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Abstract Over the past four decades, e-learning has experienced rapid global growth, revolutionizing higher education. In Vietnam, universities have increasingly turned their attention and resources toward e-learning development, adapting to specific contexts and needs. This study investigates the drivers of e-learning choice within the framework of the demand-driven learning model (DDLM), with a primary focus on three core factors: quality content, delivery, and service. Employing a quantitative approach and the PLS-SEM technique, this research uncovers significant findings. The results of the study highlight the pivotal role of quality content, which exerts the most potent influence on e-learning choice, evidenced by a robust path coefficient of 0.400. Service and delivery, with direct path coefficients of 0.183 and 0.173, respectively, also play substantial roles in shaping e-learning decisions. Moreover, mediate role of delivery in the the e-learning choice model has been confirmed. Quality content leads to delivery, and delivery, in turn, leads to e-learning choice. Similar pathway has been found with service. A higher level of service increases delivery, which positively impacts on e-learning choice. These findings hold critical implications for the formulation of e-learning development policies in Vietnam’s higher education institutions. Universities should prioritize the continuous development of high-quality, engaging, and up-to-date educational content that aligns with industry needs and student interests. Additionally, emphasis should be placed on providing a supportive e-learning experience, characterized by responsive customer service, accessible technical support, and efficient issue resolution mechanisms. Moreover, universities should consider the implementation of user-friendly and interactive content delivery platforms and methods that actively engage learners. In essence, this research serves as a guide for universities in Vietnam, enabling them to enhance their e-learning offerings by ensuring the content quality, support services, and delivery methods, ultimately fostering a dynamic and accessible learning environment that meets the evolving needs of their students and the demands of the modern educational landscape.

Abstract This study explored how teachers adapt their agentic teaching practices in the context of online distance education programmes in Vietnam. A single-institution case study design was used to collect data through online individual semistructured interviews that were conducted via Zoom with five teachers from a variety of disciplines who had been teaching in online distance education programmes at the Centre for E-Learning at a Vietnamese higher education institution. Data analysis highlighted the role of teachers’ agentic teaching presence in the pedagogy used in online distance education programmes. Specifically, the teachers exhibited acceptance of an approach to organising their practice that involved adherence to course outlines that had previously been designed and approved without questioning and modifications. However, the results further revealed the agentic direct instruction strategies used by teachers in terms of the varied delivery of course content, student feedback and assessments, which exhibited a stronger emphasis on facilitating online classroom discourse and interactions via various channels with the goal of enhancing students’ learning support, experience, and engagement. The findings of this research thereby affirm the pivotal role played by teaching presence in the setting investigated in this research in particular as well as in the context of online distance education in general. The study highlights the need for further interconnections to be established to link multiple aspects of social, cognitive and teaching presence to the practices that teachers use to enhance students’ engagement and learning experience. The study also has pedagogical implications with regard to teaching in online distance education programmes that pertain not only to teachers’ classroom practices but also to their professional development.

E-learning in the context of Industry 4.0 and the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed traditional education. However, the smooth transition from face-to-face education to e-learning remains a challenging task, given concerns about e-learning quality. This study aims to explore the quality criteria and the adoption of e-learning via the spherical fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (SF-AHP). The extended technical acceptance model is used as a theoretical framework for constructing quality in an adoption hierarchical model. The input data derived from in-depth interviews of 20 experts in the field and the SF-AHP calculator have generated the priority weights of quality criteria in the model of e-learning adoption. The findings confirm the role of three major criteria, in order of importance, as follows: system, resources and core factors. The results highlight system factors as most crucial, including aspects such as governmental policies and institutional leadership, which are essential for setting a conducive environment for e-learning. Resource factors are ranked second, emphasizing the importance of IT applications, human capital and facilities to support e-learning infrastructure. Core factors, though ranked lower, are vital in ensuring the effectiveness of e-learning through course materials, instruction, and learner support. The weights of 14 sub-criteria have further shed light on policies to promote e-learning quality and its adoption. The implied priority of each weight a valuable guideline for the stakeholders’ actions to reach the targeted goals under the constraint resources.

Industry 4.0 has challenged the quality of higher education by demanding more employability besides the academic and vocational skills of undergraduate laborers. Previous studies have addressed this issue unidimensionally. This study explores the measurement model of higher education quality multidimensionally under this circumstance by (1) Confirming the factors to measure higher education quality functionally and technically and (2) Ranking the factors in the quality measurement model. The qualitative Delphi method based on twenty in-depth interviews was conducted to fulfill the study’s objectives. The findings show that both the functional and technical dimensions of education quality have been integrated into the Vietnamese Higher Education Institution (HEIs) quality model including: (1) output; (2) critical thinking and problem-solving; (3) organizing and managing ability; (4) adaptability; (5) lifelong learning; (6) teaching process; (7) creativity and innovation; (8) expertise and digitalization; (9) administrative process; (10) learning process; (11) foreign language; and (12) input. The priority of output and learners’ competencies over input and education process in the model highlights the need for proper policies to effectively improve Vietnamese HEIs quality.

Abstract Targeted therapy with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) provides survival benefits to a majority of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, resistance to TKI almost always develops after treatment. Although genetic and epigenetic alterations have each been shown to drive resistance to TKI in cell line models, clinical evidence for their contribution in the acquisition of resistance remains limited. Here, we employed liquid biopsy for simultaneous analysis of genetic and epigenetic changes in 122 Vietnamese NSCLC patients undergoing TKI therapy and displaying acquired resistance. We detected multiple profiles of resistance mutations in 51 patients (41.8%). Of those, genetic alterations in EGFR, particularly EGFR amplification (n = 6), showed pronounced genome instability and genome-wide hypomethylation. Interestingly, the level of hypomethylation was associated with the duration of response to TKI treatment. We also detected hypermethylation in regulatory regions of Homeobox genes which are known to be involved in tumor differentiation. In contrast, such changes were not observed in cases with MET (n = 4) and HER2 (n = 4) amplification. Thus, our study showed that liquid biopsy could provide important insights into the heterogeneity of TKI resistance mechanisms in NSCLC patients, providing essential information for prediction of resistance and selection of subsequent treatment.

Ethnic minorities in Vietnam account for only 15% of the population, but their poverty levels total more than 70% of the national poverty rate. Foreign aid has been an important financial resource supporting the socioeconomic development of ethnic minorities in Vietnam. Based on the empirical research in ethnic households conducted in nine provinces throughout the country, the effect of foreign aid on household income was estimated using the OLS regression model. The results show varying effects in the magnitude and significance among different ethnic groups. Specifically, aid has significantly improved the livelihood of the Cham and Xtieng populations, whereas the results for the Hmong population are detrimental. Consequently, it is suggested that aid and the ethnic policy should be reconsidered in order to reduce inequality among ethnic groups.

We report the distribution of the Western Black-bridged Leaf Turtle, Cyclemys atripons Iverson & McCord, 1997, from Vietnam for the first time. This species was recorded on Phu Quoc Island, Kien Giang Province, southern Vietnam based on morphological and molecular evidence. This record extends the distribution of this species approximately 100 km east of the previously recorded location in Kok Kong, Cambodia. This discovery raises the recorded number of species of genus Cyclemys in Vietnam to three: C. atripons, C. oldhamii Gray, 1863, and C. pulchristriata Fritz, Gaulke & Lehr, 1997.

We report the southernmost record of the Rhinoceros Snake, Gonyosoma boulengeri (Mocquard, 1897) from Phu Yen Province, southern Vietnam, based on a single specimen collected from forest in the Ca Range. This record extends the distribution of G. boulengeri approximately 600 km south of previous records in Vietnam (Quang Binh Province, central Vietnam). A detailed description of a hemipenis is also provided for the first time.

Activities which are of sensitive and complex socio-economic characteristics have always been the principal focus of the legal system in every nation. “Prohibiting a sensitive and complex socio-economic activity when it cannot be managed by law’’ is a legislative trend in Vietnam which will be further clarified in the article by analyzing the activities that have been banned or just stopped at the level of banning proposals in Vietnam, namely debt collection, and sale and purchase of land in the suburbs of special urban areas. On the basis of analyzing the main causes leading to this legislative trend, the article will also propose solutions with a view to surmounting the current drawbacks and improve the Vietnamese legal system in the direction of democracy and transparency, which will contribute to the sustainable development of the economy and society. Las actividades socioeconómicas sensibles y complejas siempre han estado en el centro del sistema jurídico de cualquier nación. La prohibición de actividades socioeconómicas sensibles y complejas cuando no pueden ser gestionadas por ley es una corriente legislativa de Vietnam que será objeto de mayor aclaración en este artículo, a través del análisis de actividades que han sido prohibidas o han quedado detenidas en el nivel de prohibición de propuestas, a saber, el cobro de deudas y la compraventa de terreno en suburbios de áreas urbanas especiales. Sobre la base del análisis de las causas principales conducentes a esa corriente Legislativa, el artículo propondrá asimismo soluciones, con vistas a superar los actuales obstáculos y a mejorar el sistema jurídico de Vietnam en pos de la democracia y la transparencia, lo cual contribuirá al desarrollo sostenible de la economía y la sociedad. Available from: https://doi.org/10.35295/osls.iisl/0000-0000-0000-1222

Introduction: Ocular axial length, anterior chamber depth and central corneal thickness are three important ocular biometric indices. These measurements are useful to show changes in the Vietnamese population with presbyopia. Objectives: To determine the ocular biometric indices, ocular axial length, anterior chamber depth and central corneal thickness, in Vietnamese population and evaluate the correlation between these indices. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out in a Vietnamese population, aged 46 to 65 years. Data on ocular axial length, anterior chamber depth and central corneal thickness were collected. The Student's t test and ANOVA were used to compare the means of the indices, grouped by age and sex. The relationship between the ocular biometric indices was tested using Pearson's correlation, with a significance level of p

Abstract The UV light-mediated metal-free polymerizations of 4-vinylpyridine (4VP) have been successfully performed by using 10-(pyren-1-yl)-10H-phenothiazine (PPTh) and pyrene as photocatalysts. The preparation of narrow polydispersity poly (4-vinyl pyridine) (P4VP) with high conversions was enabled in both protic as well as unprotic reaction media at ambient temperature. Additionally, copolymerizations of 4VP with acrylate and methacrylate monomers were also demonstrated, affording metal-free copolymer products.

Abstract The synthesis of poly(L-glutamic acid) (PG) was investigated. Reduction of poly(benzyl-L-glutamate) by the palladium/charcoal catalyst proved to be an effective method for obtaining polyglutamic acid pure and particularly exhibiting in the α-helix secondary structure. The structure of this synthetic polypeptide was assessed by infrared spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography, proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, temperature-modulated differential scanning calorimetry and wide-angle powder X-ray diffraction methods. The α-helical PG was, for the first time, combined with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The obtained PG was demonstrated to be a promising matrix to disperse MWCNTs, forming MWCNT/PG biocomposites.

Population-specific profiling of mutations in cancer genes is of critical importance for the understanding of cancer biology in general as well as the establishment of optimal diagnostics and treatment guidelines for that particular population. Although genetic analysis of tumor tissue is often used to detect mutations in cancer genes, the invasiveness and limited accessibility hinders its application in large-scale population studies. Here, we used ultra-deep massive parallel sequencing of plasma cell free DNA (cfDNA) to identify the mutation profiles of 265 Vietnamese patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Compared to a cohort of advanced NSCLC patients characterized by sequencing of tissue samples, cfDNA genomic testing, despite lower mutation detection rates, was able to detect major mutations in tested driver genes that reflected similar mutation composition and distribution pattern, as well as major associations between mutation prevalence and clinical features. In conclusion, ultra-deep sequencing of plasma cfDNA represents an alternative approach for population-wide genetic profiling of cancer genes where recruitment of patients is limited to the accessibility of tumor tissue site.

Frogs of the genus Microhyla include some of the world’s smallest amphibians and represent the largest radiation of Asian microhylids, currently encompassing 50 species, distributed across the Oriental biogeographic region. The genus Microhyla remains one of the taxonomically most challenging groups of Asian frogs and was found to be paraphyletic with respect to large-sized fossorial Glyphoglossus. In this study we present a time-calibrated phylogeny for frogs in the genus Microhyla, and discuss taxonomy, historical biogeography, and morphological evolution of these frogs. Our updated phylogeny of the genus with nearly complete taxon sampling includes 48 nominal Microhyla species and several undescribed candidate species. Phylogenetic analyses of 3,207 bp of combined mtDNA and nuDNA data recovered three well-supported groups: the Glyphoglossus clade, Southeast Asian Microhyla II clade (includes M. annectens species group), and a diverse Microhyla I clade including all other species. Within the largest major clade of Microhyla are seven well-supported subclades that we identify as the M. achatina, M. fissipes, M. berdmorei, M. superciliaris, M. ornata, M. butleri, and M. palmipes species groups. The phylogenetic position of 12 poorly known Microhyla species is clarified for the first time. These phylogenetic results, along with molecular clock and ancestral area analyses, show the Microhyla—Glyphoglossus assemblage to have originated in Southeast Asia in the middle Eocene just after the first hypothesized land connections between the Indian Plate and the Asian mainland. While Glyphoglossus and Microhyla II remained within their ancestral ranges, Microhyla I expanded its distribution generally east to west, colonizing and diversifying through the Cenozoic. The Indian Subcontinent was colonized by members of five Microhyla species groups independently, starting with the end Oligocene—early Miocene that coincides with an onset of seasonally dry climates in South Asia. Body size evolution modeling suggests that four groups of Microhyla have independently achieved extreme miniaturization with adult body size below 15 mm. Three of the five smallest Microhyla species are obligate phytotelm-breeders and we argue that their peculiar reproductive biology may be a factor involved in miniaturization. Body size increases in Microhyla—Glyphoglossus seem to be associated with a burrowing adaptation to seasonally dry habitats. Species delimitation analyses suggest a vast underestimation of species richness and diversity in Microhyla and reveal 15–33 undescribed species. We revalidate M. nepenthicola, synonymize M. pulverata with M. marmorata, and provide insights on taxonomic statuses of a number of poorly known species. Further integrative studies, combining evidence from phylogeny, morphology, advertisement calls, and behavior will result in a better systematic understanding of this morphologically cryptic radiation of Asian frogs.

We report the southernmost distribution of Eastern Black-bridged Leaf Turtle Cyclemys pulchristriata Fritz, Gaulke & Lehr, 1997, in an isolated mountain in Ba Ria–Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam based on morphological and molecular data of a wild juvenile captured in the wild. This record extends the distribution of this species about 150 km south of previous records and 600 km from its type locality.

Asian Mountain Toads (Ophryophryne) are a poorly known genus of mostly small-sized anurans from southeastern China and Indochina. To shed light on the systematics within this group, the most comprehensive mitochondrial DNA phylogeny for the genus to date is presented, and the taxonomy and biogeography of this group is discussed. Complimented with extensive morphological data (including associated statistical analyses), molecular data indicates that the Langbian Plateau, in the southern Annamite Mountains, Vietnam, is one of the diversity centres of this genus where three often sympatric species of Ophryophryne are found, O. gerti, O. synoria and an undescribed species. To help resolve outstanding taxonomic confusion evident in literature (reviewed herein), an expanded redescription of O. gerti is provided based on the examination of type material, and the distributions of both O. gerti and O. synoria are considerably revised based on new locality records. We provide the first descriptions of male mating calls for all three species, permitting a detailed bioacoustics comparison of the species. We describe the new species from highlands of the northern and eastern Langbian Plateau, and distinguish it from its congeners by a combination of morphological, molecular and acoustic characters. The new species represents one of the smallest known members of the genus Ophryophryne. At present, the new species is known from montane evergreen forest between 700–2200 m a.s.l. We suggest the species should be considered Data Deficient following IUCN’s Red List categories.

Research on Task-based Language Teaching (TBLT) has received much attention in language education in Vietnam. However, research on investigating perceptions of secondary school teachers towards TBLT implementation in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam is still scarce. The current study investigates secondary school English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ understandings of task concept and TBLT principles. It also explores teachers’ attitudes and concerns in implementing TBLT. Ninety-eight secondary school EFL teachers participated in the study. Framed by TBLT principles adapted from Nguyen, Jaspaert and Van den Branden (2018), a survey was used to collect quantitative data. The results indicated that the teachers generally had a high level of understanding of task concept and TBLT principles. In addition, they showed positive views on implementing TBLT in their practices. The results also addressed teachers’ concerns in implementing TBLT into their teaching practices including time constraints, the mismatch between the reform goals proposed by the Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) and current teaching policies at the secondary school level as well as the large class size. Accordingly, insightful implications for a better TBLT implementation in Vietnam and similar contexts elsewhere have been taken into consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]