So goes the title of a recent article about international textile companies operating in Viet Nam. The first thought that always pops into my head whenever I read about rising labor costs is how much by local standards and how much is enough in terms of net profit? Why not pay your employees a living … Continue reading “Global garment firms no longer bullish on Vietnam as costs rise”
vietnam
Người Mỹ tại Việt Nam
This is an abridged Vietnamese version of an essay of mine that was published by VNExpress. The English version was published in February by VNExpress International. Happy reading in either language or both! Shalom (שלום), MAA
“The shift of Vietnamese students to Canada marches on”
Here is my latest essay for University World News. If you like the teaser below, follow this link to read the article in its entirety. This is a follow-up to an April 2018 article I wrote entitled Vietnamese students look at the US and head north (editor's title). I placed a gentleman's bet with myself that … Continue reading “The shift of Vietnamese students to Canada marches on”
US Student Visa Update from Viet Nam: So Far, So Good in FY19
I know it's only four months into the 2019 US government fiscal year (FY19) but I look for trends wherever I can find them, even if they're just beginning to take shape. Based on US State Department statistics, the number of student visas issued from October 2018 to January 2019 by US Mission-Viet Nam, which … Continue reading US Student Visa Update from Viet Nam: So Far, So Good in FY19
Expanding the Fulbright Legacy in Vietnam (?)
It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so. -Mark Twain (1835-1910) This was the title of a 2018 article written by Mary Beth Marklein (MBM) for Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning (Volume 50, 2018 - Issue 1, pp. 63-70). The online … Continue reading Expanding the Fulbright Legacy in Vietnam (?)
On the outside looking in: A US American in Vietnam
I have spent over 40 percent of my adult life outside of my home country, never content with having my soul controlled by geography, to paraphrase George Santayana. I carry a U.S. passport but it doesn’t define me. I am a U.S. ex-patriot and global citizen who calls Vietnam home. Follow this link to read … Continue reading On the outside looking in: A US American in Vietnam
New Approaches to University Education in Asia
While I will reserve judgement, the theme of this Fulbright University Vietnam (FUV) conference sounds like yet another example of US Americans telling others, in the case, Asian universities, how it should really be done a la Daddy knows best. Why not just New Approaches to University Education? Or, as one colleague put it, "It's … Continue reading New Approaches to University Education in Asia
EducationUSA Closed for Business
From the website of US Mission-Viet Nam: Lapse in U.S. Government Appropriations The Federal Government of the United States of America is currently in a Lapse of Appropriations period. Scheduled passport and visas services, and emergency services for U.S. citizens, will continue at the U.S. Embassy Hanoi and our Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City … Continue reading EducationUSA Closed for Business
About Viet Nam’s “gifting culture”
Giving gifts to people in authority has become normal, but we have to be aware it institutionalizes an 'underworld.' Also known as an "envelope culture" (văn hóa phong bì) because envelopes are used for more than sending letters, so passé in the digital age, and giving "lucky money" (lì xì) at Lunar New Year. A … Continue reading About Viet Nam’s “gifting culture”
English Proficiency in Viet Nam: Giving Credit Where Credit’s Due
An article entitled What is the real English profiency level of Vietnamese? (yes, the word "proficiency" was misspelled) recently graced the Internet in Viet Nam with this description: While an education organization has ranked Vietnam in the seventh position among 21 Asian countries in proficiency of English, some experts call the result ‘flashy’, saying it does not … Continue reading English Proficiency in Viet Nam: Giving Credit Where Credit’s Due
An International Educator in Vietnam 
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