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If a foreigner can master Vietnamese, why do Vietnamese students still struggle with English?

If a foreigner can master Vietnamese, why do Vietnamese students still struggle with English?

Many Vietnamese students struggle to speak English clearly, pronounce words correctly, or understand native speakers, even after over a decade of learning the language.
Grammar-heavy, practice-light: The reason Vietnamese students can't understand foreign English teachers

Grammar-heavy, practice-light: The reason Vietnamese students can't understand foreign English teachers

Why English teachers must speak 100% English

Why English teachers must speak 100% English

10 years old and uncoached, Vietnamese girl scores 8.5 in IELTS

10 years old and uncoached, Vietnamese girl scores 8.5 in IELTS

A 10-year-old girl in Ho Chi Minh City has achieved an overall IELTS score of 8.5 in her first attempt, despite never learning at an English center or hiring a tutor.
November 8, 2025 | 05:00 am PT
English from first grade: How to make it a bilingual asset and not curriculum burden

English from first grade: How to make it a bilingual asset and not curriculum burden

It was a summer day in the Dutch countryside when I met a boy about 12 or 13 years old.
November 5, 2025 | 02:43 pm PT
English from grade 1 is a right move, but will grammar stuffing overload our children?

English from grade 1 is a right move, but will grammar stuffing overload our children?

Making English a compulsory subject from grade 1 is undeniably the right direction, but as a parent, the policy still brings me mixed thoughts: I'm worried that my child will be overloaded.
November 4, 2025 | 04:27 pm PT
Getting passed over for promotion due to low English proficiency

Getting passed over for promotion due to low English proficiency

Some of my acquaintances often complain that despite their expertise and strong performance, they never get promoted to management roles.
October 23, 2025 | 03:55 pm PT
Filipinos are native English speakers in an academic and professional form

Filipinos are native English speakers in an academic and professional form

The ongoing debate about Filipino teachers not being "native" oversimplifies the real issue and ignores important facts. Let's set the record straight.
September 18, 2025 | 06:24 pm PT
Placing the blame on Filipino teachers for not being 'native' oversimplifies the real issue

Placing the blame on Filipino teachers for not being 'native' oversimplifies the real issue

A complaint from a VnExpress reader about Filipinos teaching "native English" lessons has sparked strong reactions, with many readers defending Filipinos as highly qualified English teachers and emphasizing that non-native accents are not a problem.
September 18, 2025 | 02:00 am PT
Spending $11,000 a year on international school but still struggling with English

Spending $11,000 a year on international school but still struggling with English

I have a cousin whose child has attended an international school for many years, but their English proficiency remains mediocre.
September 11, 2025 | 04:00 am PT
Having kids master IELTS is not true educational success

Having kids master IELTS is not true educational success

Many children today chase IELTS scores - 6.5, 7.0, or 8.0 - as if these numbers define their language ability, forgetting the true purpose of learning English: communication, understanding, and self-expression.
July 9, 2025 | 03:00 pm PT
Learning English with AI: I made more progress in 3 months than 16 years at schools

Learning English with AI: I made more progress in 3 months than 16 years at schools

When I asked my teachers why English has the verb "to be" or why subjects and verbs must agree, I was often dismissed. "That's English," they'd say, or worse, "That's a silly question."
June 1, 2025 | 02:00 am PT
When we learn English just for show

When we learn English just for show

On my first day at a Vietnamese company in Vietnam, the director asked me, “Do you have an English name?”
May 27, 2025 | 02:00 am PT
Are we learning English to communicate or get an IELTS certificate?

Are we learning English to communicate or get an IELTS certificate?

Many years ago I was surprised when my writing score in an IELTS exam was lower than my younger sister's.
May 21, 2025 | 04:06 pm PT
How I helped my daughter master English using Australian learning approach

How I helped my daughter master English using Australian learning approach

When I transferred my child to a public school near our home, I knew the school didn't have strong foreign language resources. However, I decided to apply the Australian English learning approach that I had experienced firsthand.
May 13, 2025 | 03:00 am PT
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