Mr. Nguyen The Duong (far left) and the "Vietnamese Ambassadors" were honored at the Closing Ceremony of Vietnamese Language Honor Day 2024 (Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
From passion for researching Vietnamese
Mr. Nguyen The Duong is a student of class K44, Faculty of Linguistics, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. After graduating, he worked at the Institute of Linguistics - Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences and taught Linguistics at the Academy of Social Sciences. In 2011, he received a scholarship to study for a PhD at the University of Queensland (Australia).
He shared: My knowledge, love and passion for research and learning about languages in general and Vietnamese in particular have been nurtured since I studied at the Faculty of Linguistics, University of Social Sciences and Humanities. And during the process of studying, researching, working and living in Australia, I clearly realized the importance of preserving Vietnamese for children abroad. Vietnamese is not only a link to connect children with their homeland and family, but also an extremely necessary provision for them in their future life in a multicultural society. Preserving Vietnamese means preserving their own identity. However, it is regrettable that the loss of mother tongues among children is still happening, including the case of my own son. Even in many families, if parents and grandparents cannot speak English, they cannot communicate with their children and grandchildren. Since then, I have always had a thought in mind: if children can learn different foreign languages, why can't they be fluent in Vietnamese, their mother tongue? I clearly realized that Vietnamese children still lack a complete, updated, and methodical curriculum to learn Vietnamese abroad. This urged me to start compiling a curriculum soon so that children have learning materials.
"At the end of 2016, I joined hands with two colleagues at the Institute of Linguistics, MSc. Tran Huong Thuc and Dr. Pham Thi Huong Quynh, to compile the book series "My Vietnamese". MSc. Tran Huong Thuc is also a former student of K44 Linguistics. After two years, the book series was published by the National University Publishing House."
In 2021, our book series won the Second Prize (the highest prize) in the contest "Compiling books and textbooks to teach Vietnamese for overseas Vietnamese" organized by the Ministry of Education and Training. Currently, "My Vietnamese" is being taught in the "Vietnamese" program on VTC10 channel of Voice of Vietnam (VOV) and VTC Digital Television.
The book series "My Vietnamese" is co-edited by Dr. Nguyen The Duong and colleagues.
In parallel with compiling the textbook "My Vietnamese", I also continued to focus on researching and publishing many works on mother tongue and language education in the context of different countries.
… Opened a school to teach Vietnamese to children and overseas Vietnamese.
Right after the book series "My Vietnamese" was released, I brought the book series to Australia.
"With the desire to preserve our mother tongue and spread the love for Vietnamese language and culture to many overseas Vietnamese, I and Ms. Hoang Thi Thu Thuy, also a former student of K44 Linguistics at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, opened the Love Vietnamese School, specializing in teaching Vietnamese to Vietnamese children abroad.
I am currently the Executive Director of the School. Currently, Love Vietnamese has thousands of students registered and studying from more than 30 countries and territories from the US, Australia, UK, France, Germany, Japan to countries with relatively few Vietnamese people living such as Guyane, Cameroun or Saudi Arabia.
In addition to his passion for teaching Vietnamese, Mr. Nguyen The Duong also actively organizes and participates in many activities to continue spreading the love of Vietnamese to Vietnamese communities around the world, such as: "Vietnamese Language Festival" in 2019 in Brisbane, "Love Tet" art program organized by the Love Vietnamese Language School annually at the beginning of the year since 2021, "A tour of Hanoi" tour program and the program of meeting, exchanging, raising funds to give scholarships and books to Na Phon Primary and Secondary School (Mai Chau - Hoa Binh) in 2022, Kamishibai reading art introduction program (in collaboration with Kim Dong Publishing House) in 2024, ... participating as a judge in the "I am super Vietnamese" contest organized by the Consulate General of Vietnam in Sydney. At the same time, he also actively participates in the campaign to establish a Vietnamese Language Honor Day in the Vietnamese community abroad. He believes: “Having a day to honor the Vietnamese language is very necessary. This will be an opportunity to remind everyone with Vietnamese blood, whether in Vietnam or abroad, to preserve and promote the value of the Vietnamese language in the era of integration. Vietnamese Language Day will help Vietnamese people get closer together, strengthen the solidarity of Vietnamese communities around the world, and also help raise the position of the Vietnamese language in countries.”
The most passionate thing in the journey to preserve and spread the beauty of Vietnamese around the world
Remembering the first days The journey to preserve Vietnamese with the School of Loving Vietnamese over the years has gone through many emotions and also many difficulties. Coming to our first Vietnamese classes, there were children who already knew a little bit, but most of them could speak a sentence of Vietnamese. Then gradually, the children spoke their first words in Vietnamese to the joy of their grandparents and parents. There were many children who were learning Vietnamese and their siblings were sitting in on the class and were so excited that they joined in. Even more special were the non-Vietnamese parents who, when they saw their children learning, also joined in. Those are the values that spread Vietnamese in the community that moved and touched me.
A letter to mother written in Vietnamese by a child after attending a Vietnamese class at the Love Vietnamese School of Dr. Nguyen The Duong
I believe that: “Just go, keep exploring, keep creating, gradually experience, then you will see that this journey is interesting, unique and extremely lovely. Many teachers and families around the world are making efforts every day so that the Vietnamese language will continue to flow in foreign lands. Our School of Loving Vietnamese is very happy and proud to contribute a small part to that journey - the journey of preserving and conserving the Vietnamese language for generations of Vietnamese children abroad. We will make more efforts to bring the love of Vietnamese language everywhere so that generations of Vietnamese children born and raised abroad will understand and be proud of being Vietnamese and more attached to their families and Vietnamese roots, while at the same time raising the position of Vietnamese language, Vietnamese people and Vietnam in countries around the world.
>>>> Press reported:- Dan Tri Newspaper:
Honoring 5 overseas Vietnamese as Vietnamese Language Ambassadors in 2024- Labor Newspaper:
Revealing 5 Vietnamese Ambassadors Abroad in 2024- Tuoi Tre Newspaper:
First time honoring Vietnamese Ambassador abroad
