Factors influencing the making decision of parents in choosing international schools system in ho chi minh city

RESEARCH PROJECT FACTORS INFLUENCING THE MAKING DECISION OF PARENTS IN CHOOSING INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS SYSTEM IN HO CHI MINH CITY ADVISOR NAME AND TITLE: Dr.. RESEARCH PROJECT FATCTORS

RESEARCH PROJECT FACTORS INFLUENCING THE MAKING DECISION

OF PARENTS IN CHOOSING INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS SYSTEM IN HO CHI MINH CITY

ADVISOR NAME AND TITLE: Dr NGUYEN PHAN

Ho Chi Minh City December, 2015

RESEARCH PROJECT

FATCTORS INFLUENCING THE MAKING DECISION OF PARENTS IN CHOOSING INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS SYSTEM IN

HO CHI MINH CITY

Ho Chi Minh City

2015 -2106

my MBA Program 2014-2016 In the thesis done time, I received the help and guidance devotedly of lectures of HUTECH International Training Institue, Business Administration Department of Hutech University, Open University of Malaysia, Executive Boards and emplyees of International schools system in Vietnam I am very appriciated the help of everyone has helped me fulfill my thesis

Besides that, I am using this opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone who supported me throughout the course of this MBA Research Project I am thankful for their aspiring guidance, invaluably constructive criticism and friendly advice during the project work I am sincerely grateful to them for sharing their truthful and illuminating views on a number of issues related to the project

First of all, I would like to express my deeply special thanks of gratitude to my profeesor, Dr Phan Dinh Nguyen, as well as our professional prefessor profoundly – the instructor guides directly for me in the process to implement the research He gave me

the golden opportunity to do this wonderful project on the topic: “Fators influencing

the making decision of parents in choosing international schools system in Ho Chi Minh City” which also helped me in doing a lot of Research and I came to know about

so many things I am really thankful to him During the making of the research, he has carefully guided me the necessary knowledge so that I can fulfill my research The knowledge I learned from him not only helpful for my thesis but also very usedful for

my career in the near future With the guidance of dedicated lecturer, I did completed my research well and on time

I would also like to thank Executive Board and employees of International School System in Vietnam has guidedlines and gives me the neccessarry documents about the business situation of the International Schools System I express my warm thanks to all

the people who privided me with the facilities being required and conductive conditions for my MBA Reasearch Project

Finally, I would like to thank all customers, students, parents and individuals helped

me answer the questions in the survey Thanks to the answer of everybody that I had

accurate data for research I could complete the research project “Fators influencing the

making decision of parents in choosing international schools system in Ho Chi Minh City” which depends on the enthusiastic response from everyone

I also thank all my freidns who have more or less contributed to the preparation of this project report, I will be always indebted to them

The study has indeed helped me to explore more knowledgeable avenues related to any topocs and I am sure it will help me in my future

Kind Regards,

NGUYEN Tran Thien Ly

MBA Program

Advisor’s assesment

-

Advisor’s Signature -

ABSTRACT

My research topic: “Factors influencing the making decision of parents in choosing

international schools system in Vietnam” was conducted survey:

The place: Ho Chi Minh City

The time: From 09th October 2015 to 09th December 2015

The objects:

International Schools System

The needs and the wants of parents and children

A Objectives of the study:

1 Identify the needs and wants of parents and children in education forwards the international schools system today in Vietnam

2 Develop research models to measrue tend to put children into the international schools in Ho Chi Minh City based on finding out the differences between the International Schools System and Public State Schools System

3 Evaluate the trend of choosing the school in particular and in education in general of parents today in Ho Chi Minh City

4 Propose some measures to attracts parents and children enroll into the

international schools system in Ho Chi Minh City

B Research Methods:

To understand the use of statistics, one needs to know a little bit about experimental design or how a researcher conducts investigations A little knowledge about methodology will provide us with a place to hang our statistics In other words, statistics are not numbers that just appear out of nowhere Rather, the numbers (data) are generated out of research Statistics are merely a tool to help us answer research questions As such, an understanding of methodology will facilitate our understanding

of basic statistics

Using mainly two methods:

1 Qualitative research:

A method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines,

traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research, in business, and other contexts including service demonstrations by non-profits

Including: Data collection, analysis and field research design, discussion,

interviews, edit scale and model

2 Quantitative research:

Quantitative research is the systematic empirical investigation of observable phenomena via statistical, mathematical or computational techniques

Including:

a The generation of models, theories and hypotheses

b The development of instruments and methods for measurement

c Experimental control and manipulation of variables

d Collection of empirical data

e Modeling and analysis of data

C Limitation of the topic

1 Research objects indicates that those who have intended to let children enroll into

the international schools system in Ho Chi Minh City

2 The scope of research is limited to the area of Ho Chi Minh City should not be

evaluated extensive customer groups in the other provinces and potential customers

ever know about information of international schools

1.2 Research Objectives Page 10

1.3 The importance of research problem Page 11

1.4 Object and scope of research Page 11

1.5 The structure of research Page 12

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 International education Page 13

2.2 The international school process system Page 15

2.3 Theory of consumer behavior Page 15

2.4 Model of consumer behavior Page 19

CHAPTER 3 RESEACRH METHODOLOGY

3.1 The reason Page 31

3.2 The scope and limitation of study Page 32

3.3 Population and sample Page 32

3.4 Module and variables Page 34

CHAPTER 4 DATA ANALYSIS AND DICUSSION

4.1 Cronbach’s Alpha Page 48

4.2 KMO and Barlett’s Test Page 57

4.3 Correlations analysis Page 61

4.4 Regression analysis Page 63

4.5 Descriptives analysis Page 66

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

5.1 Conclusions Page 68

5.2 Suggestions Page 69

5.3 The choice is yours Page 69

5.4 Limitations of research Page 70

REFERENCES Page 71

APPENDIX 1 Page 73

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale

Nowadays, we have to mention about the development of international schools system which come in many different shapes and sizes and the term itself, includes a variety of schools systems encompassing a wide variety of formats and curricula, with some being more international than others In order to be considered an actual international school, it is widely agreed that a school generally follows a national or international curriculum different from that of the host country, especially in Vietnam Talking about the rapid growth, in general, the international school market has experienced explosive growth over the past 10 years in with the number of international schools more than doubling across the globe This past year alone, 345 new schools were added to the network of thousands of international schools worldwide According to ISC Research, a UK-based organization dedicated to analyzing, researching and tracking developments in the international school market, calculates that there are currently over 2.8 million students enrolled in international schools around the world In particular, in Vietnam, in 1990s, at that time, there are not many international schools, or even just only one or two schools for foreigner children living in Vietnam to study The basic reason is that most of Vietnamese people at that time do not have enough condition to let children study in one high quality environment However, along with the development of social life and integration of countries over the world such as America, French, Australia, United Kingdom, Korea and so on, at this time, educational concern is heeded carefully All Vietnamese people realize that we have to start with a good education background so

we can change our life better in the future Education, on the other hand, is defined in Wikipedia as any act or experience that forms the mind, character or physical ability of an individual Education is helping someone learn how to think and how to solve problems

by themselves Most education would be transferable and you will climb the corporate ladder a lot faster Achieving the education peek is just not a paper certificate, also mention about the knowledge and investment How can we can education is a good investment? In the same way we would save money to buy something special – we have

to plan and invest money or time to get that dream job or reach our goals In uncertain

economic times, we may hesitate to spend money to advance our career But the correct investments in the form of money and time can really pay off

“As we enter the twenty-first century, it is clear that education is, indeed, the best investment that we can make, for an information economy depends upon a knowledgeable, skilled, educated workforce The better educated our students are, the

better we will perform economically.” Bill Gates

Because of understanding the reason that an education also improves us overall as a person, parents do not hesitate to invest for our children to reach the best education when they were young We are going to think about Vietnamese public schools with the high quality schools from primary schools to until universities We really forget some schools with the low ranking at small district or city because it will not give our children a good challenge for the next step in future After that, we think of foreigner language issue of our children and hopefully, out children can use English or another foreigner languages well as possible It cannot be provided well in public state schools, therefore, all parents have to let children study more language classes at well-known language centers Besides that, for a long time, parents really realize some troubles of the pressure and the teaching quality in public state schools that our children are bearing They have a lot of subjects to study and after schools they have to get some tutor class in order to improve knowledge and their marks That means, children can stay up late at night and get up earlier tomorrow morning for the next class day Their language ability does not improve because they do not have more time to study and practice in class with a large number of students Day by day, it occurs many problems in Vietnamese public state schools system that all parents have to think about

3 To suggest the best solutions some parents who make a decision to enroll children into international school system in Vietnam

1.3 The importance of the research problem

Problem statement: Nowadays, it is said that there are many debates parents about

choosing international schools system or Vietnamese public state schools system The subject is an important documentation source to help leaders of International Schools System accurately assess the trends of enrolling children to study in International Schools

in Ho Chi Minh City from which to decide whether to invest in project build and develop international schools or not And once the company deploys the project, it will have the original database to build up standards for academic programs and teaching services will provide to attract customers Concurrently, through data obtained from research subjects, the subject author will propose the solutions to attract parents and children to study at international schools in Ho Chi Minh City These solutions would like to contribute to increase feasibility of the research project

" Almost parents have one child and more than

" Parents who have a financial condition and not have enough financial condition

" Children who are in school-time

" Male and female are over 20 years old

Establishment to select research objects:

" For almost parents have one child and more than who can totally understand and make a serious concern about education for their children

" For parents who have enough financial condition who can have thoughts to let their children into the international schools For parents who do not have enough financial conditions who can make a good comparison about international schools system and public state schools system and have a good decision for their children

" For children who are in school-time, they can know exactly what they wants from their schools including facilities, teaching methods, improving languages and so on

" For male and female are over 20 years old, people have enough consciousness and awareness to understand their hobby and have choices independently their entertainment activities They can know what they want and need

Scope the research

" The research object is currently residing in Ho Chi Minh City

" The parents have at least one child studying at international schools or they are thinking about letting their children enroll into international schools in the near future

1.5 The structure of research

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Literature review

Chapter 3: Research methodology

Chapter 4: Data Analysis and Discussions

Chapter 5: Conclusions and Suggestions

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE VIEW

International education can mean many different things and its definition is

debated Some have defined two general meanings according to its involvement of students The first refers to education that transcends national borders by the exchange

of people, for example, by students travelling to study at an international branch campus, as part of a study abroad program or as part of a student exchange program The second is a comprehensive approach to education that intentionally prepares students to be active and engaged participants in an interconnected world

Understanding of a broad array of phenomena is enhanced and deepened through examination of the cultures, languages, environmental situations, governments, political relations, religions, geography and history of world While definitions vary in

the precise language used, international education is generally taken to include:

! Knowledge of other world regions & cultures;

! Familiarity with international and global issues

! Skills in working effectively in global or cross-cultural environments, and using information from different sources around the world;

! Ability to communicate in multiple languages; and

! Dispositions towards respect and concern for other cultures and peoples

2.2 The international schools selection process

McMahon (1992) examined the expansive phase of international study that occurred

during the 1960s and 1970s Mazzarol and Soutar (2002) suggested that the decision

process of a student wanting to pursue international education in a foreign country consists of at least three distinct stages In stage one, the decision to study internationally, rather than domestically is made The second stage involves the selection

of a host country Finally, in the third stage, the student decides the university at which

to pursue a international education

Figure 1: International schools selection process

2.3 Theory of consumer behavior

! Consumer demand

Students are viewed as educational customers The focus of business today has shifted away from selling products and services to creating a great overall customer experience Customers are now in the driver’s seat, expecting an experience that is targeted to their demands They’re better informed today, as technology has made it easier for them to do their homework

Customers know more about an item’s strengths and weaknesses, and even what the seller’s costs are, than ever before They are also acutely aware of how many other suppliers they can acquire the same item from

Adapted from the book “Selling Through Someone Else,” by Robert Wollan, the Global Managing Director of, here are the factors that contribute to a customer’s overall buying decision:

Decision to study internationally rather than

domestically Selection of a host country

Choosing a international

school

! Quality and performance orientation:

Customers desire the best product and service quality and are willing to pay a premium for

it High reliability is assumed Customers place a premium on the supplier’s sustainability record

! Brand and image orientation:

Customers place a lot of trust in the supplier’s brand, reputation and market history

! Relationship orientation:

Customers appreciate their history with the supplier and the knowledge the supplier has of their business Long-entrenched relationships between various parts of the customer and buyer organizations are key, and these relationships act as a barrier to the entry of new suppliers

Talking about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

Maslow's hierarchy of needs proposed in 1943

The earliest and most widespread version of Maslow's (1943, 1954) hierarchy of needs

includes five motivational needs, often depicted as hierarchical levels within a pyramid This five stages model can be divided into basic (or deficiency) needs (e.g physiological, safety, love, and esteem) and growth needs (self-actualization)

The deficiency, or basic needs are said to motivate people when they are unmet Also, the need to fulfill such needs will become stronger the longer the duration they are denied For example, the longer a person goes without food the more hungry they will become

One must satisfy lower level basic needs before progressing on to meet higher level growth needs Once these needs have been reasonably satisfied, one may be able to reach the highest level called self-actualization

Every person is capable and has the desire to move up the hierarchy toward a level of self-actualization Unfortunately, progress is often disrupted by failure to meet lower level needs Life experiences, including divorce and loss of job may cause an individual to fluctuate between levels of the hierarchy

Maslow noted only one in a hundred people become fully self-actualized because our society rewards motivation primarily based on esteem, love and other social needs

1 Biological and Physiological needs

[air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep]

2 Safety needs – protection

[from elements, security, order, law, stability, freedom from fear]

3 Love and belongingness needs

[friendship, intimacy, affection and love, - from work group, family, friends, romantic relationships]

! Consumer motivation and behavior

Consumer motivation is the drive to satisfy needs and wants, both physiological and psychological, through the purchase and use of products and services Some motives are simple—we need food, water, warmth, and shelter in order to survive Others are more complex, such as the yearning for love or the desire for status and admiration

Talking about Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory:

Learn how Sigmund Freud's theories helped shape our modern understanding of human motivation and personality development The actual psychological forces shaping human behavior is largely unconscious According to Freud, people have to repressed desire during the grown up process and accepted the social norms These desires never

disappear or are controlled completely They appear in the dream, when the faux pas, in sudden behavior

Sigmund Freud is one of the most famous names in psychology Even though most of

his ideas have been abandoned by modern psychology, his psychoanalytic theory formed the basis for many current psychodynamic theories Freud was the first to discuss the unconscious mind and its role in human behavior

Consumer Behavior (Wikipedia), is the study of individuals, groups, or

organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have

on the consumer and society

2.4 Model of consumer behavior

# Marketing Factor

- Product (Academic Programs)

- Prices (Tuition fees)

- Location (Location of international schools)

# The decision of process of customers

- The problem awareness

- Information search

- Evaluate the solution

- The number of goods

! Model of consumer behavior

- Beliefs and attitudes

Nations have an interest in student mobility, but what motivates individual students to

go abroad? Students are “pushed” from their home countries by a variety of forces

Case study: Use Vietnamese Australia International School – Ho Chi Minh City as

a case to study

An international school is a school that promotes international education in an

international environment, either by adopting a curriculum such as that of the International Baccalaureate, or Cambridge International Examinations or by following a national curriculum different from that of the school's country of residence

In the past, rooting in thoughts of all people, it is said that having an education would

like to give us a better opportunity of getting a great career that pays an above high wage Formal education, together with a lot of work by the student can produce qualifications and credentials that would land us that promotion or management position Obviously, an education also improves us overall as a person It helps us develop to our full potential Learning is the most powerful tool in the world The more we the better we will achieve in

the world It is mentioned that “all people” in the first line means all parents and even us

over the world in general and for Vietnamese in particular Many years ago, when we were young, our parents always did care about our study and many years later, we would be same with our children in the future Because we could understand the essential role of education

in life is very important which could be change our life status and even give more That is the reason why people, especially all parents still have plenty time to think about our children education path Yet we are worried and concerned about what we should do

In Vietnam, along with the development of society, nowadays, there are many education systems have flourished successfully This makes us having a lot of choices beside Vietnamese traditional public state and international schools systems Most of parents really work so hard and try to earn living as much as possible in order to guarantee our children to have the best education now and in the future Therefore, technically, we have to spend plenty of time to consider and make a useful comparison between public schools and international schools in Vietnam Obviously, making a decision to enroll children into international schools is not quiet easy because of both of the high tuition fees and another related issues in social life of children This thesis would like to accompany with all concerns of parents, analyze a part of confusing and hopefully particularly it is going to contribute to making a good decision enroll children into international schools or not

Introduction to the school

- Full name: Vietnamese Australia International School

- Abbreviated name: VAS

- Contact Details:

Website: www.vas.edu.vn

Address

! District 7: Him Lam Residence Area, Tan Hung Ward

! District 10: 594 Ba Thang Hai Street

! District 3: 32 Le Quy Don Street

! District 1: 23 Tran Cao Van Street

! Binh Thanh Street: 1L Phan Xich Long District

! Phu Nhuan District: 202 Hoang Van Thu Street

History of information

Established in 2004 and licensed by the Vietnamese Government, Vietnam Australia International School (VAS) is a private school group within the national education system offering a K–12 educational programs At present, VAS is offering educational services to some 4,500 students from K through 12 at 6 campuses in Ho Chi Minh City

In the 2013-2014 school year, VAS officially implemented the Cambridge International Program in parallel with the National Program With some 400 teachers teaching the National Program by the Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam and some 200 teachers trained and certified to teach the Cambridge International Program, the school offers 3 choices for students from grade 9 comprising of attending either the international program to prepare for the International Cambridge A Level, or the bilingual program to get the baccalaureate diploma by the Ministry of Education and Training and IGCSE certification (secondary school graduation certificate) and English certificates, or the bilingual integration program to get the baccalaureate diploma by the Ministry of Education and Training and English certificates With any choice, the students are also fully equipped with knowledge,

skills and confidence to get ready for higher learning

! Vision and Mission

VAS Vision

To be a growing school group of excellence, preparing students to be successful in life and higher education, whilst preserving Vietnamese values through a combination of National and International education programs

VAS Mission

VAS will transparently set out it’s core values and empower all its stakeholders to fully apply themselves to achieve the highest standard in each of these values in a culture of continuous

INTRODUCTION ABOUT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS SYSTEM IN HO CHI MINH

! Introduction about international schools system in Ho Chi Minh

Not all international schools follow the same curriculum and with thousands of international schools located around the world, there are a variety of systems designed to service the various expatriate constituencies There are American, Canadian, British and the more generic, “international” schools, that follow one of these systems or a combination of them in their curriculum In addition, many of these schools offer the prestigious International Baccalaureate (IB) Program which can lead to an IB diploma

! Types of International Schools

Teachers who are interested in teaching overseas for the first time will find it easier to teach in the curriculum for which they already have experience (i.e American, British, etc.), but with experience and training, teachers will find that they are qualified to teach in a variety

of formats The following provides a sampling of the most common types of international schools worldwide

American Schools

American schools, located in capital cities around the world, were originally created

to service the educational needs of American citizens working abroad at the embassies or in private companies overseas Surprisingly, many teachers find that these schools follow a similar curriculum to that of their local districts

There are currently 197 American overseas schools in 138 countries that are directly

or indirectly assisted by the U.S State Department to promote an American-style program for

citizens abroad

These schools, while incorporating American educational programs, are truly international According to the US State Department’s website, enrollment in the schools at the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year totaled 126,510, of whom 34,602 were U.S citizens Of 15,687 teachers and administrators employed in the schools, 6,809 were U.S citizens Combined annual operating budgets of the 197 schools total over $500 million

Tuition payments are the principal source of financing for American overseas schools

In addition, many schools receive further support from gifts and contributions from businesses, foundations, individuals, and local governments Assisted schools receive some funding from the Office of Overseas Schools

In addition, there are hundreds of other American schools around the world that are not assisted or do not have endorsement by the US Dept of State The majority of these schools are private, non-profit institutions with considerable parental involvement in their governance All offer instruction in the English language and there are usually American-trained teachers represented on the faculty

Many American schools are accredited by a U.S regional accrediting body such as the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Southern Association of Schools and Colleges, etc As a result, American teachers report that they are able to jump right into their new school’s curriculum, without too many adjustments because they are already familiar with it

American international schools are designed to provide a core curriculum that prepares students to enter schools, colleges, and universities in the United States Bambi Betts, CEO of the Academy for International School Heads, reminds us: "In reality, there is

no such thing as an ‘American’ curriculum since each state (and even district) in the US makes its own decisions and sets its own standards." Despite this lack of uniformity in the US educational system, Betts explains, "there are certainly some common themes and practices that teachers in ‘American’ style overseas schools will be familiar with."

Canadian Schools

Similar to the American schools abroad, there are many elementary and secondary schools around the world that offer the curriculum of one of Canada's provinces For example, there are schools with accreditation from Ontario, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Alberta, etc At these schools, mostly Canadian teachers and staff utilize Canadian educational materials providing the children of Canadian expats an excellent quality of education, in dozens of schools in over 30 locations throughout the world

British Schools

The old expression that the sun never sets on the British Empire is still true if one looks at the number and location of British schools around the world There are more than 2,200 British schools in every corner of the world contributing to the large number of international schools worldwide This can be misleading, however, since these schools do not actually receive formal recognition or support from the British government

While many of these schools follow the British national curriculum there is wide variance in their structure and quality This is because British schools outside the UK are private entities with no governmental monitoring of their programs This is where COBIS comes in

COBIS (Council of British International Schools), is a membership association of British schools of quality and is a member of the Independent Schools Council (ISC) of the United Kingdom According to Colin Bell, Executive Director of COBIS, the 30-year-old non-profit organization, “provides accountability for the British schools abroad by working with the British Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI), to accredit British schools all around the world.”

Teachers looking for guidance on navigating the varied terrain of British international schools (whose ownership can fall in the hands of private companies, charities or individuals), would be well served by checking whether the school in question is accredited

by COBIS COBIS has been instrumental in working with the U.K Department of Education

in getting British Overseas Schools inspected under OFSTED (Office for Standards in Education) OFSTED reports directly to Parliament and inspects and regulates services in education and other related matters

This seal of approval, should distinguish British schools in the COBIS network from those schools that use the term British school, but are mainly teaching the local curriculum with some elements of the British system

Colin Bell of COBIS says, “We receive many applicants for COBIS membership, but only few meet all of our criteria Of the thousands of British schools located around the world, only 106 are COBIS members.” In addition to the seven key criteria for membership

(see table), COBIS takes strong precautions in the hiring process “We conduct CRC (Criminal Records Checks) on all teachers recruited from the U.K to insure safe hiring for our member schools,” informs Bell When asked about teachers who are recruited from countries outside of the U.K Bell said “We have agreements with law enforcement authorities in Thailand and Spain and can utilize Interpol if needed, to meet our safe hiring standards.”

The IB program is offered in a variety of international schools and even schools that

do not consider themselves international, in both the private and public sectors Schools that offer the curriculum seek to provide a rigorous academic program to its students

The Diploma Programme as it is known, or DP, is designed for students aged 16 to

19, to be taken in the last two years of secondary school Juniors and seniors who earn the IB diploma must take six courses at higher level or standard level In addition, the DP has three core requirements that are included to challenge students:

• The extended essay –students conduct independent research through an in-depth

study of a question relating to one of the subjects they are studying

• Theory of knowledge a course designed to encourage each student to reflect on

the nature of knowledge by critically examining different ways of knowing

• Creativity, action, service requires that students actively learn from hands-on

experience beyond the classroom

! International Schools

While some international schools have an American, Canadian, British or other slant, some simply call themselves an international school because they have incorporated multiple approaches from different formats, and provide an international curriculum with a global perspective Not all international schools deliver the IB program (just as not all IB schools are international), but one common thread that runs through these schools is the desire to create global citizens who have an understanding of other countries, cultures and histories beyond their own national perspective and/or system

In the accompanying article, What Makes a School International there is some debate

as to what constitutes an international school Is it the curriculum, the student body, the teaching staff – or all of the above? Most seasoned international educators are wary of coming up with a definition or checklist for qualifying a school as international, but prefer to take a broad approach to the subject

Nick Brummitt, Managing Director of ISC Research, a UK-based organization

dedicated to tracking the international schools market, points out that “professionally ISC Research doesn’t apply any value judgements to the inclusion of schools We simply include them if they fulfil our criteria for doing so.” That criteria is quite simple: A school is included

in their database if it teaches wholly or partly in English outside an English-speaking country (Language schools are not included.)

Asked if he holds any personal opinions about the matter he says, “Privately, I simply feel that there are many different types of international schools, and that a school full of Chinese children studying an international curriculum is one type."

“The composition of the faculty will always be mixed; how mixed depends on the individual school, the city, and the country,” according to Brummitt Furthermore, Brummitt

contends: “Schools with half local staff and half expatriate staff are just as ‘international’ in

my mind as ones with all expatriates perhaps even more so.”

International schools are as varied as the students in which they serve Choosing the

school that’s right for you is a personal decision, but as Forrest Broman, President of The International Educator is fond of saying, “If you keep an open mind and are willing to be flexible, the world is your oyster!”

! International Schools system in Ho Chi Minh

# Vietnam Australia Schools

594 Ba Thang Hai Street

Binh Thanh District

1L Phan Xich Long Street

District 3

32 Le Quy Don Street

Phu Nhuan District

202 Hoang Van Thu Street

District 1

23 Tran Cao Van Street

# North American International School

Abbreviation: NIS

Type: Bilingual School

Address: 285 Nguyen Van Troi Ward 10 Phu Nhuan District

# V-Star International School

Abbreviation: V-Star

Type: Bilingual School

Address: Him Lam Residence Area, Nguyen Huu Tho Street, Tan Hung, District 7, Ho

Chi Minh City

# British International School

Abbreviation: BIS

Type: 100% international school

Address: 225 Nguyen Van Huong Street, Thao Dien, District 2, Ho Chi Minh City

# Australian International School

Abbreviation: AIS

Type: 100% international school

Address: 190 Nguyen Van Huong Street, Thao Dien, District 2, Ho Chi Minh City

# International Saigon Ho Chi Minh School

Abbreviation: ISHCMS

Type: 100% international

Address: 28 Vo Truong Toan, An Phu 2, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

The value parents and experts attach to international schools makes them important The schools are no longer a preserve of expatriates and the wealthy A parent of one of the international schools says she will give up just about anything to have her child acquire such education because it provides students with unlimited opportunities

With over 40 years of experience in teaching, James Park, the head teacher of Hillside High School, which offers the Cambridge curriculum, gives an expert view on why an international curriculum is preferable

He says the different curricula of international schools are revised often to make them more relevant to the dynamics of the world This is done from two to three years Park says their books are equally updated often and samples distributed to schools in time to help them decide whether to adopt them or not One can never underestimate the vast exposure that comes with studying in an international school and as the seasoned educationist explains,

international schools get to accommodate students of different nationalities and cultures

As Park further explains, the learning process in international schools is more engaging and practical This is made possible by the small class sizes often characteristic of these schools

as compared to local schools The smaller class sizes enable a better student-teacher ratio, which in turn ensures individual attention to the students’ developmental needs

International schools are not exam oriented and encourage self-learning and research geared towards nurturing critical and independent thinking while building the strength of character

“We believe in empowering students to have independent views in everything they study other than sitting back and absorbing what is being taught in class,” he says The Dean of the School of Education, Makerere University, Dr Betty Ezati, argues that parents take their students to international schools for quite a number of reasons, which may vary from one parent to another

She says with most parents opting for universities abroad, it is very likely that they would choose to offer their children an international background in international schools It is now widely accepted that opportunities for students after international school are tremendous with the top universities the world over consistently competing for the best students There are about 15 international schools in Uganda, with many following the Cambridge curriculum

CHAPTER 3 RESEACRH METHODOLOGY

3.1 The reason

Quickly, catching that psychological issue, foreigner Vietnamese entrepreneurs realize that today most of families have a better condition Therefore, they cooperate together in order to establish and promote another brand of education is mentioned as “international schools system” Many international schools were coming in many different teaching educational quality and tuition fees from medium to upper high There are some advertisements about international schools on social network with all best things that make parents to have another good choice and need to think about more carefully We have to compare, to make a list, to do anything in order to find out which is the best solution for out children to study It can be said that to some families who have enough condition, they would like to prefer choosing international schools and need to think about it And in case, to some families who do not have enough condition, perhaps, they just only consider it as a good reference However, on the other hands, they would like to word so hard to earn money or find out best solutions in order to put children to study in international schools systems with

“education is a good investment” concept Anyway, it shows that all parents always worried about we should do to help our children have a good education background

Some said that learning in public state schools is enough good and it is the best way to save money Some said that studying in international schools is better than public state schools because children can get more practical knowledge and have an opportunity to improve language skills It is heard that all people talking about “a bubble” when we mention about international schools What is this bubble? Is it good at all for out children?

We can collect ideas and confusing, so which is wrong and which is correct This thesis perhaps could not be able to give a right answer for that issue, however, we have been researching for quite some time on this subject now, and there is nothing better than discussing it with adults who have been to international schools and experienced first handily on how international schools environment and system have impacted their life, with some maturity, experience and logical reasoning, it could give us were enlightening and extremely useful for confused parents in order to making a good decision for our children

3.2 The scope and limitation of study

In this thesis, analyzing the sequential organization of making a decision to enroll children into Vietnamese public state schools or international schools system There has been a big debate for all parents in Vietnam who always use plenty time to thinking about children’s educational path However, there are many schools in Vietnam and variety of kinds of parents this makes to be more difficult to do research It is for this reason that I addressed this research gap in my thesis by analyzing the narrow scope for educational system in Ho Chi Minh City and for parents whom have enough condition to consider international schools as the second better options This research was be carrying out lasts in ten weeks of studying Business Study

3.3 Population and Sample

Certainly, when we make a comparison list, we should have a wide outlook both of Vietnamese public state schools and international schools system That means, parents

should understand “a population” and “a sample” concept, we should collect them effectively We should consider “a population” is a collection of all Vietnamese public state

schools and international schools about which we want to make inferences It is not always convenient or possible to examine every member of an entire population For example, it is not practical to count and analyze all names of schools in Vietnam It is possible, however,

to count some particular and special on a set of schools in Vietnam taken from that

population This subset of the population is called “a sample” Therefore, we need to choose

a sample of schools in Vietnam carefully and effectively If the sample is random and large enough, we can use the information collected from the sample to make inferences about the population For example, we could count some special schools in a random sample and then use a hypothesis test to estimate the percentage of all the schools in Vietnam that belongs to public state and international system

All Vietnamese public state schools always have a common educational background from curriculum and teaching methods They belong to educational rules of Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training However, not all international schools follow the same curriculum and with thousands of international schools located around the world in general and around Vietnam in particular, there are a variety of systems designed to service the

various expatriate constituencies There are American, Canadian, British and the more generic, “international” schools, that follow one of these systems or a combination of them

in their curriculum Talking about types of international schools, teachers who are interested

in teaching overseas for the first time will find it easier to teach in the curriculum for which they already have experience (i.e American, British, etc.), but with experience and training, teachers will find that they are qualified to teach in a variety of formats The following provides a sampling of the most common types of international schools worldwide While some international schools have an American, Canadian, British or other slant, some simply call themselves an international school because they have incorporated multiple approaches from different formats, and provide an international curriculum with a global perspective Not all international schools deliver the IB program (just as not all IB schools are international), but one common thread that runs through these schools is the desire to create global citizens who have an understanding of other countries, cultures and histories beyond their own national perspective and/or system

For that reason, to make it become objective, parents should do classify some schools

follow special element to compare Which are special and important elements should we

classify? It is said that educational opportunities in Ho Chi Minh City develop better than

another countryside and small villages Therefore, firstly, we narrow the scope of analysis, used in only all districts in Ho Chi Minh City and for parents whom have enough condition

to consider international schools as the second better options For sample, we need to

classify to 2 kinds of schools as mentioned above including Vietnamese Public State

School System and International School System From Vietnamese Public State School

System, we divided into two kinds of public schools including Famous Public schools and

Common Public schools We keep going on to classify to 3 levels of schools according to

Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training: Primary schools, Secondary schools and

High schools For each levels, we should choose three names of schools following from the

high quality to lower quality International School system would be divided into 2 kinds

such as Bilingual Schools and 100% International Schools We did the same with the

previous steps That means for each kind of international schools, we continue to choose 3 famous names of international schools following from the high ranking quality, medium

ranking quality and low ranking quality

According to the table below, we have:

Primary schools Secondary school High school

Vietnamese

Public State

School System

Famous Public schools

Le Ngoc Han Tran Dai Nghia Le Hong

Phong

Thuong Hien Nguyen Binh Khiem Nguyen Gia Thieu Nguyen Thi

Minh Khai

Common Public schools

Luong Dinh Cua Nguyen Du Nguyen Cong

Vietnam Australia School (VAS)

North American International School V-star International School

100%

International schools

British International School (BIS) Australian International School (AIS)

International Saigon Ho Chi Minh School

3.4 Module and Variables

Generally, all parents have plenty of time to think about our children’s educational path With some differences about adapting knowledge, teaching quality between Vietnamese public state schools and international schools system, parents are always worried and concerned about what is the best decision to enroll children into the most suitable school It is talked about “a bubble” when we mention about international schools Therefore, we need to find out what is it bubble and how aspects influence on making decision enroll children into international schools Based on the survey with maturity, experience and logical reasoning, there are the conclusions that all parents have come to in making a good decision for children

Absolutely, the best education is one of the very first important concerns Because

this is probably where there is least doubts today By putting our kids through international schools, they will be equipped with all they need in terms of education and environment to pursue a great career Reasons are simple With the price we pay to sign up our little one we can expect the best curriculum and latest educational methods, a wealth of extra-curricular

activities and highly selected professionals to teach our children That is the official reason

Secondly, we have a protection from cultural shocks and bullying is carefully

mentioned in enrolling children into international schools It is true that children under a certain age have an incredibly high level of adaptability to changes and can pick up a new language very fast It surely is a skill worth building and developing, but depending on your child's personality, repetitive changes or excessive cultural gaps to overcome can be traumatic and leave a negative footprint in his or her life

To be continued, we need to consider about home abroad issue when children are

studying in the international systems It is said that If international schools can have a negative effect by keeping our children secluded from the host country, it can also be a great tool in nurturing home culture for our children when living abroad By staying within one community abroad we can teach our children the invisible social rules specific to each country even though we are in a place with completely different set of norms

Finally, balancing the exposure between local culture and international schools is not

easy for both parents and children can do it Therefore, it happens “missing out on the host

culture” concept We want our kids to learn several languages and accept several cultures

and thus need to make constant efforts to maintain a colorful rainbow of cultural and language influences

Very often children pick up the languages they use at school with their friends and by the time they reach teenage, influence from friends become a major factor in the way they build their identity

The module and variables

A protection from culture shocks

Home abroad and Study Abroad

Missing out on the host culture

Great career

Multicultural environment

Latest educational methods Best curriculum

International educational

knowledge International skills

Skill worth building and developing

Learn second language

very fast Cultural gaps

Facilities and Services

Teachers

- Teachers: X3

- A protection from culture shocks: X 4

- Home abroad and study abroad: X 5

- Missing out on the host culture: X 6

=> Y = B 0 + B 1.best education + B2.facilities and services + B3.teachers + B6.a

protection from culture shock + B5.home and study abroad + B6.missing out on the host

culture

# The best education

Absolutely, the best education is one of the very first important concerns Because this is

probably where there is least doubts today By putting our children through international schools, they will be equipped with all they need in terms of education and environment to pursue a great career Reasons are simple With the price we pay to sign up our little one we can expect the best curriculum and latest educational methods, a wealth of extra-curricular activities and highly selected professionals to teach our children That is the official reason

The study notes that while funding is an important factor in strong education systems, cultures supportive of learning is even more critical as evidenced by the highly ranked Asian countries, where education is highly valued and parents have grand expectation While Finland and South Korea differ greatly in methods of teaching and learning, they hold the top spots because of a shared social belief in the importance of education and its "underlying moral purpose."

The study aims to help policymakers and school leaders identify key factors that lead to successful educational outcomes The research draws on literacy data as well as figures in government spending on education, school entrance age, teacher salaries and degree of school choice Researchers also measured socioeconomic outcomes like national unemployment rates, GDP, life expectancy and prison population

The report also notes the importance of high-quality teachers and improving strong educator recruitment The rankings show, however, that there is no clear correlation between higher pay and better performance The bottom line findings:

! There are no magic bullets: The small number of correlations found in the study shows the poverty of simplistic solutions Throwing money at education by itself rarely produces results, and individual changes to education systems, however

sensible, rarely do much on their own Education requires long-term, coherent and focused system-wide attention to achieve improvement

! Respect teachers: Good teachers are essential to high-quality education Finding and retaining them is not necessarily a question of high pay Instead, teachers need to be treated as the valuable professionals they are, not as technicians in a huge, educational machine

! Culture can be changed: The cultural assumptions and values surrounding an education system do more to support or undermine it than the system can do on its own Using the positive elements of this culture and, where necessary, seeking to change the negative ones, are important to promoting successful outcomes

! Parents are neither impediments to nor saviours of education: Parents want their children to have a good education; pressure from them for change should not be seen

as a sign of hostility but as an indication of something possibly amiss in provision On the other hand, parental input and choice do not constitute a panacea Education systems should strive to keep parents informed and work with them

! Educate for the future, not just the present: Many of today's job titles, and the

skills needed to fill them, simply did not exist 20 years ago Education systems need

to consider what skills today's students will need in future and teach accordingly

# A protection from culture shock

Secondly, we have a protection from cultural shocks and bullying is carefully

mentioned in enrolling children into international schools It is true that children under a certain age have an incredibly high level of adaptability to changes and can pick up a new language very fast It surely is a skill worth building and developing, but depending on your child's personality, repetitive changes or excessive cultural gaps to overcome can be traumatic and leave a negative footprint in his or her life

Culture shock is common but easily battled and can prove to be beneficial in learning and acquiring new perspectives of the world If possible, learn a few phrases of the language and read up about the culture prior to our visit This will lessen the surprise that many travellers encounter during their first days in-country It is essential to be open-minded about different cultures and if we begin to feel lonely, remember we are not the only one to be