Integration curriculum and international schools

Vietnam remains a cultural and educational hub in Southeast Asia. Over the decades of educational reform, which have included a number of policies stretching from French-colonial to liberation to Doi Moi (renovation) , the tension for international schools has remained in the structure and approach to the curriculum proposed by the schools, and how this meets the policy and expectations of government frameworks. Traditionally, international schools in Vietnam, as in other global contexts, catered exclusively to expatriate communities connected to embassy/consulate teams and large multinational corporate staff. Over time, and through globalization, the local market for international schools has also changed, with increasing numbers of local families seeking access to international education requiring the type of social contracts reflective of changing communities. This chapter explores the implications of the latest government policies in Vietnam on Integration Curriculum and uses two schools as illustrative case studies of challenges and opportunities for International School administrators in the Vietnamese context. We analyze and propose key aspects for consideration in the future of planning investment in international schools in Vietnam, with particular reference to the shift in scope and scale of curriculum integration across transnational stakeholders, the significance of institutional resilience, and the challenge of choice.