Navigating the tensions between international schooling and national goals of education: expatriate teachers and local students in international schools in Vietnam

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ABSTRACT The past decade has witnessed substantial growth in the international school market, driven by the demand from host-country or “local” families for Western education, English-medium instruction, and expatriate teachers. This growth raises critical questions about the alignment between national education goals and the objectives of international schooling in countries where international schools are positioned as an alternative to national education systems. This article contributes to the research on international schooling by examining these tensions. Focussing on the case of Vietnam, it explores how expatriate teachers in international or internationalised schools perceive their roles in relation to the education of Vietnamese students. Utilising the concept of cosmopolitan nationalism and drawing on an analysis of interviews with expatriate teachers and principals in three schools, the findings reveal that teachers are aware of their role in influencing students’ cultural perspectives and often view their work as an induction into Western culture, despite some ambivalence about “Westernising” Vietnamese students. The paper argues that this tension has broader implications for the development of citizenship and national identity in countries where local students attend international schools, highlighting the need for further research into the implications of international schooling for host-country students and the development of strategies that address the tensions between international schooling and national education goals.