Education for sustainable development in Vietnam: lessons learned from teacher education

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify challenges in education for sustainable development (ESD) implementation in teacher education institutions (TEIs) in Vietnam and propose some appropriate solutions to advance ESD in training teachers toward sustainability. Design/methodology/approach The authors interviewed ten lecturers and 75 students in five TEIs across Vietnam and organized focus groups to obtain qualitative data which were coded to identify themes and provide quantitative results for analysis. Findings ESD-related topics were included in both formal and non-formal education. However, there remains a wide gap between ESD cognition and ESD teaching capacity among teacher trainees due to the prevalence of top-down pedagogy, large classes and poor facilities. Through strengthening collaboration among multiple stakeholders, TEIs should achieve more effective ESD approaches. Research limitations/implications Future research is required to examine the role of non-formal educational educators, NGOs, for instance, in training teachers about ESD. Practical implications Low-cost initiatives generating from the paper may be applied in higher education institutions, particularly in training teachers across developing countries. Social implications The paper analyses the key role of lecturers in ESD implementation and promotion which should be useful for ESD educators. Originality/value The paper points out current challenges in ESD implementation in TEIs in Vietnam and suggests some solutions which may be applied in ESD teaching education in other developing countries.

Achieving and Monitoring Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship: A Systematic Review of the Literature

“…The main factors hampering implementation were teaching methodology and teachers' capacity. For instance, the research of Kieu et al [31] revealed that teaching methods were one of the main reasons for student negative feedback toward ESD at the university level. Students claimed the courses were boring due to the lack of interactive teaching and learning, excessive content and poor facilities.…”

Reviewing Vietnam Geography Textbooks from an ESD Perspective

“…To promote ESD, the United Nations (UN) approved the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) initiative, spanning from 2005 through to 2014 [2], and its follow-up initiative, the Global Action Programme (GAP) [3]. While ESD has had worldwide political support, the literature on ESD has mostly focused on case studies in developed nations; in other words, ESD has not yet been developed in Global South countries [4][5][6]. Indeed, in a review of 123 ESD-related articles selected from international peer-reviewed publications, Karatzoglou [7] showed that the majority (60.2%) of ESD articles come from Europe and the United State, while Asia and Africa account for only 8.9%.…”

“…In Vietnam, SD concepts and issues were introduced in education in the 2000s, with the adoption of Vietnam Agenda 21 [14] and the National Action Plan on ESD in Vietnam 2010-2014 [15]. Principles of ESD have been favoured in Vietnam in certain ways (see [4][5][6]). For example, some SD themes have been promoted through integrating teaching at school and in extracurricular activities under a partnership between the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) and other stakeholders, such as UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) and non-governmental organisations, since 2009, i.e., environmental education, saving energy, climate change education, education for disaster risk reduction, children's rights and HIV/AIDS [16,17].…”

ESD for Public Administration: An Essential Challenge for Inventing the Future of Our Society

“…ESD, also known as sustainability literacy, provides individuals with the necessary knowledge, skills and motivation to successfully face contemporary challenges [30]. Of the ESD objectives mentioned by References [31,32] the following are relevant for the theme of this paper: to use a variety of teaching techniques that promote active (participatory), reflective, cooperative and experience-based learning, that can develop superior thinking skills; local relevance and cultural insertion of the methods being used; blending formal, non-formal and informal education, interdisciplinarity and the capacity to support labour force adaptability to the constant changes within organisations. ESD can be employed to achieve long-term cooperation habits, consistent knowledge sharing, creation of common or complementary skills, which are major factors in building and reinforcing sustainable digital ecosystems [33].…”