VUS TESOL 2024 - Promoting holistic education in English language teaching

The event attracted nearly 3,000 participants, marking the 20th time VUS TESOL has organized it in fulfilling its mission to enhance English language teaching capabilities for teachers.

Responding to trends in the education sector in a global context.

Understanding the context of increasingly rapid global educational integration, the trend of integrating holistic education into English language teaching is becoming prominent, not only providing academic knowledge but also effectively equipping learners with the skills to solve challenges in their studies and in life. This year, VUS TESOL 2024 returns with the theme: “Building and Promoting Holistic Education in English Language Teaching for Students,” offering many useful perspectives and materials on holistic education with high applicability in teaching in today's era.

The conference brought together nearly 30 leading speakers from both Vietnam and abroad.

The event featured nearly 30 speakers, including leading experts from VUS's prestigious partners such as National Geographic Learning, Oxford University Press, Macmillan Education, Cambridge University Press and Assessment, as well as representatives from various agencies, English teachers at all levels, and students from provinces and cities in Vietnam and neighboring countries.

Throughout the event, thematic sessions covered a wide range of topics, from practical approaches to improving English language teaching through digital platforms and breaking down phonetic teaching barriers to fostering a passion for learning English in students. These sessions were divided into plenary and specialized sessions, allowing participants to freely choose which sessions interested them.

Attending the conference as a special guest, Associate Professor Dr. Vu Thi Tu Anh - Deputy Director of the Department of Continuing Education - Ministry of Education and Training, shared: “VUS is an English education system that demonstrates excellence in expertise, which I highly appreciate. The 20 VUS TESOL sessions represent a persistent journey overcoming the difficulties of the pandemic, digital transformation, etc., showing the high sense of community responsibility of a foreign language center within the national education system. This year, the theme of Holistic Education is a good one, a great opportunity for teachers to access innovative educational trends, creating motivation and encouragement for teachers to embrace change.”

Steven Happel, Senior Academic Manager at VUS, also expressed: “I hope this will be an academic encounter for all of us, creating an exciting and enlightening one-day exploration into the ever-changing world of English language teaching.”

Opening the conference, Kieran Donaghy, an expert from Oxford University Press (OUP), shared his insights on the topic "Multimodal literacy in ELT - how to develop holistic communication skills?".

The speaker explored and, together with the audience, analyzed in depth the key concepts of observation and presentation, as well as how to apply these concepts to classroom practice. Simultaneously, Kieran Donaghy clarified the significance of multimodal literacy for teaching methods and content.

In addition, speaker Iris Thiri Su from ELI Publishing summarized research in her presentation titled “Stress-Free Test Strategies: Equipping YLE Learners with Effective Techniques.” During the session, Iris Thiri Su emphasized the importance for teachers in helping students develop social and emotional skills, just as they develop classroom learning skills.

In particular, a new update to VUS TESOL is the introduction of The Debate, which addresses the question: Should students focus on the results of competency tests or on the values and skills acquired from the classroom?

The participants in this debate included Allen Davenport (Cambridge University Press), Andrew Duenas (National Geographic Learning), Blue Melia (Macmillan Education), and Kieran Donaghy (Oxford University Press). The four experts were divided into two groups to present their viewpoints. Participants gained a more multifaceted and comprehensive perspective on the issue, and had the opportunity to ask questions and contribute their opinions to the speakers.

A central hub for networking and sharing among educators.

In its journey to nurture aspirations for excellence through the development of foreign language skills in young Vietnamese generations, VUS understands the crucial role of teachers – those who directly accompany students to help them take steps forward each day, towards a bright future.

Understanding that teachers not only need to improve their teaching skills but also need to update their knowledge of new educational trends to be more creative in their lessons for the younger generation, VUS always strives to create opportunities for the community to participate in completely free professional development courses with leading experts in the field, such as VUS TESOL.

Since its first conference in 2006, each VUS TESOL conference has featured topics that reflect the latest global educational trends. All share a common goal: to provide engaging insights and inspire groundbreaking ideas for the future of English language teaching in Vietnam and the region.

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