam Dinh, Hue, Danang and Ho Chi Minh City.

These were very successful events attracting attendance from more than 180 teachers. Feedback from these events was very positive, with teachers reporting that they gained much practical experience and knowledge.
As well as passing all the techniques and materials discussed during the workshops to teachers in their institutions, participants identified the ideas and activities that they find particularly useful. Their experiences and some of their ideas are now published in this VTTN newsletter for teachers alI over the country to read. Many thanks to alI the teachers who sent in their contributions.

Kate Owen
Deputy Director
The British Council Vietnam