British Council extends IELTS scholarships

Following the success of the 2010 IELTS (International English Language Testing System) scholarship scheme, the British Council will expand the program in 2011, to offer over 60 scholarships across 10 countries in Asia.

In Vietnam, British Council will award 13 IELTS scholarships worth around VND450 million, two of which for VND100 million each, aimed at High school/Pre-University/Undergraduate and Postgraduate students planning to study outside Vietnam, and 10 scholarships valued at  VND15 million aimed at high school/pre-university/undergraduate and postgraduate students planning to study in Vietnam. 

Additionally, to mark the Institute of International Education’s announcement that Vietnam has moved into the top 10 leading places of origin for students visiting the U.S.  In order to mark this occasion, the British Council is also offering one of the scholarships valued at VND100 million to a high school/pre-university/undergraduate or postgraduate student planning to study in the U.S.

These awards will be issued to the attending educational institutions in order to assist applicants with their educational expenses.

In Vietnam, last year’s scholarship recipients came from both the North and South and were each awarded VND60 million towards their tuition fees on undergraduate, foundation and A level programs at top institutes in the U.S., U.K and Australia. 

Award winners will begin their courses out or inside Vietnam at any university, college, high school or institution in 2011, which uses IELTS as part of its admission requirements. Detailed information regarding British Council IELTS Scholarship, including application materials, is available at www.britishcouncil.org/vietnam

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British Council extends IELTS scholarships

Following the success of the 2010 IELTS (International English Language Testing System) scholarship scheme, the British Council will expand the program in 2011, to offer over 60 scholarships across 10 countries in Asia.

In Vietnam, British Council will award 13 IELTS scholarships worth around VND450 million, two of which for VND100 million each, aimed at High school/Pre-University/Undergraduate and Postgraduate students planning to study outside Vietnam, and 10 scholarships valued at  VND15 million aimed at high school/pre-university/undergraduate and postgraduate students planning to study in Vietnam. 

Additionally, to mark the Institute of International Education’s announcement that Vietnam has moved into the top 10 leading places of origin for students visiting the U.S.  In order to mark this occasion, the British Council is also offering one of the scholarships valued at VND100 million to a high school/pre-university/undergraduate or postgraduate student planning to study in the U.S.

These awards will be issued to the attending educational institutions in order to assist applicants with their educational expenses.

In Vietnam, last year’s scholarship recipients came from both the North and South and were each awarded VND60 million towards their tuition fees on undergraduate, foundation and A level programs at top institutes in the U.S., U.K and Australia. 

Award winners will begin their courses out or inside Vietnam at any university, college, high school or institution in 2011, which uses IELTS as part of its admission requirements. Detailed information regarding British Council IELTS Scholarship, including application materials, is available at www.britishcouncil.org/vietnam

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German textbooks gifted to National Library

HA NOI — The German Embassy granted 50 textbooks to the National Library yesterday.

Textbooks on law, economics, and engineering purchased by the German Foreign Affairs Ministry, have been selected by the Goethe Institute in Ha Noi and the library.

Earlier, the library and the Goethe Institute signed a memorandum of co-operation focused on improving the standards of human resources working in the library and archiving sector.

Embroidery depicts famous poem of Zen master

HA NOI — Veteran artisan Le Van Kinh has completed a set of embroideries depicting a poem by Zen Master Man Giac.

Kinh has spent 10 years to complete the paintings in a variety of languages including Danish, English, French, German, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Lao, Cambodian and Thai.

The artisan, who works in the former imperial capital of Hue, plans another six such embroideries.

Zen Master Man Giac (1052-96), or Ly Truong, was famous for his Buddhism theory and writing skills during the reign of King Ly Nhan Tong.

TV personalities set for Miss Charming Television

HCM CITY — Thirteen women television personalities from around Viet Nam and one from Laos will take part in a traditional-culture and lifestyle contest that begins in HCM City tonight.

At the four-day annual Miss Charming Television organised by HCM City Television (HTV) contestants will be judged on appearance, performance, emceeing skills, and presentation style.

The Vietnamese competitors work for television stations in Ha Noi and HCM City and some provinces, and the Lao contestant, Nhom Mala is from Attapeu Television.

All work as reporters, producers and hosts.

Five will go through to the final to be held on Saturday at the HTV Theatre where they will perform folk songs and dances in their traditional costumes.

The contest will be shown on HTV's channel 9.

Winners of British Council ‘green' contest announced

HA NOI — The winners of the British Council's Green Tips essay contest were announced yesterday, as part of the council's I Am Green campaign to raise environmental awareness.

The contest, launched last month, sought to encourage young people to think about and develop responses to the challenges of climate change, said the organising board. It drew 400 entries from around the country, all written on recycled paper

Two other competitions under the campaign have also wrapped up, including the How Green Is Your City photo contest – which chose ten winners, each of whom will win English courses at British Council and trips from the Exotissimo tour company – and the Green Tip Box competition, which selected eight winners.

Another 28 young people have won a trip to the Cu Chi Wildlife Rescue Centre in another contest on wildlife conservation. — VNS

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Carved sapphire turtle presented to capital

HA NOI — A sapphire turtle made by the DOJI Gold and Gems Group was presented to the Ha Noi People's Committee as a gift for the city's 1,000th anniversary yesterday.

The Giant Precious Sapphire Turtle had spiritual meaning as a symbol of longevity and peace, said DOJI general director Do Minh Phu.

Its natural blue and reddish brown colours gave it a unique beauty, he said.

The turtle is made from a monolithic sapphire, weighs two tonnes and took artisans 200 days to complete.

Legend says a turtle helped King An Duong Vuong build Co Loa Citadel in the 3rd century BC while King Le Thai To, (1385-1433) returned a precious sword to a tortoise in Hoan Kiem or "Returned Sword" Lake after using it to defeat invaders.

Calligraphers exhibit to celebrate Ha Noi

HA NOI — The biggest yet calligraphy exhibition will open at the Temple of Literature today, said its Centre for Cultural and Scientific Activities director Dang Kim Ngoc.

About 250 works of various sizes and featuring different calligraphic styles on materials including ceramic, bamboo and do (poonah) paper will be on display with 200 lanterns.

A performance depicting the traditional greeting given successful candidates returning home after passing their royal exams would be party of the opening ceremony, the director said.

The exhibition will end on October 14.

British council awards filmmaker a trip to London

HCM CITY — The British Council Viet Nam on Saturday handed out award certificates to winners at the British Council International Screen Entrepreneur Award.

The national winner, Tran Thi Bich Ngoc, will represent Viet Nam to compete in the international competition, which will take place in London on October 15, announced British Council director in HCM City Alison Ball at the award ceremony.

Ngoc will take a 10-day trip to the UK where she will attend the London Film Festival and will have opportunities to network with UK screen industry partners and national winners from other participating countries. — VNS

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Vietnamese film producer to compete in UK contest

Tran Bich Ngoc with US film director Oliver Stone at My Lai Hamlet in Vietnam’s central province of Quang Ngai, the scene of a massacre of civilians by US troops during the war

Photo: Tuoi Tre

Independent film producer Tran Bich Ngoc, who has worked with Oliver Stone and M. Night Shyamalan, will compete in the International Young Creative Entrepreneur contest to be held in the UK this month.

She will go to the UK on a 10-12 day trip and get opportunities to network with the UK film industry and participants from other countries and attend the London Film Festival, according to the British Council in Vietnam.

The contest is scheduled for October 13-23.

Ngoc won the first prize at this year’s International Young Screen Entrepreneur Award organized in July by the British Council to select the Vietnamese contestant to the competition.

She has worked with international crews for “The Vertical Ray of The Sun” by Vietnamese-French director Tran Anh Hung, “The Quiet American” by Australian Phillip Noyce, and “The Last Airbender” by India-born M. Night Shyamalan.

Stone chose Ngoc as the local producer when he was preparing to shoot the film “Pinkville” in 2007. However, the project was postponed due to Writers Guild of America strike in 2007 and 2008.

Ngoc produced films for the Hanoi Audiovisual Company and Vietnam Feature Film Studio from 1998 to 2001 before switching to advertising with which she remains involved.

She remains involved with several international movie productions.

The annual International Young Creative Entrepreneur Award Program is organized as part of the Creative Enterprises project organized by the global British Council since 2004.

There are currently nine awards across different sectors of the creative industries -- music, design, fashion, film, communications, art performance, visual arts, publishing, and architecture.

It will be for the second time that Vietnam will participate in this award after debuting in 2008.

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British Council does its bit for art in Vietnam

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"Mask Positive"by Dinh Cong Dat

Photo: British Council

The British Council in Vietnam will auction a collection of artworks donated by Vietnamese and foreign artists and the US-based Ford Foundation in Hanoi October 10 to support contemporary art in Vietnam.

The funds raised from the auction will go towards its Contemporary Arts Fund, which gives grants to artists, runs workshops for them, improves exhibition and cultural spaces, and gives Vietnamese artists access to training and residency abroad.

The artists include Aaron Joel Santos and Jamie Maxtone-Graham of the US, Sandrine Llouquet and Lionel Descostes of French, and Chinh Le, Diep Quy Hai, Dinh Cong Dat, Ha Manh Thang, Ly Tran Quynh Giang, Nguyen Manh Hung, Nguyen Minh Thanh, Pham Huy Thong, Pham Luan, and Truong Tan of Vietnam.

The event, organized in collaboration with the Art Vietnam Gallery, Ford Foundation, British embassy, British Business Group of Vietnam, and Sofitel Metropole Hotel Hanoi, will take place at the hotel.

The works to be auctioned will be on public display at the Bui Gallery from October 1 to 9.

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MoET, British Council launch website for teachers

The Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) in cooperation with the UK’s international educational organization British Council has launched a website with resources for local high school teachers.

The website www.teachingenglish.edu.vn links to a large selection of reference resources and English textbooks approved by MoET for grades 10, 11 and 12.

“The site is a very useful source of materials for both teachers and learners of English in Vietnam… implementing the strategy ‘Foreign languages teaching and learning in the national education system – period 2008-2020,’” Nguyen Vinh Hien, vice minister of MoET, said at the launch in HCMC last week.

The website provides teachers with useful teaching resources, techniques and methodologies, which have been consulted by Vietnamese and British specialists.

By logging on teachers can select an interactive activity to supplement their lessons. Guidelines for using the activities are in both English and Vietnamese, and there are also low-tech options for classrooms without a computer.

Teachers can find tips on dealing with a range of everyday problems such as correcting errors and managing large classes. There is also a section on professional development and opportunities to become part of a global network of teachers via the online forum. The website contents will be extended to elementary school teachers in the 2011 academic year.

The website is part of the British Council’s four-year project, Access English.

Access English aims to support changes in English language teaching for policy makers, educators and teachers. It has researched primary English language teaching in Vietnam, supported MoET and the national textbook writing team to develop new materials and curriculums, and has supported Danang University and Hanoi Junior Teacher Training College to design training courses for primary school English language teachers. The project has also worked with the National Institute for Educational Sciences to develop a new primary school English curriculum that is being piloted at 92 elementary schools across the country this academic year

The British Council is also working with MoET and several higher education institutes in Hanoi, Danang and HCMC to run a course called Primary Innovations, to train workshop facilitators.

The UK’s international educational organization is also coaching a group of trainers from Vietnam’s English Teacher and Training Network to train secondary school English teachers in eleven provinces throughout the country. At Friday’s launch, MoET and the British Council announced a competition to design a lesson plan or video a lesson using the resources on the website. The winners will fly to the U.K to study English or Singapore to attend the Regional Language Center conference.

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British Council grants scholarships to five excellent students

Alison Ball (L), director and country exams manager of the British Council in HCMC and Le Anh Tho (R), BC assistant director in HCMC pose with some of the scholarship winners - Photo: Tuong Vi

The British Council has granted IELTS scholarships to five excellent students who obtained1 6.5 and above in their IELTS (International English Language Testing System) tests. At the ceremony at British Council’s headquarters in HCMC each recipient was awarded VND60 million (equal to 2,000 UK pounds) in cash and a certificate to them who are about to start their courses at universities in the U.S., UK, and Australia.

The five high school students will study in the U.S., U.K. and Australia - two will study bachelor degrees, one will do a foundation pre-university course and two will do A-Level high school programs. They performed well in written applications, English essays, presentations and interviews.

In 2010, British Council launched the British Council IELTS program for people in Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan, Myanmar, and India with a total investment of 80,000 pounds. Since March, 1,600 applications have been submitted for the scholarships.

IELTS has been available for over twenty years and is now one of the leading international English testing systems with over 1.5 million candidates in the past 12 months in over 125 countries and more than 6,000 organizations worldwide. Over 3,000 higher education institutions recognize IELTS, and all Canada, Australia and the UK-based universities accept IELTS.

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