Integrating Vietnamese Socio-Cultural Themes through Student Presentations: A Pathway to Cultural Competence

This study investigates the integration of Vietnamese socio-cultural themes into student presentations and its effects to their cultural competency. To achieve this aim, the researcher adopted a sequential explanatory mixed-method approach, including pre- and post-intervention surveys and reflective journals for 120 students in three classes. The evaluation was based on five main components of cultural competency including cultural self-awareness, contextualized learning, reflective thinking, critical cultural awareness, and confidence in cultural expression. The quantitative data revealed that there was a great improvement in students' capacity to critically interact with cultural content and confidently communicate cultural ideas. These findings were further enhanced by the qualitative data, which showed a change in the way that students perceived Vietnamese culture, especially in a greater amount of introspection, heightened awareness of cultural nuances, and an increasing capacity for critical reflection. These results indicate that integrating localized cultural themes into active learning tasks can be an effective pedagogical method for increasing cultural competence and reflective involvement. I hope that the study can contribute to the current discussion about culturally responsive education by identifying student presentations as an effective strategy to cultivate cultural competency in higher education settings.