Tung Vu, University at Albany-SUNY, USA
Thao Nguyen, Vietnam National University, Vietnam

Civic Engagement

According to Preus et al. (2016), civic engagement aims to develop citizens capable of making appropriate decisions in a wide range of social and political scenarios, ranging from “voting, obeying laws, providing community service, supporting political campaigns, community organizing, and protesting” (p. 67). Among a range of possible frameworks promptly to teaching civic engagement includes the one proposed by Westhmeimer and Kahne (2004), studying the differing extents of leadership experiences, considering personally responsible citizens, participatory citizens, and justice-oriented citizens. Alternatively, Malin et al. (2015) looked into the topic of civic purposes based on the association between individuals’ intentions and actions. Primarily, the authors responded to the civic purposes of individuals’ formed intentions, driven efforts to accomplish intentions, and acquired beyond-the-self consequences. In association with the different combinations of the aforementioned components, individuals who showed intentions and actions are classified into a few groups, namely, either day-dreamers, dabblers, or those having self-oriented goals. Despite the growing importance of civic engagement in Vietnamese higher education contexts, very little research has been done in exploring the possibilities and effects of civic engagement in EFL teaching and learning. Therefore, this study has the potential to fill this gap as a pioneering work in a number of related fields.

Research Context

In our personal practice, we have learned that EFL-related experiences in Vietnamese classes are excessively dependent on knowledge-based curricula which consequently neglect learners’ cultural backgrounds as well as the voices they exercise in cultivating experiential learning. Similarly, it is commonly agreed that what the Internet can offer via interactive platforms has benefited the values and outcomes of learners in all education levels as authentically engaging sources of teaching and learning (Nelson et al., 2017). The following inquiry sought to examine the following research question: “To what extent and how can justice-oriented EFL curriculum influence students’ higher civic purpose and civic engagement?”

In response to the research question, the study included a total of 12 volunteer Vietnamese intermediate-level English learners who were taking a speaking course at the time of the study. Qualitative data were collected and triangulated through multiple sources (class observations, reflections, and semistructured interviews) with open coding and reviewed by participants for accuracy. There were a total of six critical issues, which helped learners reflect on their understanding of social issues as authentic sources of knowledge in EFL language learning as well as develop their civic actions and skills.

Findings and Discussion

It is important to clarify that the justice-oriented EFL curriculum is relatively new in Vietnamese education. Thus, we hypothesize the overarching effects of innovative curricula on learners’ attained academic goals and soft skills. Generally, learners shared positive experiences, examined through the lens of Levinson’s (2014) perspective of civic engagement, regarding learner sense of value, competence, autonomy, and relatedness.

Value

Seven participants (five through interviews and two through researcher observation) expressed their positive reflection on unfamiliar learning approaches, seeing them as beneficial opportunities to build self-confidence and stronger identities. Despite a lack of prior experience used to accommodate difficult activity tasks, participants were enthusiastically engaged in new skills, such as knowledge research, inquiry, analysis, and evaluation. Their improved abilities to work with others have “contributed something important and meaningful” (Participant #4) to their community. Beyond being committed to responsibilities, participants shared they are now more confident in leadership roles and cultivating extraordinary efforts to study different heated social topics (e.g., school bullying, air pollution in Hanoi, garbage classification, living independently when turning 18, illegal immigration, ethnic children and their rights for education). Furthermore, interviews with participants revealed that investigations into social problems compelled them to (1) reposition their self-beliefs and critical voices for change and (2) realize themselves as important agents of change.

Competence

As participants studied a range of varying topics during this study, they developed a passion to challenge stereotypes by learning about and sharing experiences and ideas with other people. Knowledge and skills are classified into two domains: academic (technical skills) and nonacademic (soft-skills) (Tran, 2018). During the project, participants were expected to explore domestic and international sources, and they were interested in seeking to validate and connect different threads in relation to what they researched. For example, on the topic of illegal immigration, Participant #2 gathered compelling facts and figures from local and international resources to illustrate the potentiality and the seriousness of the problem. It turns out that collecting knowledge required students to pay more attention to research-based resources. In such a way, research skills through critical reading not only improved the participants’ critical thinking and decision-making skills, but also provided them with better ways to use suitable linguistic tools (vocabulary and structure) in work settings. For example, in-class and public presentations helped the participants with necessary competences, such as productive collaboration and effective communication when they had well-prepared materials (e.g., Internet-based slides, digital posters) and research-based resources. Such activities helped to develop their academic skills and showed that a justice-oriented EFL curriculum resulted in the crucially important development of knowledge and skill competence.

Autonomy

Some observations indicated that learners’ sense of autonomy increased, which could result in higher civic efficiency. The key imperatives suggested the learners were urged to ask “why” questions rather than only asking superficial questions. As justice-oriented citizens, the participants experienced opportunities to incorporate their voices in sensible and meaningful decision-making. Therefore, we could see a sharp difference in learning experiences when compared to their traditional learning approaches, which purely relied on teachers as the primary resources. Traditional learning experiences do not include knowledge of social issues; this newly proposed curriculum considered students as active learners who decide and create new knowledge which is closely relevant to their academic learning needs. Those needs can, in turn, be considered important to equip students with vital skills to prepare for their future career, in terms of career knowledge and skills, understanding of social problems happening in surrounding communities, and knowledge about global trends. Those knowledge and skills pave a path for better preparation to enter the workforce related to the field, thus enabling their long-term competitiveness and growth in domestic and international markets.

Towards final posters to prepare for the class presentations, the students developed greatly their critical thinking skills. During in-class and out-of-class discussion sessions, they recognized that they had a lot of valuable time to immerse themselves in both a rich source of knowledge as well as different schools of thought. From that, they developed an awareness of diversity in terms of people’s thoughts and then responded to differences in an appropriate manner. Consistent with these findings, Participants #1, #3, and #6 shared they were thrilled at first to participate in the project, and they became more engaged because of its critical nature. During in-class and open-day presentations, students were capable of discussing their progressive thoughts and sharing fresh outlooks with others. The learners inspired themselves to act more civically as participatory citizens and justice-oriented citizens, which are desired outcomes, per Westhmeimer and Kahne (2004).

Relatedness

The project created a civically collaborative setting. In addition to facilitating a space allowing learners’ voices and an increase in civic literacy, the study resulted in participants feeling open to speak publicly about and seek collaboration with their friends and teachers on identifying, researching, and comprehending various domains related to selected topics in the context of local communities. For instance, the increase in responsibility, interaction, and leadership was Participant #6’s identified learning outcomes when it came to her “taking a stand for local community improvement.” Participant #1 realized that “individuals cannot complete the project, but with support from team members.” As an advocate of creating justice-oriented citizens, Participant #1 realized the importance of “connecting and collaborating to achieve better goals politically, economically, educationally, and culturally.”

Conclusion

This research examined the extent to which the justice-oriented EFL curriculum, assisted by Internet-based benefits, influences Vietnamese intermediate-level learners’ perceptions regarding civic purposes and engagement in civic actions. The analyses also suggested that participants appeared to perceive the role changes to different extents, encouraging them to move beyond their comfort zones to learn from different perspectives and experiences and become agents of change to lead and defend civil liberties in their own communities. Participants demonstrated an increased level of involvement in civic purposes and skills: Firstly, they became positive about the values of civic engagement that enables them to develop academic skills in college; Secondly, they actively sought to find different ways in about bridging academic knowledge to teaching skills; Thirdly, they appeared substantially more confident in utilizing autonomy to create and transform formal and informal communities of practice. We recommend that stakeholders become attentive to considering learners’ cultural backgrounds and beliefs about civic purpose and engagement as resources to explore how to effectively develop their civic skills in academic and nonacademic settings.

References

Levinson, M. (2014). Action civics in the classroom. Social Education, 78(2), 68–70.

Malin, H., Ballard, P. J., & Damon, W. (2015). Civic purpose: An integrated construct for understanding civic development in adolescence. Human Development, 58(2), 103–130.

Nelson, J. L., Lewis, D. A., & Lei, R. (2017). Digital democracy in America: A look at civic engagement in an Internet Age. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 94(1), 318–334. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077699016681969

Preus, B., Payne, R., Wick, C., & Glomski, E. (2016). Listening to the voices of civically engaged high school students. The High School Journal, 100(1), 66–84.

Tran, L. H. N. (2018). Game of blames: Higher education stakeholders’ perceptions of causes of Vietnamese graduates’ skills gap.International Journal of Educational Development, 62, 302–312.

Westheimer, J., & Kahne, J. (2004). What kind of citizen? The politics of educating for democracy. American Educational Research Journal, 41(2), 237–269. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312041002237

Thao Nguyen is a lecturer at the University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS), VNU, Vietnam. She researches on the development of English language skills and teaching methodology for teacher education.