[Vnbiz] Education and Job for the Youth

[Shane Wall]

Dear anh Hoanh va CACC,
   Can I jump into this discussion with my life experience, an idea or two
and potential solutions to think about and (hopefully) discuss from your own
perspectives - I say that because I suspect most of my Brothers and Sisters
in VNBIZ are "educated" graduates and probably can shoot lots and lots of
holes in my thinking for the ideas and solutions I mentionl. Also. I'm sorry
this posting is very, very long, but I think the points I illustrate, the
perspectives I have and the possibilities I suggest are important ones that
may stimulate some debate. So here it goes.
 
THE EXPERIENCE
I come from a very poor rural area of Australia. In comparison terms, the
area I came from is just as poor as the hamlet my wife comes from in Tay
Ninh - there are some other people and areas worse off, but most places were
better off than us. I was born in the early 1960's and at that time we had
some terrible droughts. The nearest permanent water source is the Murray
river 50 miles away, or tepid underground water about 50 feet below ground.
When it didn't rain, we had no "sweet water" (our term for fresh, drinkable
rainwater), just the mineral-saturated underground water. I don't know how
many times I saw my father get angry and my mother cry because there was
just not enough to eat. It must have broken their hearts that they could not
give their kids something to eat. To this day, I can go 2, 3 or even 4 days
straight without eating. Of course that is not a nice childhood, BUT that
was the result of geography and weather. I "toi nghiep" all the parents and
children in Vietnam who suffered the same fate because of politics and war.
 
Our lives did get better when my father moved us to another farm 5 miles
away. I was about 10 at the time. The land was more fertile and we didn't go
hungry anymore. My Mom managed to create a fantastic vegetable garden
because the groundwater was much less saline and had less minerals. Us kids
called it "underground rainwater! We had enough to satisfy our physical
needs and got new clothes every year. This continured for several years, but
we were by no means rich. In 1977 my father took me aside and explained he
he wanted one of us kids to go to university so we could earn enough to help
everybody else (sounds like Vietnam huh?), but he would only ever be able to
pay for one of us. He asked if I wanted to go. I said no. Schooling at that
time was a very, very boring experience for me. The lessons were too easy,
and the inability of my classmates to understand what they were being taught
frustrated me immensly. I didn't think I could learn much more in that
environment, so I said "No" and left school at the end of the year. I worked
for my Dad for a while; went grape picking; worked in sheep shearing sheds;
painted houses; worked on a cattle station (where I think I met a ghost -
but that's a different story); and finally joined the Royal Australian Navy
in 1979. This would prove to be one of the defining moments in my life.
 
Along with the military learning, the Navy promptly sent me back to the
classroom. We did a lot of military-related mathematics, chemistry and
physics study. My peers, having studied the civilian equivalents of these
subjects, knew all the formulas and could do all the calculations and
permutations. I could not. HOWEVER, I could apply "what I knew" and always
succeeded in the practical exercises - although I failed dismally in being
able to do the calculations to explain why. I owe everything to the
Commodore of Training and my sadly deceased Father. For my entire memory, my
Father had always asked me - for good things and bad I did, and without
(obvious) anger - "Explain why you did that. What was your thinking?" (now I
would replace Dad's "thinking" with the word "rationale"). The Commodore
agreed with my teachers that I would be useful in the Navy, so he said
"Okay, if this young lad is so brilliant practically and such a 'dud'
theoretically, give him a spoken exam.". I passed out at #18 of 71
(chemistry was the downfall - I knew what different substances DID to each
other, but I couldn't adequately explain why).
 
I became a Radio Operator. Mainly because of what I understood about the
properties of things you can't see, like sound and radio waves. After I went
through Radio School, I understood some of the theories and could apply them
very well. I topped my course. I spent 10 years working radios. Then
satellites and computers came into long-range radio communication. My "edge"
and the modest recognition that had come from it would disappear. In 1989 I
chose to move on to something else - Linguist - that is what the Australian
Navy calls its language specialists. This decision came about from my
interest in trying to understand why my (sadly now deceased Uncle Sam - I
have named my Vietnamese-Australian son after him in reverence) had been
"ripped" off the farm and sent to Vietnam. This was another defining moment
in my life.
 
Thankfully, after the 3 day battery of MLAT/OLAT tests, I was assessed as
being suitable to study tonal languages. I had a choice: Mandarin Chinese;
Thai or Vietnamese. Easy choice for me. In January 1990 I entered the
Australian Defence Force School of Languages to study Vietnamese. 46 weeks
later I graduated 3rd (in my class of 4). A whole new career (within the
Navy) and "world" (the country and peoples of Vietnam herself) had opened up
for me.
 
>From January 1991 until mid-1995 I worked at my new jobs. During this time I
decided that although I had many, many military qualifications, these were
not recognized by the civilian community, and I must gain a recognized
qualification. In 1993 I enrolled in a Bachelor of Translation (Vietnamese).
The course was offered by the Uni. of Western Sydney - 2hrs drive from where
I was stationed. I drove up and back 3 or 4 times a week for 2 years. In the
middle of 1995 I was asked (NOTE: not 'posted', 'sent' or 'dispatched', but
"asked") to join a new headquarters organization as a "regional expert" -
that is what the request said, personally, I don't consider myself "expert"
OR "regional" - but that's the military hey!
 
I accepted (as if you can say "No" to an Admiral!) worked in many different
Staff and Advisor positions in that job with some of the highest field
commanders in the Australian Defence Forces (ADF), sometimes was called upon
to brief the Commander of the ADF, and once briefed the Minister of Defence
himself (no mean feat for a Chief Petty Officer - anyone with some military
knowledge will understand the gap between him and I ). In July 1999, 20
years after starting my Navy career, I got a posting order to go back to a
position I had occupied about 7 years before. As a person, I am a "student".
I am NOT interested in re-doing something I have already mastered, I always
want to learn more. I decided I would leave the Navy if I could find
something suitable. Remember, at this time I had no High School Diploma, and
was still studying an undergraduate degree.
 
After searching very, very deeply - and splashing myself around the internet
- I was approached by a Swiss company with an idea for an internet business
incubation network with its software development center in Vietnam. That was
at the end of 1999. I had one semester to finish in my degree, but chose to
move to Vietnam and "ditch" the degree, and that is what I did. Sadly, the
2000 "dot com" bubble burst and the parent company went into liquidation.
The foreign managers here at the time were all bitterly disappointed and
wanted to keep the group we had built together so much that we bought the
Vietnamese off-shoot for basically US$1 - including a HUGE debt. As it
turned out, we could not function viably with the structure we had, we
altered the arrangements and the "daughter" of that original company is
still making a go of it even to this day.
 
At that time I had some REAL troubles to deal with: foreign country;
separated; no family support, no job; no "piece of paper" to prove I was
"educated" (hence "employable); no cash savings; no wish to leave Vietnam.
It was not a nice situation to be in when EVERYTHING is about your piece of
paper. As Ong Phat or Ong Troi would have it, a former employee from the
software company introduced me to an English school. I was interviewed quite
extensively, and did not hide the fact that technically I am uneducated,
i.e. I don't have any "pieces of paper". I was hired anyway. It may have
been the personal introduction, but that is a different subject.
 
5 years later I am still at the same school. To my personal surprise, I now
consider myself a fairly good ESL teacher of Vietnamese people from 4 to 80
years of age. Yes, I once had an 80 year old student - who made more
progress than the rest of her class! Her reason for studying? "The
grandchildren are older now and there's no great-grandchildren to look after
yet. I'm a bit bored. I thought if I could learn some English I would not be
bored and I can help my grandchildren and great-grandchildren.". Let the
devil burn the idea of "classroom equality" across students for ALL
eternity! Of course I paid very, very special attention to this lovely old
lady - even to the point of ignoring the other students! Why? Because it
agrees with my personal philosophy and thoughts. As I explained,
face-to-face to the whole class, HER attitude was the 'way' that they could
ALL help their own families! They agreed.
 
But back on track, I have found that living in a bilingual environment (none
of my wife's family or the neighbors speak any English), my studies during
the translation degree (which I did not finish) and my experience as an
adult 2nd language learner of Vietnamese, together with my Father's
incessant "Why?" questioning - which has shaped me personally more than
professionally - have coalesced into becoming the catalyst for the ideas
below.
 
THE IDEAS
a. Educate the teachers of today that "understanding the concept(s)" is
paramount over the rote renditon of what the student has read and remembered
from the textbooks! A good memory does not equal a good understanding! My
brother-in-law (he's 14) is starting year 9 this year. He remembers less
about the Vietnamese history he "learned" in year 7 than I do. Sadly, I, as
a foreigner, have had to start trying to make him "understand" his own
history. His Mom says "Why bother? He got 7.5 out of 10. That is not good,
but it is enough!". In my heart, that is not right. He got 7.5 for
REMEMBERING history, not for understanding it! How sad is it that a
foreigner must teach Vietnamese history to a Vietnamese high school
student????
 
b. Educate the parents of tomorrow to learn how to "teach their own children
to learn, not how to remember". 
 
 
THE POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS
a. This requires a tectonic shift in thought about what education is. In
Vietnam now, this can only come from the highest echelons of government.
This is very, very "top down" - the teaching of teachers must be changed! Of
course rote and repetition should not disappear, there is provable value for
this method in some circumstances. However, the method is scientifically and
anecdotally proven to be most beneficial to MEMORY, NOT UNDERSTANDING! In
this case, it is the Government (I class "Government" as: the Communist
Party; the National Assembly; the Fatherland Front; and all the organs and
institutions under them) through the Ministry of Education and Training who
must change their thinking.
 
I cannot remember if he is Dr. or Prof., but that is a trifle, I think Mr.
Nhan is the right man for this job.Of course he is an intelligent and
educated man (although I personally haven't seen his "piece of paper" - hi,
hi, hi - a bad joke by me), but during the one time I have talked to him
personally (when he was still down here in his HCMC position), I gained the
impression from him that he thought Vietnam should should try to "hoc" in
the same way as developed countries. Of course "hoc" in Vietnamese can mean
"study, i.e. what you learn", or "learn, i.e. how you learn". In the context
of that conversation (in mixed Vietnamese and English), I understood him to
mean the latter. How, not What!
 
Of course I cannot know how "secure" Mr. Nhan is within the "ruling elite",
but I must say that the seemingly sudden 'surge' of Vietnamese press
reporting (er, why do most of the stories NOT get reported in the English
language publications???) about undesirable, unethical or criminal behavior
within the education system is probably not by accident.
 
I anticipate this solution will take no less than 25 years, but will
certainly be completed - if implemented universally - within 40-50 years.
The reason I think it will take so long is that it relies a lot on what
happens with b. below. The two are inexorably intertwined. I think if the
two "ends" can agree on an common goal, the amazing could be possible very
quickly.
 
 
b. In my own humble experience as the father of 5 children (1 now at Uni.; 2
at College; 1 at High School and 1 only 11mths), I will obviously have
biased or at the very least influenced ideas here because this is about my
own children. This issue is probably the most complex and difficult to deal
with because I believe it is cultural rather than educational. I will try to
explain what I mean. I understand that I will probably be severely
criticized by some of my Brothers and Sisters here, but this is what I see,
endure and feel:
 
   I. SITUATION 1
The baby (11 months old) climbs up onto the sofa.
 
Vietnamese solution: Take the baby off the sofa so the baby is not hurt.
My solution: Forget what you are doing. Pay attention to the baby. If/when
the baby falls, catch their head so they don't have any serious damage, but
let them fall if they overbalance.
 
Results:
Vietnamese solution: The baby is safe and unhurt, but does not understand
that height and lack of balance are a dangerous combination. No concept that
"falling uncontrollably is frightening".
My solution: The baby is safe and slightly hurt (maybe an arm or leg hits
the floor very hard.) The baby is frightened and might have a bruise
(certainly no broken bones because an 11mth old infant's bones are much,
much more elastic than adult bones). The baby's brain registers that
"falling is not a good thing to do - it is a scary experience".
 
  II SITUATION 2
The baby, again 11 months old, understands "No! No! You can't go outside" -
he is not allowed to go out the front door unless he is taken outside by an
adult. When told "No" by either parent, he immediately cries, although he is
not in any pain and has no physical problems.
 
Vietnamese neighbors solution: Immediately pay attention to him with cries
of "De, de, de, de.", come over, take him up into their arms and take him
outside.
My solution: Pay attention and reinforce the "No" rule. Of course the baby
will cry a lot, but that is only because he cannot speak yet and crying is
the only "language" he has. Cry or not, he must learn that there are good
reasons for rules - even when you don't like them or when they disadvantage
you! After 2-3 minutes he has cried to a stop, become bored and crawls off
to do something else.
 
In my own personal and humble experience, even before a baby can walk or
talk, ALL of us around the baby are helping to form that baby's views of the
world and their relationship(s) with life. This is "bottom up" change. 
 
One of the reasons I have continued to teach English, especially to
children, for so many years when I have a lot of other demands on my time,
is because I believe you cannot separate language from culture, and to a
lesser extent, cultural practices. I know I can improve and develop the
children's English language skills, but more than that, I can "het suc minh
cho con hoc cua thay hieu phong tuc nuoc ngoai nhieu hon - try my best for
the students to better understand foreign customs/practices".
 
If you have managed to make it through to the end of this very, very long
posting, you must be interested in anh Hoanh's posting or mine. Please, give
up your ideas, thoughts and emotions. Tell us what you think.
 
As a final comment, I don't remember where I got this thought - I read it
somewhere, and it isn't mine, but
 - "The worst thing that can come out of honest, passionate and heartfelt
disagreement is disagreement. Right where you started. Are you right to
continue disagreeing, or are you obstinant to the possibilities?"
 
Finally, for a sobering check on your life and what you have "done in life",
ask yourself this question: 
 
Will your great-grandchildren be proud of what you did to improve the world
you have left them with?? Or, "Has your existence as a human on this earth
made a difference? For better, or for worse?"
 
The Ultimate Maker - whoever that is for each of us - will know and judge
you accordingly! (Oh, I am not an overtly religious person).
 
Shane
-------------------------------------
Mr. Shane Wall
Principal
 
shane.wall at translingualexpress.com
Mbl: +84 (090) 9484 753
Tel: +84 (8) 820 9143
 
www.translingualexpress.com <http://www.translingualexpressk.com/> 
-----Original Message-----
From: vnbiz-bounces at mail.saigon.com [mailto:vnbiz-bounces at mail.saigon.com]
On Behalf Of Tran Dinh Hoanh
Sent: Friday, September 08, 2006 5:39 AM
To: vnbiz at vietlinks.net
Subject: [Vnbiz] Education and Job for the Youth


Dear chi Thanh Thanh & CACC,
 
Thanh Thanh talks about the college generation's concern about poor
education quality and job.  Yes, these are very serious concerns.  We are
talking about education reform and I have faith in the new leadership.  We
will continue to bring our input into the education reform process. But it
will take some time to really turn the education system around.  
 
Job is the immediate concern for every student and it is a big issue for the
country.  We have a very young population.  That means a very promising
labor force.  It also means that the pressure to find job for everyone is
horrendous.  How do we manage the country in a way that we can generate lots
of new jobs for the students who are entering the job market?  This is no
easy task, and a slow down in the economy may result in tremendous social
pressure from job shortage.  Unemployed youth is always a time bomb waiting
to explode. So let's pay serious attention to this issue. 
 
1.  The number-one source of job generation is investment, both domestic and
foreign.  To continue encouraging investment, we will have to continue
improve the investment environment:  Streamlining procedures, reducing red
tapes, clean and transparent governance, tax breaks, simplifying labor
regulations, simplifying residency requirements and rent regulations for
foreign companies  and expats, maintaining the country's political and
military stability and security.  We need to have a reputation in the world
that Vietnam is a good place to invest, to work and to live.  
 
Please note, people have to live where they work.  If business regulation is
simple but it is hard to do your visa, difficult to rent a place at
reasonable price, hard to find good school, hard to find good hospital, hard
to find good church, hard to hire an oshin, etc,. then it is not a good
environment to live.  
 
We have to work hard to bring to the world the new image of Vietnam.
Vietnam is no longer a war but a place where you will enjoy a good vacation,
will be happy to put in a new plant, a  beautiful, gentle, friendly,
energetic, profitable place.  A place where you want to work and live and
raise a family. 
 
2.  The government should have a special policy to encourage companies to
employ students (part time) while they are still in school.   The policy can
be done in some form of tax cut to the company, for example.  Working part
time with a company is usually the road for a full time position after
graduation.  Also, it helps the students build experience while still in
school. 
 
3.  Each school should have a "job placement" office to deal with companies
to find jobs for students.

As to the students, here are my suggestion:
 
1.  Work, work, work while you are in school.  If there is no paying job,
find ways to volunteer your service without pay.  Some non-paying job is
even more important than paying job, because it gives you the kind of
experience and connection you cannot find.  (I volunteered to clerk for a
judge without pay while I was in law school). 
 
2.  Work on your English.  The better your English is, the better
opportunity you will have,   We have decided to use English as the major
language in this forum just for you guys.  Write to your friends in English,
Post your messages in this forum.  I have a million grammatical mistakes in
each of my messages.  You can afford to have even more mistakes than I do.
Also, there may be a way for us to organize "English conversation session"
via audio conference weekly so that you guys can have a way to practice
talking.  If you like this idea, please tell me.  
 
3.  Try to be outgoing and active.  The more activities you are involved in,
the more people you know, the more energetic you are, the better job you
will have.
 
(Coffee shops are number-one killer in Vietnam for the guys.  Instead of
spending hours in coffee shop each day and staying very passive, use your
time wisely.  Volunteer your service to some charitable organization.  I did
sit in coffee shop for hours each day when I was younger in Saigon, so I
know what I am talking about.  Hey, doesn't that sound familiar?  The adults
enjoyed all the wrong things when they were young.  Later they tell the kids
not to enjoy those things because those were "wrong."  That's how life
works, guys.  Don't complain!  You pay your due through life, so when you
get to be older, you're entitled to BS here and there.  Just do what I say,
don't do what I did, you hear?) 
 
4.  Most important of all, make sure you have the reputation of"being
reliable" with EVERYONE around you, from your parents, brothers, sisters, to
friends, teachers, etc.  After many years in business I realize that
"Reliability" is the most important and rarest commodity.  If you have a
reputation of being "reliable," you will have good job.  Good jobs have a
way of looking for good people. 
 
Thanh Thanh, I think the issue of job for the young is so important that you
guys and gals should start to generate some movement in that direction.  For
example, Thanh Doan should have a major project pushing this issue.
Students at universities should start to ban together in teams to do
projects to push for "job for youth."  
 
Get out and do something. Every time we think about an important issue, try
as much as we can to really do something about it.  That is how we will move
our nation forward at great speed.
 
And if anyone wants to create some project, s/he can always use our forum
for support, in thinking and brainstorming and for contacts.
 
Let me just stop here for now.  Please chip in,  Keep my brain working.
 
Have a great day, Thanh Thanh and all.
 
Hoanh
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