As you know, textbook are just around the conner. Here,
Mr Hoang Van Van introduces English Now readers to his textbook.

Tieng Anh 10 adopts two main teaching approaches, popular in language education in Vietnam and throughout the world. The two approaches are the learner-centred approach and the communicative approach.

The reason for choosing these approaches is that they put learners at the centre of the teaching process. They also encourage learners to be more positive, active and creative. In learner-centred and communicative approaches, the teacher not only delivers language knowledge but also acts as a supporter, consultant, creator of tasks and learner resource. From the learner’s perspective, students have to familiarise themselves with pair and group work activities and be ready to take part in tasks under the teacher’s supervision.

As well as finding their way with learner-centred and communicative approaches, both teachers and students will have to learn how to use
classroom equipment, for example cassette and video tapes, CD-ROMS,
pictures, computers, language labs. By efficient use of this equipment, the workload for teachers in class will be reduced. It will also make the lessons more exciting as communication between teacher and students will increase. As a result, the effectiveness of teaching and learning will be improved.

The teaching and learning methodology will need to change, but so will the testing systems. Based on the new textbook programme, each skills has the same percentage in an hour test and end of term/year test:

Listening: 20%
Reading: 20%
Speaking: 20%
Writing: 20%
and Language Use: 20%.

New textbooks, new content, new testing methods and new ways of using teaching equipment are basic and important elements in the improvement of Vietnamese ELT. However, they will be meaningless if teachers do not change their teaching methods and learners do not change their learning methods.

With a great effort at every stage in and around the teaching-learning process, we believe that learner-centred and communicative approaches will be creatively applied and will lead to positive results in English language teaching in Vietnam generally and in upper secondary schools in particular.

Hoang Van Van
Textbook Writer
Vietnam National University

The British Council is very pleased to mark in 2003 the tenth anniversary of our operations in Vietnam. As a global organisation, the British Council itself is almost 70 years old, so its operations in Vietnam are relatively young. But the pace of development in Vietnam over the last ten years has, by any measure, been nothing short of remarkable. The British Council has been very proud to have played a part in this process and to have
established sustainable, mutually beneficial, partnerships between Vietnam and the United Kingdom which will help support the bilateral relationship in the years ahead..

The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for
educational opportunities and cultural relations with offices in 109
countries worldwide. In Vietnam we have offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

We aim to build long-term partnerships between people in the UK and Vietnam by creating opportunities in:

n English language learning
n internationally recognised UK examinations
n UK education and training
n collaborative education, English language and governance projects
n information exchange
n the arts

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