INTEGRATING THE DIGITAL COMPETENCY FRAMEWORK INTO THE GENERAL ENGLISH COURSES AT UNIVERSITIES IN VIETNAM: DEVELOPING OBJECTIVES, LEARNING OUTCOMES AND SUGGESTING TEACHING ACTIV

Abstract

As a result of the global digital revolution, digital competence has become a core element of higher education, which requires students to be equipped with essential skills to succeed in the digital age. This study attempts to integrate the National Digital Competence Framework (issued under Circular 02/2025/TT-BGDDT by the Ministry of Education and Training) into the General English courses at Vietnamese universities. By analyzing the policy documents and making pedagogical recommendations, the current research presents an comprehensive framework for incorporating this integration. The results comprise adjusting course objectives to address digital competency requirements, constructing Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) on information literacy, communication, content creation, and learning management in digital environments. It also suggests innovative learning-teaching activities and evaluation procedures, utilizing digital resources and tools like Google Docs, Zoom, Canva, and ChatGPT in an effort to develop learners’ language skills and digital competences simultaneously. The study contributes to the existing literature with the application of the Digital Competence Framework to a specific course and also provides real-world feedback for teachers in terms of course design. Suggestions for future research include piloting the proposed model and collecting feedback from students and teachers to evaluate the effectiveness and improve the model.