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Teaching and learning materials should be designed with openness

According to statistics from the Embassy of Vietnam in Japan, nearly 600,000 Vietnamese nationals are currently living, studying, and working in 47 prefectures and cities across Japan, making this community the second-largest foreign resident group in the country. Along with this development is the growing presence of Vietnamese-origin children who are born or raised in an environment where Japanese is the dominant language.

Data from Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) shows that in the 2023 fiscal year, nearly 3,800 students whose mother tongue is Vietnamese required Japanese-language support as a second language. This is an important indicator of the scale of children with Vietnamese heritage, and it highlights the urgent need to preserve the Vietnamese language for them.

Vietnamese language class at Cay Tre Vietnamese School (Osaka, Japan)

Many studies have demonstrated that maintaining the mother tongue strengthens family bonds, reinforces cultural identity, supports bilingual cognitive development, and expands future opportunities. Within the Vietnamese community in Japan, this becomes even more evident, as many children face difficulties speaking, understanding, or expressing themselves in Vietnamese. A limited vocabulary, inability to understand their grandparents, or difficulty communicating with relatives are common situations.

Weekend Vietnamese classes or community activities are no longer sufficient to meet the needs of Vietnamese-origin children today. There is a need for a curriculum, materials, and teaching methods tailored to the specific conditions in Japan.

Associate Professor Dr. Trinh Cam Lan, former Head of the Department of Vietnamese Studies - Faculty of Linguistics, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam National University, Hanoi), and a member of the editorial board of the Ket noi Chan troi tri thuc textbook series, stated that no official materials specifically designed for teaching heritage Vietnamese currently exist. Meanwhile, textbooks for children in Vietnam are not suitable for learning contexts abroad. Conversely, materials used for teaching Vietnamese as a foreign language also fail to meet the actual needs, as children learning a heritage language acquire Vietnamese from an early age in the family, instead of starting from scratch like foreign-language learners.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Trinh Cam Lan, teaching and learning materials for heritage languages should be designed with openness, combining methods for teaching mother tongues and second languages. Vietnamese-origin students abroad are not the same as children learning their mother tongue in their home country, nor are they entirely like learners of Vietnamese as a foreign language. Therefore, textbooks and methods must reflect the specific learning characteristics of this unique group.

She also cited principles proposed by Peyton, J. K., Ranard, D. A., & McGinnis, S. (Eds.) for developing heritage-language teaching materials: suitability for learners’ levels, ages, linguistic and cultural characteristics; alignment with teaching goals, content, and available resources; attractiveness and dynamism; practicality with a focus on communication skills; and flexibility for teachers to adjust content and methods according to learners’ needs, as well as diversify assessment forms. These are important suggestions for developing heritage Vietnamese materials in the context of a rapidly growing Vietnamese community in Japan.

Japanese as a bridge to more effective Vietnamese learning

According to MSc. Pham Phi Hai Yen, a doctoral candidate at Osaka University (Japan), Japanese can serve as an important pedagogical resource in teaching Vietnamese as a heritage language in Japan. When used flexibly through the translanguaging strategy (alternating between two languages in the classroom), Japanese helps students understand lessons, gain confidence, and develop a stable bilingual identity.

MSc. Pham Phi Hai Yen believes that heritage-language learners often have an emotional attachment to Vietnamese but lack the academic linguistic system needed for proficient use. Therefore, using Japanese to explain vocabulary, guide exercises, or compare the two languages is necessary and does not reduce the ability to acquire Vietnamese. On the contrary, it helps children feel safe, reduces pressure, and increases motivation to learn.

Vietnamese language class taught by MSc. Pham Phi Hai Yen.

In the online “Liu Lo tieng Viet” class taught by MSc. Pham Phi Hai Yen, student Nakayama Miyu (Grade 5) shared: “When the teacher speaks Japanese, it helps me understand the lesson more easily and remember better… When the teacher speaks too much Vietnamese and I don’t understand the meaning, I feel reluctant to study because I can’t follow the lesson.”

Student Ono Maika (Grade 6) also said: “Before, I studied with a teacher who only spoke Vietnamese, so I couldn’t keep up… Now, learning with a teacher who also speaks Japanese, I find it easier to understand the lessons. Once I get used to it, I want to speak entirely in Vietnamese with the teacher.”

Drawing from practical experience, MSc. Pham Phi Hai Yen proposes six principles for applying translanguaging in heritage Vietnamese classes in Japan: Use Japanese to explain abstract concepts or complex grammar; Compare and contrast Vietnamese and Japanese so learners clearly recognize differences and avoid interference errors; Encourage students to alternate between the two languages in creative activities; Use Japanese for classroom management so that children grasp instructions more quickly; Develop bilingual learning materials to support both children and parents during revision; Strengthen family–community connections through bilingual communication so that Japanese parents can also follow and support their children.

MSc. Pham Phi Hai Yen emphasizes that using Japanese does not mean lowering the goal of learning Vietnamese. Translanguaging is simply a two-way approach that helps students understand lessons more quickly and confidently, and it is necessary to clearly explain this to parents to reduce concerns about “less immersion in Vietnamese.”

Preserving Vietnamese for Vietnamese-origin children in Japan does not depend solely on the efforts of individual families but requires a coordinated approach: an appropriate curriculum, teachers who understand the characteristics of heritage languages, and support from the community. When these elements are connected, Vietnamese will naturally and sustainably become part of children’s daily lives.

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