Implementation
It is important for school districts to be proactive throughout the implementation process in order to maximize the effectiveness of the Hmong History and Cultural Studies Model Curriculum. This narrative will provide district and site administrators with guidance on how to implement the curriculum in ways that are best suited to their students, teachers, and communities.
Implementing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum in the History-Social Science Classroom
While the FAIR Education Act of 2011 was passed in order to ensure "a study of the role and contributions of ... Asian Americans” (Ed. Code Section 51204.5) in the development of California and United States (US) history, Vietnamese Americans are often left out of history curricula. In high school, students learn about the Vietnam War from an American foreign policy perspective contextualized in the Cold War Era. Although the California History-Social Science Framework authors include the experiences of immigrants from Vietnam in both 4th and 11th grades, teachers often do not have access to lessons that center around the stories of families with Southeast Asian ancestry.
Implementing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum in the English Language Arts Classroom
By accessing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum (VAEMC), teachers will have access to robust resources and historical context, centering Vietnamese perspectives. Student learning thrives when educators are able to utilize a culturally sustaining pedagogy approach within their English Language Arts classrooms. Incorporating Vietnamese stories in the classroom will allow students to not only learn about and affirm their own and other students’ identities, but also promotes academic success. Providing opportunities to learn about one’s history and culture are a feat for every educator, and not just restricted to a heritage language course or History-Social Science course.
Implementing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum in the World Language Classroom
Since the twentieth century, Vietnamese language pedagogies in the United States have experienced tremendous changes, shifting emphasis from serving as the teaching skill of area studies towards a broader spectrum of socio-cultural development germane to global competence, multiculturalism, and multiliteracy. A major catalyst for these pedagogical shifts is attributable to the mass exodus of Vietnamese people emigrating from Southeast Asia; since 1975, approximately 125,000 relocated to the United States. By 2019, the number of Vietnamese immigrants was closer to 1.4 million (Harjanto and Batalova, 2021). With 39 percent of the population residing in California, Vietnamese ethnic communities and dual-language immersion schools have formed across the state.
Professional Learning
Scholar Talks for Professional Learning
Dr. Alex-Thái Đình Võ, “Toward a Framework for Vietnamese American Studies” (71 minutes, link)
Area of Study 1: Framing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
- Language barriers
- Historical memory
- Cultural production
- Republic of Vietnam
- Waves of refugees
Dr. Cindy Nguyễn, “Colonial Vietnam: History, Agency, Culture, and Power” (83 minutes, link)
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
- Colonial Indochina
- Evolution of Vietnam and Southeast Asia
- Vietnamese language
Dr. Yến Lê Espiritu, “Vietnamese Refugee Remembering and Remembrance” (55 minutes, link)
Area of Study 3: Vietnamese Departures and Transit
Area of Study 4: Vietnamese Resettlement and Community Building
- Memorialization of the Vietnam War
- Refugee practices of storytelling
- Vietnamese diasporic communities
- Memory-making
Dr. Thuy Vo Dang, “Little Saigon” (72 minutes, link)
Area of Study 4: Vietnamese Resettlement and Community Building
- Little Saigon communities
- Resettlement and secondary migration
- Community building and placemaking
Joseph Nguyễn, “Vietnamese Literature and Music” (82 minutes, link)
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
- Role of music and literature in culture and identity
- Yellow Music Movement
- French influence on music
- “Golden Age” of music
Dr. Diu-Huong Nguyễn, “The Vietnam War” (59 minutes, link)
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
Area of Study 3: Vietnamese Departures and Transit
- War origins and evolution
- Legacies of the war
- Social and cultural life
Dr. Yến Lê Espiritu, “Critical Refugee Studies: Vietnamese Lives-Loss and Found” (60 minutes, link)
Area of Study 3: Vietnamese Departures and Transit
- Different types of losses
- Conditions of displacement
- Refugee exodus
- “Sutured kinship”
Dr. Loan Le, “The Politics of Intergenerational Differences: Bridging and Healing” (51 minutes, link)
Area of Study 4: Vietnamese Resettlement and Community Building
- Traditional partisanship
- Voter survey analysis
- Generational divides
- Conflicts in Vietnamese American politics
Dr. Cindy Nguyễn, “Interactions with the West: Geographies” (24 minutes, link)
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
- Pre-colonial Southeast Asian politics and competing spheres of influence
- Complexity of Southeast Asian Geography and History
- Critical Use of Maps and Alternative Historical Narratives
Dr. Cindy Nguyễn, “Interactions with the West: Colonialism” (32 minutes, link)
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
- The complexities of colonialism
- Forms and mechanisms of colonial rule
- Case study: French Indochina
- Colonial legacies in present-day institutions
Oral Histories
Introduced by Senator Janet Nguyen in 2018, California Senate Bill 895 (SB 895) mandated the development of model curricula on refugee experiences from members of Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Hmong American communities. The bill called for the inclusion of histories and cultural narratives in K-12 education that center on Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Hmong refugee experiences and contributions to American society. SB 895 allowed for the establishment of a curriculum that covers critical aspects of the Vietnamese refugee journey, including cultural and political histories, as well as personal narratives. A key component of this project was the inclusion of oral history interviews. In the summer of 2024, the Orange County Department of Education collected oral histories from local Vietnamese Americans. The purpose of this section is to showcase how educators might use these interviews when implementing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum. Each oral history is accompanied by a short list of key themes that are present in the interviews and suggested areas of study wherein educators can embed the interviews as supplementary sources.
Area of Study 2: Social and Political Transformations in 20th Century Vietnam
Anh Trần Phạm (24 minutes, link)
- Pre-1975
- Orderly Departure Program Family Reunification Program
- Communist Regime
- Vietnamese Restoration Front
- Communist Prison Camp
Chi Văn Trần (20 minutes, link)
- Galang Island, Indonesia
- Nguoi Viet News Writer and Program Director
- Authored books about Vietnamese Culture pre-1975
- Educator in Vietnam
- Communist Regime
Đại Gia Phạm (28 minutes, link)
- Fleeing Communism
- US Air Force
- Communist Regime
- US Embassy - American Liaison Group, CIO Group
Lạc Tấn Nguyễ, (28 minutes, link)
- Viet Minh, Communists
- Political Changes
- Army of the Republic of Vietnam
- Communist Prison Camps
Lâm Minh Lê (28 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- Central Vietnam
- Mixed-Race Identity
Phổ Huỳnh (13 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- New Economic Zones
- Freedom and Resilience
- Vietnamese Language School
Quy Văn Ngô (36 minutes, link)
- Vietnamese Buddhist Youth Organization
- French Influence and Conflicts
- 1963 Revolution
- US Army Special Forces
Thành Văn Phạm ( 34 minutes, link)
- Military Police branch of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
- Soldier
- Conditions of South Vietnam
- Boat Refugees
Tony Lâm (30 minutes, link)
- Vietnam Navy
- US Contractor Employee
- USAID Rural Affairs
- Communist Propaganda
Vincent Võ (16 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- Student Anti-Communist Movement (in Italy)
- United Nations Refugee Program
- Education
Area of Study 3: Vietnamese Departures and Transit
Anthony Nguyễn (18 minutes, link)
- Military Participation
- Communist Regime
- Communist Prison Camp
- Ways to Escape Vietnam
- Boat Refugees
- Pulau Bidong, Malaysia
Diệu-Quyên Khoa Nguyễn (24 minutes, link)
- “Re-Education” Camps
- Educational Changes
- Shifting Family Responsibilities
- New Economic Zone
- Boat Refugees
- Assimilation to the US
George Hoàng Vũ (18 minutes, link)
- French colonial rule
- Viet Minh, Communists
- Army of the Republic of Vietnam - 41st Signal Battalion of US Army
- Fort Chaffee, Arkansas
- Sea-Land Company
- Association of Vietnamese Language and Culture School
Hồng Thị Tuyết Lý (14 minutes, link)
- New Economic Zones
- Boat Refugee
- Philippines Island
- Sponsorships
Nhã Đức Hoàng (20 minutes, link)
- Government Employee until 1975
- Advisor to President of Vietnam
- Guam
Peter Châu Nguyễn (23 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- Fall of Saigon
- Philippine Refugee Camp
- Guam
- Fort Indiana, Pennsylvania
- Family and Church Sponsorships
Phát Bùi (19 minutes, link)
- Boat Refugee
- Guam
- Fort Chaffee military camp
- Family and Church Sponsorships
Tài Đỗ (19 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- Boat Refugee
- Thai Government 1981
- Sikiew Prison Camp in Thailand
Thành Văn Phạm (34 minutes, link)
- Military Police branch of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
- Soldier
- Conditions of South Vietnam
- Boat Refugees
Trúc Hồ (40 minutes, link)
- Tet Offensive
- Communist Regime
- Prisoner Camp
- Post-1975
- Boat Refugee
- International Red Cross Refugee Camp
- Escape to Cambodia and Thailand
Tùng Xuân Nguyễn (30 minutes, link)
- Military Police branch of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
- Soldier
- Conditions of South Vietnam
Vincent Võ (15 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- Student Anti-Communist Movement (in Italy)
- United Nations Refugee Program
- Education
Area of Study 4: Vietnamese Resettlement and Community Building
Diệu-Quyên Khoa Nguyễn (24 minutes, link)
- “Re-Education” Camps
- Educational Changes
- Shifting Family Responsibilities
- New Economic Zone
- Boat Refugees
- Assimilation to the US
George Hoàng Vũ (18 minutes, link)
- French colonial rule
- Viet Minh, Communists
- Army of the Republic of Vietnam - 41st Signal Battalion of US Army
- Fort Chaffee, Arkansas
- Sea-Land Company
- Association of Vietnamese Language and Culture School
Lam Minh Le (28 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- Central Vietnam
- Mixed-Race Identity
Nhã Đức Hoàng (20 minutes, link)
- Government Employee until 1975
- Advisor to President of Vietnam
- Guam
Phổ Huỳnh (13 minutes, link)
- Communist Regime
- New Economic Zones
- Freedom and Resilience
- Vietnamese Language School
Trúc Hồ (40 minutes, link)
- Tet Offensive
- Communist Regime
- Prisoner Camp
- Post-1975
- Boat Refugee
- International Red Cross Refugee Camp
- Escape to Cambodia and Thailand
Directions for Downloading
Educators can view recorded scholar talks from the model curriculum development on the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum. These videos will support educators in developing content background and building capacity in teaching about Vietnamese histories and culture.
In order to download any of the videos below, follow these steps:
Click on the word “link” in the parentheses, which will link you to the corresponding video.
On the Vimeo page for this video, click on the download button beneath the title of the video.
Next, you will see a “Video” tab on the left and five video qualities listed - 1080p, 720p, 540p, 360p, and 240p. Click on the download icon next to the video quality that you wish to download (1080 is the highest quality).
In order to download caption transcripts from any of the videos below, follow these steps:
Click on the word “link” in the parentheses, which will link you to the corresponding video.
- On the Vimeo page for this video, click on the download button [
] beneath the title of the video. If you click on the Transcript button to the right, you will see the captions in a new window on the screen.
Next, you will see a “Video” tab on the left, and a “Transcript” tab on the right. Click on the transcript tab.
Underneath the transcript tab you will see two languages, English and Hmong. Click on the download icon next to the language of the captions that you wish to download.