(BAFU) On July 13, 2021, PhD. candidate Nguyen Thi Thuy Lan – an English lecturer at the Center for Foreign Languages – Informatics, Bac Giang Agriculture and Forestry University, successfully defended her doctoral thesis titled “Intercultural communicative competence: Vietnamese university English teachers’ beliefs and practices” at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Her thesis was supervised by Dr. Gillian Ward and Dr. Christine Biebricher.
PhD candidate Nguyen Thi Thuy Lan presented the thesis in brief to the Committee
Abstract:
Intercultural communicative competence (ICC), the ability to communicate across linguistic and cultural boundaries (Byram, 1997), has become the ultimate goal of language teaching as a response to the demands of internationalisation and globalisation in the last few decades. This research was undertaken in Vietnam where far too little attention has been paid to the beliefs and practices of Vietnamese university English teachers (VUETs), especially those teaching non-English majors, regarding ICC. To address this gap, the research in this thesis examined what VUETs believed about ICC, how they enhanced students’ ICC in their general English (GE) classrooms, and what factors affected their beliefs and practices regarding ICC in the context of Vietnamese higher education (VHE).
PhD candidate Nguyen Thi Thuy Lan and 2 supervisors (Dr. Gillian Ward andà Dr. Christine Biebricher)
This two-phase research was situated within an interpretivist paradigm with a qualitative research design using a case study approach. Phase 1 aimed to uncover the general understanding of VUETs’ beliefs about ICC. Phase 2 attempted to understand how VUETs enhanced their students’ ICC in their GE classrooms, the relationship between their beliefs and practices regarding ICC, and the influential factors underlying that relationship.
Using Byram’s (1997) model of ICC and Vygotsky’s (1978, 1987) sociocultural theory as the theoretical frameworks, findings of this research show that VUETs held positive beliefs about ICC and its role to Vietnamese students’ future. However, their beliefs about ICC were filled with ambivalences and uncertainties about the feasibility of the enhancement of students’ ICC in GE classrooms in the context of VHE. With regard to their practices of ICC, VUETs were inclined to adopt the role of transmitters of cultural knowledge, instead of intercultural mediators to develop students’ cultural attitudes, skills, or awareness. Data from VUETs’ beliefs and practices of ICC indicate that VUETs have not yet regarded ICC as a goal to be achieved in their GE lessons. Disparities were also unravelled between VUETs’ ICC beliefs and practices due to multiple factors from different layers of contexts. The research provides significant contributions to the understanding of VUETs’ ICC beliefs and practices in the context of VHE. It also offers a sociocultural model that assists in exploring teachers’ beliefs and practices of ICC in other contexts.
The oral examination of Ms Lan’s doctoral thesis was conducted online due to the complicated developments of the Covid-19 pandemic. After Ms Lan presented her thesis findings briefly, the committee members and the examiners pointed out the scientific and practical contributions of the thesis. They also gave constructive comments, feedback, and questions related to the research contents. Ms Lan thanked the comments and answered all the questions raised by the committee members.
PhD candidate Nguyen Thi Thuy Lan and members of the committee
The committee highly appreciated the achieved results of the thesis, as well as Ms Lan’s presenting the thesis and answering the questions. The committee emphasized that her thesis is a crucial scientific research with significant contributions to English language teaching practice in Vietnam and to broader similar sociocultural contexts. With 100% of the votes in favor, the committee recognized Ms. Lan successfully defended her doctoral thesis.
At the end of the oral examination, PhD. candidate Nguyen Thi Thuy Lan gave a sincere and deep thank to the members of the committee, her supervisors, the Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam, Bac Giang Agriculture and Forestry University, the Center for Foreign Languages – Informatics, her friends, her colleagues, and especially her family, who had created favorable conditions and encouraged her during her PhD. journey in order that she managed to successfully complete the doctoral thesis.
Source: PhD. candidate Nguyen Thi Thuy Lan
