Classroom culture in Vietnamese preschools tends to place more weight on group harmony, respect for adults, orderly routines and close physical care than many Western early-years settings do, while also being warm, affectionate and highly attentive to children’s wellbeing. None of these values is in conflict with good early-years practice. Tension arises only when a newcomer reads them through the lens of home and assumes that something unfamiliar must be wrong.
This article describes the patterns international teachers most often notice in their first months, explains where they come from, and suggests how to work with them in a bilingual classroom. It speaks in generalisations, and every school and every teacher is different. Use it as a set of questions to bring to your own setting rather than a set of rules about Vietnam.
Seeing your own culture first
In the 1980s the anthropologist Joseph Tobin and his colleagues filmed a day in preschools in Japan, China and the United States, then showed each film to teachers in all three countries and recorded their reactions. The study, published as Preschool in Three Cultures in 1989 and revisited with new films two decades later, showed how practices that seemed natural to teachers in one country looked strange, even troubling, to teachers in another. Each group judged the others by assumptions it had never had to examine.
The lesson for an international teacher in Vietnam is that your first reactions tell you as much about your own training as about the classroom in front of you. A room where children wait quietly for the group to be ready may feel rigid to someone trained in free-flow play; a room where children wander between activities may feel chaotic to a Vietnamese teacher. Both are cultural choices about what children need.
Holding that awareness does not mean every practice is beyond question. It means asking why before asking whether, and recognising that your Vietnamese colleagues have their own professional reasons, rooted in their training, their families’ expectations and the national programme, for doing things the way they do.
Patterns international teachers often notice
The group comes first. Children often move, eat, wash and rest together as a class, and much activity is organised for the whole group. This reflects a broadly collectivist outlook in which learning to be part of a group is itself a central goal of early education, not a side effect.
Respect for adults is visible. Children greet teachers with folded arms and a small bow, especially at arrival and departure, and are taught to answer politely. Teachers are addressed as cô or thầy. These customs express respect and belonging rather than fear.
Care is hands-on. Teachers may feed younger children, tidy their hair, check that they are warm and hold them often. Physical closeness between teachers and young children is normal and expected by families.
Order and neatness matter. Shoes lined up, beds made after rest, displays finished and tidy: an orderly environment is seen as a sign of a caring, well-run class.
Praise is often collective and modest. Teachers may praise the group or a behaviour rather than single out an individual repeatedly, and children may be taught modesty in response to compliments.
Performance has a place. Songs, dances and presentations for families and festivals are a valued part of school life, and children often rehearse for them.
Where these values come from
Comparative studies of national cultures, such as those associated with Geert Hofstede, have generally placed Vietnam among societies that are more hierarchical and more collectivist than, for example, the United States, the United Kingdom or Australia. Such frameworks are broad and easy to overuse, and they say nothing about any particular person. They are useful only as a reminder that ideas about authority, independence and the individual differ across cultures, and that preschool is one of the first places where children are taught their society’s version.
The family structure matters too. Many Vietnamese children live with or near grandparents, and family life emphasises obligation, closeness and harmony between generations. A preschool that teaches children to greet elders correctly, share with others and fit into a group is reinforcing values that families care about deeply.
The national preschool programme also shapes classroom life. It describes care routines in detail, sets expectations for children’s manners and hygiene, and includes goals for social and emotional development that emphasise cooperation, empathy and respect. Vietnamese teachers are trained to this programme and inspected against it, so practices that might look like personal preference are often professional obligations.
Independence and group life: finding the balance
One of the most common tensions in bilingual classrooms is between the international teacher’s instinct to let children choose and the Vietnamese teacher’s instinct to keep the group together. Neither instinct is wrong, and children can benefit from both. The work is in finding a balance both teachers can live with.
A practical approach is to plan the day in layers. Some periods, such as arrival, meals and transitions, are group-centred and follow a predictable shared routine. Other periods, such as project work or outdoor play, offer genuine choice, with children moving between areas and adults following their interests. Agreeing this structure with your co-teacher means neither of you has to give up your values entirely, and children learn to move between the two modes.
Independence also has a culturally specific shape. Vietnamese preschools often expect children to manage tasks such as putting away their own shoes, folding a towel or helping to set the table, while adults keep a closer hand on choices about activities. International teachers sometimes expect the reverse. Noticing which kinds of independence are already valued gives you a place to build from.
Praise, correction and emotions
Many international teachers arrive trained to give specific, individual praise, to name children’s feelings and to avoid comparisons. Some Vietnamese teachers use more general praise, more collective encouragement and occasionally comparison to motivate a child, such as pointing out that a friend has already finished. These differences can produce quiet friction.
It helps to separate what is cultural from what the evidence suggests about young children. Research on early development, including work summarised by the Harvard Center on the Developing Child, emphasises responsive relationships, emotional security and support for children’s growing self-regulation. These principles are compatible with modest praise and group-centred encouragement. Comparison between children, on the other hand, is something many early-years frameworks advise against, and in a Global Nexus classroom it is avoided altogether.
When you disagree with a practice, start with what you share. Your colleague wants the child to eat well, finish the task or calm down, and so do you. Offering an alternative that reaches the same goal, rather than criticising the method, is far more likely to be taken up.
Reading common moments across cultures
The same moment can be read in different ways. The table offers questions to ask before drawing conclusions.
| What you see | A possible reading from home | Questions worth asking |
|---|---|---|
| Children waiting quietly in a line | Too much control, not enough freedom | What happens before and after? Is this a transition that needs safety? |
| A teacher feeding a four-year-old | Undermines independence | Is the child unwell or new? What do the family expect? |
| Children rehearsing a dance for weeks | Performance over learning | What do children gain socially? Can the rehearsal include choice? |
| A teacher speaking firmly to the group | Harsh tone | Is this the normal register? How do children respond afterwards? |
| Children bowing to greet adults | Formal, distant | How do children feel? Does the greeting create a sense of belonging? |
Asking these questions does not mean you must accept everything you see. It means your eventual suggestions will be grounded in understanding, which makes them far easier for colleagues to hear.
Names, forms of address and the register of the classroom
Vietnamese uses kinship terms rather than a neutral “you” and “I”. In a preschool, children call a female teacher cô and a male teacher thầy, and teachers refer to themselves as cô or thầy when speaking to children, calling each child con. The same pattern is used by caregivers and kitchen staff. To a newcomer it can sound formal, but it carries warmth: the classroom is framed as an extended family, with the teacher in the place of an aunt or uncle.
International teachers are usually called by a title and first name in English, such as Teacher Anna or Ms Anna, and children quickly attach cô to it as well. Accept whichever form the school uses and use children’s names carefully. Vietnamese names are usually said in the order family name, middle name, given name, and children are called by the given name or by a nickname used at home. Ask families which name the child answers to, and practise saying it with the right tone; children notice when an adult takes that trouble.
The register teachers use with the whole group can sound firmer than the one they use with individual children. A clear, carrying voice for gathering the class is normal and is not necessarily a sign of anger. Watch how children respond: if they settle calmly and carry on happily, the tone is doing what it is meant to do in that setting.
Conflict between children and how adults respond
Disputes over toys, turns and space happen in every preschool, and the way adults step in is shaped by culture. In many Vietnamese classrooms the adult’s first goal is to restore harmony quickly: separating the children, asking the older or stronger child to give way, or encouraging both to apologise and play nicely. In many Western settings the adult’s first goal is to help children name their feelings and negotiate their own solution, even if it takes longer.
Both aims are valuable, and a bilingual classroom can hold both. A useful shared routine is to make sure everyone is safe, help each child say briefly what happened and how they feel, in whichever language they choose, and then support them toward a fair solution, including an apology when one is meant. Agree the phrases each teacher will use in each language so that the routine is the same whoever steps in.
Biting, hitting and pushing in toddler classes deserve a specific, calm plan agreed with the lead teacher, because families react strongly to them and schools usually have a set way of informing both families involved. Never handle such incidents with a family on your own.
Contributing your own practice without imposing it
International teachers are often hired partly for the different perspective they bring, and schools generally welcome it when it arrives with respect. The most effective way to introduce a practice is to show it rather than argue for it. Try an open-ended material, a longer project discussion or a calmer transition song in your own sessions, let your colleague see the children’s response, and invite her to adapt it.
Choose battles carefully. A practice that affects children’s safety or wellbeing is always worth raising promptly with the curriculum lead. A practice that is simply different from what you would do is often better left alone, at least until you have built a relationship that can carry the conversation. In the first term, it is usually wise to change very little and observe a great deal.
Finally, expect to change too. Many international teachers find, after a year in Vietnam, that they have come to value the warmth of group life, the respect children show each other and the care teachers give to small daily tasks, and they carry those values home with them.
Câu hỏi thường gặp
Is Vietnamese preschool culture strict?
It is generally more structured and group-centred than many Western settings, with clear routines and an emphasis on respect and politeness. It is also very warm and affectionate. Most children experience it as secure and familiar rather than strict, especially when adults are consistent and kind.
Why do children bow and fold their arms when greeting teachers?
It is a traditional gesture of respect toward elders and teachers, taught at home and at school. For children it is part of belonging to the class and the family, and teachers usually respond warmly. International teachers are not expected to bow back but should acknowledge the greeting.
Should I stop my co-teacher from feeding older children?
Not without talking first. Feeding may reflect a family request, a child who is unwell, or a shared concern about intake. Discuss it privately, explain the value of self-feeding, and agree an approach that supports both independence and the family’s concerns.
How should I praise children in a Vietnamese classroom?
Specific, warm acknowledgement of effort and what a child did works well in both languages. Avoid comparing children with each other. Recognise that modest responses to praise are often taught at home, so a child looking down when complimented is not necessarily uncomfortable.
Can I introduce free-choice play into a structured class?
Usually yes, if you do it gradually and with your co-teacher’s agreement. Start with one period of the day, prepare the environment well, and agree clear expectations. Showing children engaged and calm during free choice is the strongest argument for extending it.
Are these cultural patterns the same in every Vietnamese school?
No. Practices vary between regions, between public and private schools, and between individual teachers. International and bilingual schools often blend approaches. Treat any general description as a starting point for observing your own school.