VietTESOL International Convention 2026

Vietnam is transitioning from teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) toward using it as a second language (ESL) in public schools by 2035, yet the gap between national policy and classroom realities remains significant. This study examined public lower secondary school English teachers’ perspectives on EFL versus ESL curriculum orientation in Can Tho, Vietnam. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight purposively selected English teachers from public secondary
schools. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that most teachers still conceptualized and implemented the English curriculum primarily as EFL. The main reasons were the lack of exposure to English outside the classroom, the heavy examination pressure, the large class sizes, and the lack of resources. Although the teachers acknowledged the importance of ESL features such as communicative competence and content integration, they resorted to hybrid practices that blended grammar-oriented instruction with selected communicative activities. Such beliefs had a strong impact on their instructional choices and classroom practices. This study offers a more nuanced understanding of the tension between top-down language policy and bottom-up teacher enactment. The findings have practical implications for the design of localized teacher professional development programs, the adaptation of curriculum to the public school contexts, and support for a feasible “Made-in-Vietnam” ESL model. Educational stakeholders can use these insights to bridge policy aspirations and actual teaching practices more effectively in similar EFL-to-ESL transition settings.

Keywords: EFL/ESL curriculum orientation, teacher beliefs, teacher cognition, language policy implementation, CLIL, public lower secondary schools, English education reform, Vietnam