Ho Chi Minh City and the breakthrough in English language teaching in high schools.

While the rest of the country was only teaching English to students starting from grade 6, Ho Chi Minh City had already implemented English instruction for grade 1 students. Not only English, but grade 1 students in Ho Chi Minh City also learn math and science in English.

Students in Ho Chi Minh City enthusiastically interacted with the EMG intelligent robot at the EMG Edocation booth during the exhibition celebrating 50 years of educational innovation in Ho Chi Minh City at the Reunification Palace from November 18-20, 2025 - Photo: HH

Speaking at the 50th anniversary celebration of Ho Chi Minh City's education and training sector, Mr. Pham Ngoc Thuong, Permanent Deputy Minister of Education and Training, stated that Ho Chi Minh City has five bright spots.

And one of those five highlights is that Ho Chi Minh City has prepared early and thoroughly for the goal of making English the second language in schools, implementing programs to teach mathematics and science in English; and organizing many playgrounds, competitions, and international exchange activities in English for students.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc assessed that over the past 50 years, the city's education and training sector has made new strides, leaving its mark with many outstanding achievements.

One of the highlights that Mr. Được mentioned is that the education and training sector in Ho Chi Minh City has implemented international standard foreign language and computer science programs early on.

Pioneering English language teaching from grade 1.

In 1998, Ho Chi Minh City was the first locality in the country to proactively implement an English enhancement program starting from the primary school level, with 60 initial students. At that time, the national general education program only taught English in schools starting from grade 6.

Furthermore, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training has advised on the implementation of Project 5695. This is a program for teaching and learning mathematics, science, and English, integrating the English and Vietnamese curricula (referred to as the integrated English program).

In 2014, Project 5695 was approved and implemented in 18 primary schools with 600 students. Notably, this program involved EMG Education as a partner from the beginning, with the task of developing the curriculum framework and implementing the teaching.

This involves applying advanced and modern educational methods from around the world; building a team of teachers with deep expertise and extensive experience in effective teaching of mathematics and science in English using the CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) approach; and applying high technology in education...

If the implementation of the enhanced English program is considered a bold step, then the execution of Project 5695 is seen as a breakthrough. For the first time nationwide, students in public primary schools are learning English, math, and science with native English-speaking teachers and using a UK curriculum (100% of the integrated English program lessons are taught by native English-speaking teachers).

Meeting the needs of parents and keeping pace with the trends of globalization and international integration, the aforementioned English programs have developed rapidly with the voluntary participation of students.

To date, nearly 100% of students in Ho Chi Minh City have been learning English since grade 1 (before the merger). The integrated English program alone has enrolled over 30,000 students from 160 primary, secondary, and high schools.

Students in the integrated English program (Project 5695) present their group's STEM project - Photo: HH

And the sweet fruits

After a short period of implementation, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training announced regulations for evaluating students according to international competency standards. The Department proactively collaborated with international organizations (such as Pearson and ETS) to apply competency assessment certification standards for students.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, in the first few years, some parents were hesitant, wondering "how can first-grade students learn English, let alone math and science in English, when they are not yet fluent in Vietnamese?"

However, the results of students in the integrated English program over the past 10 years are proof of this. Students in the integrated English program who took the Pearson Edexcel international certificate exam achieved an average pass rate in the three subjects of English, mathematics, and science over the past 10 years, with a pass rate of 86% in primary school, 92% in secondary school, and 96% in high school.

Over more than 10 years of implementation, Project 5695 has helped many students achieve high results in international academic competitions. Specifically, many students have won top prizes in international mathematics and science competitions in English. Among them, 5 students achieved the highest scores in the world in international certification exams.

Mr. Nguyen Bao Quoc, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, stated: "The effectiveness of the integrated English program is also demonstrated by the fact that many students can communicate fluently in English, especially in situations related to academics and science. 119 students were awarded the Excellence Awards by the Pearson Edexcel International Examinations Board - for outstanding academic achievement."

Also at the 50th anniversary celebration of Ho Chi Minh City's education and training sector, the Permanent Deputy Minister of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City, Pham Ngoc Thuong, acknowledged that Ho Chi Minh City is one of the localities that has prepared earliest and most systematically for the goal of making English the second language in schools.

Thanks to this, Ho Chi Minh City achieved high results in the high school graduation exam, with students from Ho Chi Minh City consistently ranking in the top 3 nationwide in mathematics and English for many years.

Specifically for English, Ho Chi Minh City holds the record for having the highest high school graduation exam scores nationwide for eight consecutive years.

This achievement is seen as a favorable foundation for Ho Chi Minh City to make English the second language in schools. This aligns with the goals of the Politburo and the Prime Minister's recently approved Project 2371.

Building an English-speaking application environment.

Ms. Nguyen Phuong Lan, General Director of EMG Education, said that EMG Education continues to apply and constantly improve upon the achievements already made in advanced educational technologies such as 3D models, Virtual Experiments laboratories, and Metaverse-based classrooms in its lessons.

This ensures students always have access to the latest educational materials and technologies. This equips them with the necessary knowledge and skills to adapt and integrate into the future.

Furthermore, the main objective of Project 5695 is to create a practical English learning environment, allowing students to learn anytime, anywhere, not just during classroom hours.

Specifically, the program includes many project-based learning activities, STEM activities, group assignments, presentations, and film projects in English, giving students many opportunities to use English outside of class.

HOANG HUONG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tp-hcm-va-buoc-dot-pha-giang-day-tieng-anh-trong-truong-pho-thong-20251122130226268.htm