Boys Will Be Boys

“The ‘differentness’ of boys is not inherently bad but it does present a challenge to teachers, to the school culture and to boys themselves.” Excerpt from Raising Cain by Dan Kindlom and Michael Thompson. Since the 90s, evidence has been mounting showing that boys are struggling in school far more than their fathers ever did. … Read more

Special Needs

Educating parents and the community about children with special needs. Autism, special needs and learning difficulties are rarely spoken about in Vietnam, but this is a topic that needs more awareness, discussion and action. Here, as in many places around the world, there is a stigma attached to children and young adults with any sort of learning difficulties. The traditional belief has … Read more

Two is Better than One

Why raising bilingual kids will give them a better start in the future “Meet the Australian children fluent in Mandarin” was the recent headline of a BBC story written by Jon Donnison in Melbourne. He visited one of the country’s few bilingual schools, which has a very successful program teaching four- and five year- olds in Mandarin (and also Vietnamese, which it wants … Read more

Firmly Planted

Integrating the urban jungle with the natural world to create a green lifestyle Imagine the Mobius strip, a rectangular form where one end has been twisted and attached to the other. If you were to place a pencil anywhere on this strip and began drawing a line, you will have traveled both sides of the object without ever lifting the … Read more

Rainbow Bright

For kids to think creatively, parents must help change the education system here I would like to draw attention to an excerpt in a recent article in Vietnam News that caught my eye: “Prime Minister Dung calls for highly creative, brighter teachers. Vietnam should renew its attitude towards education and education management so it could train teachers with intellectual skills and creativity…. with … Read more

US Bound

Advice to help your child pick the right university after graduation There are over 4,000 universities and colleges in the US, so how does a high school senior pick the right one? At times it can be a daunting and overwhelming decision, and keep in mind that not every college or even the best college is the ‘right’ one for your child. … Read more

Baby School of Rock

A German-invented method of teaching preschoolers social skills and languages through music I have to admit, when I first heard about the Kindermusik center over at the Crescent, I presumed it was all about musicianship for kids. What I imagined was something more Suzuki-style, a group of three-year-olds with miniature violins, or a cacophony of pretweens going wild on their glockenspiels. Lauralynn … Read more

Seal of Approval

How school accreditation works Accreditation is a stamp of approval by an outside agency. Accredited schools go through the process as a means of quality assurance. These schools adhere to a set of educational standards which pertain to the curriculum, the finances, extra-curricular programs, and governance as seen through the eyes of all of the members of the school community whether they are the administration, … Read more

Home Schooled

Teaching kids at home is a growing trend in HCMC as costs of international schools rise and families consider more choices When Molly and Grant Wyatt arrived in Ho Chi Minh City back in 2007, their sons Logan and Grayson were only four and two, so schooling wasn’t yet the first thing on their minds. Here to assist locally-based relatives start … Read more

Follow the Money

Find out why international schools are so expensive I often hear parents comment on the high price tag of sending their children to international schools. Many times these parents are expats coming directly from their home countries where their children attended public schools for free. The concept of paying for schooling, except through taxes, is foreign to them. So naturally they ask where the … Read more