From: Phu Pham
Email:
Course: Child Development 169: Motivating Children and adolescents in educational
contexts
College: San Jose State University
Instructor: Eugene Matusov
ClassWeb: http://www.ematusov.com/cd169
ChildrenObservations: No
Date: 23 May 1997
Time: 16:38:05
Remote Name: pax-ca12-18.ix.netcom.com
The issue of motivation in Vietnamese high school is a popular subject for many authors such as Educators, psychologists, sociologists and researchers, who write about this in many books, journals, and articles. This topic is very interesting to me. I am enthusiastic to read many books and journals focusing on this issue adding to my knowledge about Vietnamese culture and my own ideas so that I can write a good term paper.
I will write here about How Vietnamese culture effect Vietnamese students in Vietnam and in America. Culture is a particular form of civilization involving beliefs customs, arts, and institutions of a society at a given time.
Define culture:
Culture is thought to exert its influence on cognition by determining the kinds of activities and practices an individual typically engages in. Cultural values as well as situational and contextual factors mediate development of cognition and behaviors.
The cultural institution of Vietnamese schooling provides norms and strategies for performance that are considered advanced in cognitive test about math and behavior. Vietnamese culture emphasizes effort to learn for self-improvement, self-confidence, enthusiasm, hard work in learning.
We know that in all cultures, rewards are important, however the emphasis on individual outcomes is especially important for individualistic cultures.
High school students are adolescents, so we must know about characteristics of adolescence. Adolescence is a developmental transition between childhood and adulthood. Adolescence has also been widely characterized as an important phase in the development of autonomy (A. Freud, 1958; Steinberg and Silverberg, 1986: A child's world).
The specific characteristics of adolescent "informal institutions" vary with social milieu. The most important concern during adolescence is the search for identity, a concern that may echo throughout life. The many physical changes that signal the onset of adolescence influence young people's lives in many ways. Adolescence involves increased involvement with peers amidst efforts to separate from the parental nest.
This case is different in Vietnam, because according to Vietnamese ways, the children are to obey, respect and live closely with their parents. The end of adolescence has to do with social and emotional factors rather than physical change. It has been said that adolescence "begins in biology and ends in culture". (Conger and Peterson, 1984, p 92: A child's world)
High school is the central organizing experience in most adolescents' lives. It offers students opportunities to learn new information, master new skills, and sharpen old ones. The social, vocational and athletic functions of high school are important but the primary focus of high school continues to be on basic academic subjects. When we write about high school and adolescents, we must consider education and motivation.
Define Education:
Education is the knowledge obtained through learning or education is an essential facilitator as refugees acclimate to a new society and development the understandings necessary to benefit from its social systems. It is the key and opens all the doors of the life, person's value and represents civilization of each country.
Define Motivation:
Motivation is the most important determinant of the difference between what a person can do and what he or she will do (Ama, 1983, p.366: Issues of motivation in Asian education). Motivation of individuals, let alone cultures is a complicated characteristic to measure or account for. Traditionally studies on motivation have a strong bias toward an individualistic orientation with little attention to context or culturally based influences. That is, motivation is often conceptualized uniquely as a product of the intra psychological functioning of the individual. Motivation for high quality learning and performance is considered to be maximized by providing autonomy, thus affording the individual a greater sense of self-determination.
Vietnamese culture in education:
In contrast, in Vietnamese culture, school and parents are building on the motivation that is inherent in children's involvement in the activities at hand. Of course, this requires that the children be interested in the activities. Increase motivation is fostered along with development of responsibility for one's choices.
Vietnamese education is based on traditions such as discipline which strongly influences traditional Vietnam life and society. It is also influenced by the French model of education and examinations. For example, many textbooks were translated from French into Vietnamese, and French school organization and examinations systems were imposed because French controlled Vietnam about 100 years.
Education in Vietnam:
In Vietnam, High school is seven years, with four years for Junior high school with levels 6,7, 8, 9 and three years for senior high school with levels 10, 11,12. At the end of junior high school, the students must take examinations in Math and Vietnamese language which take place at other school with other teacher. If the students' fail the examinations they must retake them. When the students pass the examinations, they choose system education for level ten class because level ten classes has three systems.
The first system includes Biology, Chemistry, Physics that are main subjects in addition to other subjects. The second system includes math, physics, and chemistry that are main subjects in addition to other subjects. The third system includes Vietnamese language, French language and English that are main subjects in addition to other subjects. At the end of senior high school, the students must take examinations with all subjects, but the grades are different. For example: A student of the second system take examinations in math., physics and chemistry. Math is weighted by 5 (because it is a main subject), physics and chemistry are weighted by 4 and other subjects aren't weighted. When the students pass examinations, the Department of National Education gives the high school certificate to these students.
The methods of teaching, school organization, the grading and examinations systems are defined by the department of national education. Learning in school depended upon memorization and understanding. Traditional examinations were used for evaluation purposes. Discipline conformity to the teachers' will and respect were guiding precepts in Vietnamese classrooms. For Example: Le Hong Phong High school, it is a beautiful and excellent school at Ly Thai To in Saigon and has 40 classrooms. The physical size of the classrooms is the same as the classrooms in America. Each classroom has 50 students with some teachers of different subjects. The organization of the classroom includes one student leader of a whole classroom ( excellent student) and several small groups of students. A group has six or seven students , and every group has one leader (good student). The group study in classroom is very well working, because in Vietnamese society friendships usually involve deep engagement and tend to be long-lived, durable and demanding of understanding. We also know from the literature that adolescents adopt attitudes and behaviors to fit in with their close friends, peer infnce also functions on a more abstract culture level. The group study in school is well because the students meet before school starts or at break time and, they check each other's home work and help their classmates.
The classroom has notebooks that includes students grades and teachers notes on students behavior. On Saturday, the classroom leader gets the total grades of the classroom and the teacher evaluates students behavior. On every Monday, the Principal evaluates educational progress and behavior of every classroom and awards the honor flag for the excellent classroom of the school.
The school and family are very close. The parents have meetings with the teachers three times a year. If the students get low grades, then the teacher and the parents help in their education. In fact, this aspect of Vietnamese tradition may contribute to their success in education.
Traditional Vietnamese culture, the family, the teachers have greater concerns about their students worth, abilities and behavior. The teacher needs to determine what constitutes a reinforcement for a student and to observe student's responses to each. The teacher understands each student's goals, so the teacher has concern about each student's learning and behavior. After that understanding the teacher guides and helps them to learn. When the student likes a teacher and feels that the teacher is a fair, warm and caring person, the student's motivation to learn becomes enhanced. The students must obey their teachers like their parents. In classroom, the students volunteer answers, persist in trying to solve problems, improve their skills and are enthusiastic and try to do well in school.
The more traditional Vietnamese society was divided into four distinguishable social categories: The scholar, the peasant farmer, the craftsman and the salesman. Ordered respectively from the highest to the lowest status. The scholar was believed to be the only person possessed with both knowledge and wisdom. The scholar was considered to be a perfect human being. Consequently, he could lead other people, manage the family and contribute to the administration of the country.
Well-educated people are still respected. A love of learning still remains pronounced in the minds and spirits of young Vietnamese. In the Vietnamese culture, education has always been extremely important and educated people traditionally have been reserved and honored, place in society, so the parents value guidance and provide full support for their children in education.
In Vietnamese family the divorce rate is low so the children usually live with both parents. The father is the leader in his family. He makes money and supports his children. The father emphasizes effort and guides his children in education. The father chooses the school, the friends, the books, and makes schedule time for children. The father's importance is especially noteworthy. Fathers seem to vary more than mothers in the degree to which they stay on top of their children's schoolwork, and are more involved in the school. The Vietnamese mother makes money, takes care of the children, and teaches behavior to her children. Vietnamese parents provide full support to their children while their children go to school. The Vietnamese students don't work during their school years so the Vietnamese students are enthusiastic and are well working in school with all their mind. Vietnamese adolescents, who get along well with their parents, then they get higher grades and behave better in school. The students have success in school, that is a result of their parents and the school being helpful to them and providing good guidance. We know many authors of education, they wrote that learning and development occur as people participate in the sociocultural activities of their community, transforming their understanding roles and responsibilities as they participate (Lave and Wenger, 1991;Rogoff, 1995; Rogoff, Baker-sennet, Lacasa, and Gold-Smith, 1995; Rogoff, Baker, Sennett and Matusov, 1994. This good idea, it explains for cultural in education.
In America, many educators and researchers describe Vietnamese -American students' success in school such as California, Canada, Louisiana, Australia. In Louisiana, the principal described the Vietnamese students as bright and motivated and that they maintain their Vietnamese culture (journal available from national rural electric cooperative Assn , 1800 Massachusetts ave, N W Washington D C 20036 by E. P Stein, Nadine).
A study of 387 Vietnamese High school students in New Orleans found that literacy in Vietnamese-American is positively related to identification with the ethnic group and to academic achievement [Bankston-Carl-L, III, Zhou, Effects of minority language literacy on the academic achievement of Vietnamese youths in New Orleans, Sociology of education, vol 68, n1, p 1-17, Jan, 1995] Vietnamese students are hard working and believe in the importance of education making them successful. Many young Vietnamese-Americans have adapted well and are doing well academically, despite differences in language and culture [Rutlege, Paul, The Vietnamese in America. In America series. 1987. Leaner publications company, 241 First Avenue, North Minneapolis, MN 55401.
Vietnamese students have success at school in America because they maintain their Vietnamese culture and their parents are involved in their school. Parents build bridges between experiences in their new and native country [Pecorado, Diane, Phommasovvanh: Parent involvement project. Overview and user Guide, 1991]
Vietnamese students especially in the areas of science and mathematics do well at school and get high grades because parents involvement with teachers in school. The parenting skills emphasized are those of interacting with children and many Vietnamese teachers teaching activities guide with both Vietnamese culture and American culture.
At the same time I am unhappy about some groups of Vietnamese students are failing education in America, because of culture change and differences in language. For example, there are Vietnamese youth gangs in southern California (Huff-C-Ronald, Ed; gangs in America, 1990). They are failing in education because their parents have low education, the parents can't help and guide them to do well in school.
The first month, when I came to America, I saw some Vietnamese students who were in gangs. I asked them about their life and education. They told me we are newcomers, we go to school, but our teachers explain too fast in the classroom, we don't understand, and our parents can't help us, so we are failing in education. I encouraged them but, I couldn't help them because I moved to San Jose.
The literature I found good ideas to understand better this case based description of the socialization process in an innovative school the process of becoming aware of the structure and teacher's role is not rapid for many newcomers to the OC. It takes several years (Matusov and Rogoff, 1995). The students' successes are the results of the teacher's guidance and help, the parents' concern and encouragement. The children learn how to build on each other's ideas collaboratively (Matusov, Bell, and Rogoff, 1994) I think it is the Vietnamese culture that makes Vietnamese students successful in both Vietnam and America. Vietnamese culture has its own specific philosophy of education but, it also shares characteristics of philosophies of education around the world. Although many Vietnamese students are newcomers, they are extraordinarily successful in America. For example: Pham, Ngoc Chinh came to America three years ago. He finished DeAnza college in California with honors and graduated first in the school. Pham, duy Thanh came to America one year ago. He took honors math at Orange high schooling California. His teacher said " you are the first excellent and very intelligent student in math., I have taught math 27 years". She took Pham Thanh's picture and hung in Orange high school.
Therefore, I think cultural, as well as very strict, and family worked diligently to provide education opportunities for their children, so the Vietnamese students have success in Vietnam and in America.
Acknowledgement
I thank Eugene Matusov for excellent teaching and guidance and for being very helpful and nice to all. Thank you very much.
REFERENCES
1. Alan B. Henkin and Liem thanh Nguyen. Between two cultures : The Vietnamese in America, IOWA, 1981.
2. Deborah J. Stipek. Motivation to learning, CA 1988.
3. Diane E. Papalia, Sally Wendkos olds. A child's world, New York, 1990.
4. Ellen Matthews. Culture clash. Chicago, 1982.
5. Eric, Indochinese students in US school. Washington DC 20007, 1981.
6. Gerald Caanmon. Hickey shattered world. Philadelphia, 1993.
7. Raymond J. Wlodkowski. Motivation and teaching, Washington DC 1978.
Journals: 1. Bankston Carl L., Zhou, Min. Effects of minority language literacy on the academic achievement of Vietnamese youths in New Orleans; Sociology of education v 68 n, p. 1-17, Jan 1995.
2. E. P. Stein, Nadine. Rural electric cooperative Assn., 1800 Massachusetts ave, NW Washington DC 20036.
3. Huff, Ronald, Ed; Gangs in America, 1990.
4. Matusov, Bell and Rogoff, 1996. Models teaching and learning participation a community of learners. Oxford UK Blackwell 1996.
5. Percararo, Diane, Phommasouvank-Bounlieng. Limited English proficient (LEP) parent involvement project, overview and user's guide, MN, 1991 and 1992.
6. Rutlege, Paul. The Vietnamese in America, p. 64 for related books see UD 029. 435-439 (1987).