The document discusses a study assessing problem solving and critical thinking skills among Vietnamese students. It found that the majority of students demonstrated basic or competent levels in these skills. However, performance on problem solving and critical thinking did not necessarily correlate with performance in academic subjects. Schools in more rural, disadvantaged areas tended to score higher in problem solving and critical thinking compared to schools in urban, advantaged areas that scored higher in math and English. The study suggests Vietnamese students may have stronger 21st century skills than implied by their high test scores alone, and that assessing these additional skills provides a more comprehensive view of school quality and effectiveness.

1. Vietnam: education for the 21st century?

2. VIETNAM: EDUCATION FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?
 High learning outcomes in Vietnam - but does this just reflect
rote learning?
 Concerns that Vietnamese young people do not have required
skills for 21st century labour market – e.g. problem solving,
critical thinking, communication and teamwork
 But - little evidence on skills like problem solving and critical
thinking among Vietnamese students

3. VIETNAM: EDUCATION FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?
 Transferable skills test included in 2016-17 school surveys to
assess problem solving and critical thinking
 Research questions:
• Do students in Vietnam have problem solving and critical
thinking skills?
• How does student performance on problem solving and
critical thinking relate to school effectiveness?

4. Problem solving
 ‘an individual’s capacity to use
cognitive processes to resolve real,
cross-disciplinary situations where the
solution path is not immediately
obvious’ (OECD 2004)
 Items adapted from PISA 2003
ASSESSING PROBLEM SOLVING & CRITICAL THINKING

5. ASSESSING PROBLEM SOLVING & CRITICAL THINKING
Critical thinking
 ‘Skills such as inference and evaluation
which are applied to ill-structured
problems, for which there are no
definitive solutions’ (Kuhn 1991;
Thomas & Lok 2015)
 Items adapted from CWRA+

6. Below Level 1: Weak or emergent problem
solvers
Level 1: Basic problem solvers
Level 2: Competent problem solvers
PROBLEM SOLVING: STUDENT PERFORMANCE
%14.8%
%42.7%
%42.5%

7. CRITICAL THINKING: STUDENT PERFORMANCE
%25.1%
%35.6%
%39.2%
Level 1: Emergent critical thinkers
Level 2: Basic critical thinkers
Level 3: Competent critical thinkers

8. PROBLEM SOLVING & CRITICAL THINKING IN VIETNAM
 Majority of Vietnamese students in the Young Lives school
survey have either basic or competent problem solving and
critical thinking skills
 Difference between high performance on school subjects and
problem solving / critical thinking?
• Highest performing districts in Maths and English: urban,
advantaged sites in Da Nang and Hung Yen
• Highest performing districts in problem solving and critical
thinking: rural, disadvantaged sites in Phu Yen

9. PROBLEM SOLVING & SCHOOL EFFECTIVENESS

10. CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
 Further questions:
• Teacher and student-level factors associated with
problem solving and critical thinking?
 Young Lives assessment of 21st century skills:
• Vietnamese students are not just rote learners
• Additional dimension to how we understand school
effectiveness and quality