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The increase accessibility of online resources in day-to-day communication in the digital era offers ample opportunities for informal language learning to enhance learners’ communicative competence. Addressing the issue, this sequential explanatory study sheds some light on the empirical relationship between informal digital learning of English (IDLE) activities and the development of learners’ communicative competence. Moreover, the types of IDLE activities are further depicted. A web-based survey and semi-structured interviews were employed to elicit the required data from 279 Indonesian undergraduate learners majoring in English education and linguistic studies. Drawing on a multiple linear regression analysis, the results depicted that both receptive IDLE activity (e.g. listening to English music online) and productive IDLE activity (e.g. chatting in English with others) contributed to the enhancement of the learners’ communicative competence. The semi-structured interviews further portrayed several types of IDLE activities which have fruitful insights for the learners’ communicative development. This study concerns on the current phenomenon of how language learners are exposed to the present-day technological advancement in a range of informal learning environments, along with some didactic implications for English language teaching.

We provide data on morphological characteristics and the distribution of the nemipterid fish Nemipterus marginatus (Valenciennes, 1830) in the estuary and coastal area of Thanh Hoa province, North Central Vietnam. This is also a clear location record for the distribution of this species in the North Central region compared to previous studies, and a new record for the study area.

In addition to the massive deployment of online learning among students worldwide, virtual training has also become a necessity to ensure the demand of teacher professional development. Exploring teachers’ attitudes toward online training programs helps educational stakeholders in understanding their expectations toward professional training modes, which positively contribute to boosting the effectiveness of career development programs. The present study sheds some light on Vietnamese English teachers’ attitudes toward online professional development programs. Twenty-five EFL teachers in Can Tho city Vietname took part in the research by providing answers to the questionnaire delivered using Google Form application; ten of them volunteered to attend further interview sections. The results of pair sample t-tests show that the English teachers preferred face-to-face to online training programs. In addition, the qualitative findings further revealed that they had no offense to online training mode, yet deny its sole implementation for all future professional development activities. Especially, most teachers approved the practice of online training in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, some of them started to acknowledge a blended teacher training program as they are relying in its affordances and accessibility. Considering the crucial role of development programs for teachers, the findings of this study contribute to providing input enhancement for teacher professional training stakeholders in Vietnam.

This study was conducted to investigate the impact of gender in learning English online in Vietnam under the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. 1118 students from nine universities and twelve high schools in the Mekong Delta joined in the research. The study indicated gender equality in online education by revealing few discrepancies in the two genders’ perceptions about barriers to online learning, excepting for problems about technical skills, cost, and access to the Internet. The results of the mixed-method study which focuses more on quantitative approach also revealed the impacts of perceived barriers on their future online learning readiness through Discriminant Analysis and Chi-square Tests, in which gender had no impact on students’ online learning decisions. Qualitative analysis also revealed the influences of economic conditions and regions as additional barriers in addition to the six factors being confirmed from Berge’s framework (2005) including (1) Administrative issues, (2) Social interaction, (3) Academic skill, (4) Technical skills, (5) Learners’ motivation, and (6) Cost and access to the Internet.

Fears of COVID-19 covered humans on earth quickly since the first appearance of Coronavirus in Wuhan in 2019. Consequently, online learning has been deployed widely to ensure the continuity of education in the context of the pandemic. The mixed-method study was conducted to examine the extent of fears Vietnamese students’ perceived as well as their learning adaptability, using the Fears of COVID-19 Pandemic (FCV19) scale and Adaptability scale as research instruments. Data was analyzed relied on Mean statistics from SPSS22, combined with Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to examine the influences of fears of COVID-19 on students’ online learning adaptability. The results triangulated with qualitative data from open-ended questions showed that students were moderately afraid of the COVID-19 pandemic but had a high level of adaptability in online learning. Additionally, fears of COVID-19 also had little impact on students’ online learning adaptability. Instead, students showed off some other fears preventing their virtual learning, including (1) fears of wasting time and money for a shoddy online education, (2) fears of loneliness and laziness, (3) fears of distracting factors when learning online, and (4) fears of lacking learning materials.

This study was conducted to investigate student barriers to the prospect of online learning in Vietnam, in the context of Covid-19 pandemic. This mixed-method study attracted the participation of 1165 students from twelve universities and nine high schools across thirteen provinces in the Mekong Delta. The findings revealed the additional three obstacles from the qualitative data analysis including (1) geographical features, (2) the economic status of Vietnamese people, and (3) Vietnamese culture and traditions in addition to the six groups of barriers being re-confirmed from Berge's framework (2005). The results of Binary Logistic Regression testified the negative impacts of obstacles in Learner Motivation, Cost and Access to the Internet, and Social Interaction on the prospects of online learning, though it is predicted to go farther in education in Vietnam in the future.

This study was conducted to investigate the impact of gender in learning English online in Vietnam under the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. 1118 students from nine universities and twelve high schools in the Mekong Delta joined in the research. The study indicated gender equality in online education by revealing few discrepancies in the two genders' perceptions about barriers to online learning, excepting for problems about technical skills, cost, and access to the Internet. The results of the mixed-method study which focuses more on quantitative approach also revealed the impacts of perceived barriers on their future online learning readiness through Discriminant Analysis and Chi-square Tests, in which gender had no impact on students' online learning decisions. Qualitative analysis also revealed the influences of economic conditions and regions as additional barriers in addition to the six factors being confirmed from Berge's framework (2005) including (1) Administrative issues, (2) Social interaction, (3) Academic skill, (4) Technical skills, (5) Learners' motivation, and (6) Cost and access to the Internet.

The present study was conducted to select Streptomyces strains that exhibited characteristics of probiotics for application in aquaculture. Streptomyces were isolated from soil and sediment samples collected from various habitats such as riverside, shrimp ponds, pangasius ponds, mangrove forests, or estuaries along the coast of Vietnam. Two strains of Streptomyces (AG12.2 and ND10.1) were selected due to (1) their potent antimicrobial activity against common pathogens that cause serious diseases in shrimp and pangasius such as E. ictaluri, A. hydophila, V. harveyi, V. parahaemolyticus, and (2) their superior ability to produce several extracellular enzymes that strongly hydrolyze organic compounds such as starch, CMC, and skimmed milk, compared to other strains. AG12.2 and ND10.1 can tolerate salinity from 0 ppt to 5 ppt and pH from 3 to 8; however, their growth is most vigorous at salt concentrations and pH between 0 ppt to 2 ppt, and 7.2 to 8, respectively. In vivo evaluation on L. vannamei in this study shows that shrimp that were fed with diets containing AG12.2 and ND10.1 had WG (%) increasing by 1.59 times and 1.61 times respectively, DGW (g/day) increasing by 1.64 times, and FCR decreasing by 1.30 times and 1.35 times respectively. The shrimp treated with AG12.2 and ND10.1 were then challenged with V. parahaemolyticus, resulting in a survival rate increase of 3.9 times and 3.71 times, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that strains AG12.2 and ND10.1 belong to Streptomyces kunmingensis and Streptomyces angustmyceticus, respectively. The findings of the present study led to the conclusion that Streptomyces kunmingensis AG12.2 and Streptomyces angustmyceticus ND10.1 are excellent candidates for producing beneficial probiotics for aquaculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We harnessed the analytical power of geospatial analysis and modeling techniques, pioneering a novel approach to studying the spatial distribution of households with at least one senior aged 65 or over, known as senior households (SHHs). We developed and implemented a spatial modeling approach that disaggregates the senior household counts obtained from the U.S. Census block data to residential land parcels. This innovative method models the senior household count on each land parcel, generating a detailed, reliable synthetic microspatial dataset for urban senior studies. Robust spatial analysis techniques are then applied to examine senior household spatial distribution in the context of segregation and access vulnerability in the study area. Our research, conducted in the urban setting of Colorado Springs, provides a deeper understanding of the senior residential landscape and identifies vulnerability. Our research findings are not just academic but also practical tools for planners, policymakers, and community advocates in the city to understand senior residential settlements, segregation, and social inequality. Our adaptable approach can be applied using similar modeling and analysis techniques for different study areas. The synthetic data and its generation approach are valuable resources for future urban senior research, enabling further examinations of different senior residential neighborhood typologies beyond basic demographic and socioeconomic aggregated indicators. They can assist studies interested in analyzing the influence of local factors and neighborhood effects on active aging among individuals, as well as simulating individual senior choices and spatial behaviors. Furthermore, they serve as a comparison baseline for future attempts to develop synthetic senior population data with socioeconomic and health characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an innovative deep learning framework for predicting landslides in the District of Than Uyen, Lao Cai Province, Vietnam, harnessing the power of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs), and the Adam Optimization algorithm. Given the multifaceted nature of landslide phenomena, influenced by a myriad of geographical and meteorological factors, there is a growing need for advanced computational strategies that can decipher complex patterns and temporal correlations. Our cutting-edge model employs CNNs to analyze and extract significant spatial attributes from topographical and geological data. Concurrently, RNNs -specifically Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks - are deployed to manage time-series data, such as weather conditions and other temporal elements. The Adam Optimization algorithm, renowned for its superior efficiency and effective performance, is used to optimize the model parameters. The model was trained and validated using a comprehensive dataset from the Than Uyen district, comprising 114 landslide and 114 non-landslide locations, along with ten key influential factors: elevation, slope, curvature, aspect, relief amplitude, soil type, geology, and proximity to faults, roads, and rivers. The results demonstrate a noteworthy predictive accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity, with the model surpassing benchmarks in prediction power (PPV=93.3%, NPV=83.2%, Sen=82.3%, Spe=94.1%, Acc=88.2%, F-score=0.875, Kappa=0.765, and AUC=0.968). The study advances deep learning in landslide prediction, aiding proactive disaster mitigation and showing potential for application in global regions prone to geographical hazards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Worldwide interest in principal instructional leadership has led to global dissemination of related research findings despite their concentration in a limited set of western cultural contexts. An urgent challenge in educational leadership and management lies in expanding the range of national settings for investigations of instructional leadership. The current study addressed this challenge in the context of Vietnam, a nation with a very limited formal knowledge base in school leadership (Hallinger and Bryant, 2013b; Hallinger and Truong, 2014). The purpose of this paper is to describe the perspectives of Vietnamese primary school principals toward their role as instructional leaders, illuminate instructional leadership practices perceived as important by the principals, and develop a preliminary model of instructional leadership within the Vietnamese education context. Design/methodology/approach: This study was a qualitative inquiry that sought to illuminate the perspectives of Vietnamese principals toward their role as instructional leaders. The research employed semi-structured interviews with 27 primary school principals. Data analysis employed grounded theory in order to synthesize results gathered from the principals into a preliminary conceptual model. Findings: The study yielded a preliminary model of principal instructional leadership in Vietnam. The authors' model evidences similarities to western models of instructional leadership by including dimensions focusing on setting direction, managing curriculum and instruction and developing the school learning climate. Differences also emerged in terms of two additional constructs, building solidarity and managing external relationships. Other distinctive practices of Vietnamese instructional leaders also emerged in the findings which the authors suggest can be linked to the institutional, political and socio-cultural context of education in this society. Research limitations/implications: Key limitations arise from the focus on primary schools, small size of the sample, absence of data from the Northern region of Vietnam, and lack of verification of principals' perspectives with data from other stakeholders. Originality/value: This study is one of the first empirical studies of Vietnamese school leadership submitted for publication in international refereed journals and the first study that has that sought to conceptualize the instructional leadership role of principals in Vietnam. Moreover, the study illustrates how conceptualizations of school leadership are shaped by features of specific societies. This lends credence to scholarly admonitions concerning the lack of universality of leadership theories.

Heritage education is an integral component of general and higher education programs. It helps students understand the national culture and arouses their love for the country. The quantitative study was conducted with the participation of 822 students in the FPT University system. Multiple linear regression analysis and Pearson correlation results help determine the relationship between heritage education's learning outcomes, including Vovinam martial arts and traditional musical instruments, and students' patriotic and nationalistic attitudes. Accordingly, promoting learning outcomes related to Skills, Attitudes, and Behaviors positively impacts the development of students' patriotism and nationalism. The study affirms the role of heritage education programs in the education system in Vietnam, especially at the university level. It confirms the necessity of this type of education at all stages of learners' development, especially in the research context at FPT University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation with or without CD34+ selection is being used successfully to treat patients with severe and refractory autoimmune disease. This study describes our experience of CD34+ stem cell mobilization, harvesting and selection in autoimmune patients based on conditions in Vietnam - the developing country. Methods: Eight autoimmune patients (four patients with Myasthenia Gravis and four patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus) underwent PBSC mobilization with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and cyclophosphamide. The apheresis was performed on a Terumo BCT Spectra Optia machine. CD34+ hematopoetic stem cells were collected from the leukapheresis by CliniMACS Plus device using CD34 Enrichment KIT. CD34+ cells, T and B lymphocytes were counted on a FACS BD Canto II device. Results: Eight patients (4 MG and 4 SLE) including 5 females and 3 males were involved in this study. The mean age of the patients was 33.13 ± 16.64 years (ranging from 13 to 58 years). The average number of days for mobilization was 7.9 ± 1.6 days, whereas the average number of days for harvesting was 1.5 ± 0.5 days. There was no difference in the number of days for mobilization and harvesting between the MG and SLE groups. The number of CD34+ cells in peripheral blood (PB) on the day of harvesting was 108.37 ± 59.64 x 106 cells/L. There was a significant difference in white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil, monocyte, and platelet cell counts between before and after mobilization. On the day of stem cell harvesting, variables such as WBC, neutrophil, lymphocyte, monocyte, platelet, CD34+ cell counts, and hemoglobin were not different between the MG and SLE groups. The CD34+ recovery percentage following the CD34+ selection procedure was 68.8%, whereas almost 99.9% of the T and B lymphocytes, and NK cells in the PBSC products were eliminated. Conclusions: Very first attempts in mobilizing, harvesting, and selecting CD34+ stem cells were successful, paving the way for autoimmune patients to have autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in Vietnam. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]