Assimilation: multiculturalism or racism at the core?

August 15, 2019

Last year, I had a conversation with another researcher about my work on Vietnamese diaspora in Australia. I shared with her my project of examining cultural artefacts from Vietnamese newspapers in Australia. My analysis revealed proliferation of business relations within the close community of Vietnamese-Australians. At the same time, promotions of these business alliances in … More Assimilation: multiculturalism or racism at the core?

International education as a public good

August 2, 2019

Vietnam has been a significant source country for international students in the last 30 years, and there is no sign of this trend changing in the near future. Such growth aligns with the country’s economic development since the 1990s when Vietnam transitioned to a market-based economy with strategic efforts in entering the global economy. This … More International education as a public good

Let’s talk about intergenerational trauma of refugees!

July 12, 2019

I was recently interviewed about intergenerational trauma of refugees. This is an issue that is hardly ever talked about in the Australian media, public forum or in the Vietnamese community. The majority of the Vietnamese diaspora came to Australia as part of Malcolm Fraser’s response to the Indochinese refugee crisis in 1977.  References to the … More Let’s talk about intergenerational trauma of refugees!

International education and development of citizenship and social responsibility

June 19, 2019

The benefits of education lie not only in economic betterment for the individual. It is also in developing students’ capacity to be informed and enable positive change in their societies. In that way, education can contribute to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The same can be argued for international education. Those who are lucky … More International education and development of citizenship and social responsibility

The purpose of education

June 5, 2019

There are different views about the purpose of education. Here are three approaches. The first one is a pure economic one where education is seen as important in terms of developing knowledge, skills and improving work productivity. The benefits of education are considered in terms of increased productivity through jobs and remuneration. People choose education … More The purpose of education