Developing Digital Competence for High School Students in Vietnam

Digital competency is one of the core competencies of twenty-first-century citizens in the context of digital transformation. Forming and developing digital competencies helps students nurture independent, critical, and creative thinking while preparing them for lifelong learning, career activities, and adaptation to the technology economy. The book chapter analyzes three approaches to developing digital competencies in teaching in high schools, including theoretical knowledge, practical application, and positive attitude toward digitalization. Based on interviews with 30 managers, teachers, and experts, the book chapter identifies four key contents that need attention in developing digital competencies for high school students in Vietnam: Mathematics, IT and computers, data processing and statistics, and Thinking programming. Informatics is considered to have the most potential to fully develop the domain of digital competency for students, followed by subjects in natural sciences and English. Although subjects in the social sciences have the potential to develop digital competencies for students, many content and lessons are difficult to integrate to develop these competencies. The book chapter proposes some orientations for selecting and building educational lessons and activities toward developing digital competencies for high school students in Vietnam.