Digital Citizenship Skills Education for Lower Secondary School Students to Meet the Requirements of the Digital Education Ecosystem in Vietnam

Digital citizens are individuals equipped with the competencies needed to use digital technologies to communicate with others and participate in social, economic, and political activities on digital platforms. In Vietnam, however, there is still limited research on digital citizenship education for lower secondary school students—a crucial group that needs these competencies to live safely and responsibly in an increasingly digital society. This chapter employs document analysis and in-depth interviews with teachers and students to examine the current state and perceived implementation of digital citizenship education within Vietnam’s digital education ecosystem. The findings indicate that (1) teaching content related to digital citizenship in the secondary school curriculum does not fully address students’ practical needs in digital environments; and (2) the curriculum lacks continuity and fails to keep pace with rapid technological development. Based on these findings, the chapter proposes several solutions, including strengthening teacher training in digital citizenship education, updating curriculum content to reflect digital realities, and promoting collaboration between schools and social organizations to organize activities that enhance students’ awareness and competencies. These measures aim to strengthen digital citizenship education for Vietnamese lower secondary school students.