International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research

Vol. 21, No. 5, pp. 204-219, May 2022

https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.21.5.11
Received Mar 16, 2022; Revised May 15, 2022; Accepted May 26, 2022

Development of CDIO-Based Programs from

the Teacher Training Perspective
Tien Ba Tran*
Vinh University, Vinh city, Vietnam

Thu Hung Phan

Vinh University, Vinh city, Vietnam

Abstract. To meet the requirements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution

(4IR) Vietnam’s K-12 education has shifted from a content-based to a
competency-based approach. Teacher education institutions are,
therefore, required to make comprehensive curriculum reforms to align
with the K-12 education innovation. This paper is concerned with the
adoption of the CDIO (conceive-design-implement-operate) initiative
for teacher training programs at Vinh University in Central Vietnam. It
gives an account of the large-scale changes that involve significant shifts
in the culture of management, teaching, learning and assessment, the
revamp of the structure and contents of the curricula, along with
enhancement of faculty teaching competence, personal and
interpersonal skills, product, process, and system building skills, as well
as disciplinary fundamentals. It also describes how the university has
adapted the 12 CDIO standards for teacher training programs, and how
teacher training spaces, outcome-based assessment and program
evaluation have been adjusted in accordance with the CDIO principles.
The qualitative research method was employed for an evaluation of the
CDIO-based program implementation. The data were collected from
interviews with faculty members and students, observations,
documents related to the CDIO program implementation, reports of
departments and AUN-QA accreditation agency that assessed the
programs. It was found that the CDIO approach is highly applicable for
teacher training programs; it fits the outcome-based teaching and
assessment and the development of professional skills and
competencies with which future teachers need to be equipped.

Keywords: CDIO standards; program learning outcomes; competency-

based; project-based learning; outcome-based assessment

* Corresponding author: Tien Ba Tran, [email protected]

©Author
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0
International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
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1. Introduction
The CDIO initiative (conceive-design-implement-operate) is an innovative
educational framework originating from the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT). This educational model came into being in response to several
factors. First, the feedback from industries, graduates, and practicing engineers
indicated that those certain important professional skills were not developed in
the existing curricula. Second, the model meets the standards and criteria set by
accreditation bodies such as Accrediation Board for Engineering and Technology
(ABET). Additionally, the engineering enrolment was dropping, as students
found that engineering was too dull and theoretical in the first year of study
(Crawley et al., 2014). To date, more than 190 major universities in developed
countries, such as the United States, Great Britain, France, Sweden, Finland,
Portugal, Japan, China, Singapore, and Thailand, have applied CDIO programs
(CDIO, 2022).
The CDIO training model can respond to the new requirements of businesses and
stakeholders in enhancing students' ability to acquire fundamental knowledge,
while promoting the learning of soft skills, professional skills, and interpersonal
communication, building processes and systems, and manufacturing products
(Foley & Kyas, 2021). The CDIO training process starts from determining training
goals, building learning outcomes and designing outcome-based programs. This
process is designed to ensure strict scientific requirements and feasibility with the
participation of stakeholders, including employers, alumni, students, lecturers,
and scientists.

CDIO-based learning outcomes are based on stakeholders’ surveys and a careful

analysis of labor market requirements, including four blocks of knowledge and
skills: (1) disciplinary knowledge and reasoning; (2) personal and professional
skills and attributes, (3) interpersonal skills including teamwork and
communication; and (4) CDIO systems in the enterprise, societal and
environmental context. These knowledge and skills are integrated in the training
program and specifically assigned for each course based on the program matrix.
Thus, each course contributes to the achievement of the program learning
outcomes at different levels. Each instructor must adhere to the curriculum
standards for content and the respective teaching level I-T-U (introduce, teach,
utilize) to avoid duplication or omission of teaching identified piece of knowledge
and skills (Nhut & Trinh, 2010).

CDIO comes from aeronautical engineering and the application of CDIO

model has been still the most popular in the field of engineering to date
(Kamp, 2021). Recent studies indicate that this training model has shown its
relevance and superiority to the training of engineers in the 4IR (Malmqvist et
al., 2016; Crawley et al., 2020). Futhermore, students trained in the CDIO
model can work straight after graduation and there is almost no need of
retraining them. They are quicker at understanding the market and grasping
customer needs. In addition, students' interpersonal skills, such as
communication, teamwork, and presentation skills, also show improvement.

Research shows that the CDIO initiative can be applied to many different areas of
training, in addition to engineering, because it ensures a framework of knowledge

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and skills (Crawley et al., 2020; Malmqvist et al., 2016; Martin et al., 2017;
Tangkijviwat et al., 2018; Kuptasthien, 2020). Therefore, in recent years, the
CDIO training model has also been applied in teaching humanities and social
sciences by many universities around the world. Some specific cases of the
CDIO program are at Instituto Politécnico do Porto in Portugal that developed
the CDIO program for a Master's degree in Development Practice, which was
based on 12 engineering CDIO standards (Martin et al., 2017). Singapore
Polytechnic applied the CDIO training program for the fields of Food Science
and Technology, Music Technology and Sound Engineering, and the
University of Applied Sciences in Finland applied CDIO training for the
discipline of Business Administration and Library Information. In Vietnam,
the National University of Ho Chi Minh City applied CDIO for disciplines in
humanities and social sciences, such as International Business, Journalism
(Malmqvist et al., 2016), University of Economics. The Hanoi National
University applied CDIO for International Economics major (Dung & Nha,
2012).

Crawley et al. (2014) also noted that CDIO could be applied to non-technical
disciplines based on the 12 CDIO standards, which can be summarized as
follows:
• Developing a description of the profession’s context of practice as a
starting point for educational design (corresponding to CDIO standard
1).
• Working with stakeholders to identify their requirements on the
graduates (CDIO standard 2).
• Adapting the pedagogical and curricular elements of CDIO (CDIO
standards 3-11 mainly) to the discipline’s needs.
• Applying the CDIO curriculum development and quality assurance
processes (CDIO standard 12).

Even though the CDIO model has been applied to several disciplines,
including humanities and social sciences, it has not been adopted for teacher
training programs anywhere else in the world. This paper, therefore, presents
an account of the first ever CDIO-based framework for teacher education at
Vinh University, Vietnam.

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2. A CDIO-Based Teacher Training Model

Vinh University is the first institution to adopt the CDIO initiative for teacher
training programs. Located in Central Vietnam, the institution was initially
established as a teacher training college in 1959, and then became a
comprehensive university in 2001. It offers 55 undergraduate programs, 38
Master’s programs, and 17 doctoral programs, among which teacher education
programs comprise of 14 undergraduate, 12 Master’s, and four doctoral. The
university follows a concurrent model of teacher training (Dinçer & Bikmaz,
2020), which means that pedagogical courses are delivered during the four years
of study at an education college.

It should be noted that Vietnam has undergone a comprehensive education

reform which shifted from the traditional knowledge-based to competency-based
education. While higher education institutions are relatively autonomous in
deciding their model of training, K-12 schools adopted a unified system known as
the National General Education Program 2018 (Ministry of Education and
Training, 2018). Given the changing context, the university is undergoing a
comprehensive educational reform with an ambition to utilize and implement
innovation in higher education to produce graduates with international standards
and to meet the pressing needs of the emerging market-based economy in
Vietnam.

The CDIO-based approach, which was first introduced to Vietnam in 2008, has
been adopted by the university since 2017. The CDIO framework for
undergraduate teacher education programs has been adapted to align with the
teaching profession and Vietnam’s national qualifications frameworks (Ministry
of Education and Training, 2021; Vietnam’s government, 2016).

Table 1 features the adaptation of the CDIO initiative for the 14 teacher training
programs of English, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Literature, History,
Geography, Civic Education, Primary Education, Nursery Education, Physical
Education, Biology, Education Management, and Information Technology
Education.

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Table 1: Adaptation of the 12 CDIO standards for teacher training

The 12 CDIO standards for engineering Adaptation of the 12 CDIO standards for teacher
Standard
(version 2.0) (CDIO, 2011) training at Vinh University
Adoption of the principle that product,
The pedagogical CDIO program is designed in accordance
1 process, and system lifecycle development
with the national general education curricula in the
Pedagogical and deployment -- conceiving, designing,
context of Vietnam education in the period of
context implementing and operating -- are the context
international integration and the 4IR.
for engineering education.
Specific, detailed learning outcomes for
The learning outcomes of teacher education include
personal and interpersonal skills, and product,
2 knowledge, skills, qualities, attitudes, which are
process, and system building skills, and
Program learning consistent with the Vietnamese teacher competency
disciplinary knowledge, consistent with
outcomes framework for each specific subject and with the
program goals and validated by program
consultation of stakeholders.
stakeholders.
A curriculum designed with mutually
Designed to integrate related and complementary
3 supporting disciplinary courses, with an
courses to form knowledge, personal and interpersonal
Integrated explicit plan to integrate personal and
skills. Teachers need to know and be familiar with the
curriculum interpersonal skills, and product, process, and
National General Education Curriculum 2018.
system building skills.
Introduction to engineering: An
introductory course that provides the Introduction to teaching profession: An introductory
4 framework for engineering practice in course providing the framework for teaching practice at
Introduction product, process, and system building, and school, and introducing essential personal and interpersonal
introduces essential personal and skills for teachers, as well as preliminary school experience.
interpersonal skills.
The curriculum includes at least two design-implement
experiences, including one at a basic level and one at an
5
A curriculum that includes two or more advanced level, namely the Introduction to Pedagogy
Design
design-implement experiences, including one project and Graduation Project. Other projects may only
implementation
at a basic level and one at an advanced level. include partial elements in CDIO but they are
experiences
systematically designed to ensure full formation of
competencies and skills upon completion of the program.
Spaces for pedagogical training and practice: In addition
Engineering learning workspaces: to the traditional classroom, the university builds
6 Engineering workspaces and laboratories that learning spaces for students’ self-study, teamwork, and
Learning support and encourage hands-on learning of designing educational activity. Furthermore, the
spaces product, process, and system building, university sets up a network of affiliated schools so that
disciplinary knowledge, and social learning. students can regularly observe classes and directly
participate in educational activities.
Organizing teaching that combines specialized
7 Integrated learning experiences that lead to
knowledge with the development of personal qualities
Integrated the acquisition of disciplinary knowledge, as
and interpersonal skills, a systematic vision in educational
learning well as personal and interpersonal skills, and
practice; Increase the participation of teachers at high
experiences product, process, and system building skills.
school level and stakeholders in the training process.
Applying active experiential teaching methods that
8 Teaching and learning based on active
involve teamwork, project-based learning, presentations,
Active learning experiential learning methods.
discussion, micro-teaching, etc.
9
Actions that enhance faculty competence in Actions that enhance faculty competence in personal and
Enhancement of
personal and interpersonal skills, and interpersonal skills, ICT skills, and understanding of the
faculty
product, process, and system building skills. National General Education Curriculum 2018.
competence
10 Actions that enhance faculty competence in Actions that enhance faculty competence in providing
Enhancement of providing integrated learning experiences, in integrated learning experiences, in using active experiential
faculty teaching using active experiential learning methods, learning methods, and in assessing student learning
competence: and in assessing student learning. outcomes.
Assessment of student learning in personal Outcome-based assessment of student learning in
11
and interpersonal skills, and product, process, personal and interpersonal skills, in disciplinary
Learning
and system building skills, as well as in knowledge, as well as product, process, and system
assessment:
disciplinary knowledge. building skills required for teachers.
A system that evaluates programs against A system that evaluates programs against these 12
12
these 12 standards, and provides feedback to standards in line with the national education regulations,
Programme
students, faculty, and other stakeholders for and provides feedback to students, faculty, and other
evaluation
the purposes of continuous improvement. stakeholders for the purposes of continuous improvement.

The CDIO-based teacher training program consists of 126 credits and 36 courses,
which are structured to integrate the knowledge and skills identified in the
learning outcomes of each program with the following structure:

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General knowledge— 18 credits, including:

Political science and civic education modules (five courses with 11 credits): These
courses are delivered in the first six semesters; and foreign language courses
(English 1 and English 2 with 7 credits).

General pedagogical disciplines — 14 credits, including:

Introduction to Teaching Profession (3 credits); Psychology (3 credits);
Educational studies (4 credits); and ICT in education (4 credits).

Group disciplines (natural sciences education, social sciences education, etc.) —

about 24 credits, including:
Depending on the structure and characteristics of each discipline group (natural
pedagogy, social pedagogy), different number of credits for each discipline may
be required.

Disciplinary foundation and pedagogy — 70 credits, including:

There are some striking pedagogical differences between the traditional teacher
training programs and the new CDIO-based teacher education model. For CDIO
programs, students actively participate in project-based learning that involves
teamwork and interdisciplinary collaboration (Jaca et al., 2021; Chia, 2021). The
integration of learning topics will help students gradually familiarize themselves
with the new national general education curriculum.
Project-based learning also requires students to be the ones who directly do the
work, proactively in the process of discovering knowledge under the guidance of
the lecturer. When doing projects, students have many opportunities to work at
school. Right from the first year, they have their first school experience as partial
requirement for the Introduction to Teaching Profession course. In doing so, a
passion for the teaching profession can be instilled in students and the career
orientation can be initiated at an early stage.
Furthermore, assessment schemes have also been significantly improved. The
CDIO programs focus on outcome-based assessment (Gurukkal, 2020; Roslof,
2021), with various forms of evaluation including, but not limited to, portfolios,
quizzes, presentations, micro-teaching, field trips, teamwork, midterm tests, and
a final exam. The shift to the CDIO-based teacher training model is good
preparation for graduates so that they are able to teach and work under the new
National General Education Program 2018.

3. Methodology
The study employed the qualitative research method, which involves collecting,
analyzing and interpreting non-numerical data (Atkins & Wallace, 2012; Creswell
& Creswell, 2017). It gives an account of how the CDIO initiative has been adapted
for teacher education programs at Vinh University and presents an evaluation of
the CDIO-based program implementation after a cycle. The data were obtained
from interviews with faculty members and students, observations, documents
related to the CDIO program implementation, reports of departments and AUN-
QA accreditation agency that assessed the programs. These different sources

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provided varied perspectives on the evaluation of the CDIO-based teacher

education programs and, hence, ensuring the validity and reliability of the
assessment.
In qualitative research, the data in statistics can be categorically arranged
according to attributes and properties of the phenomena under investigation.
Therefore, the study focused on the six major CDIO-adapted standards (CDIO,
2011), namely, enhancing competence of faculty members, building CDIO-based
teacher training programs, teacher training spaces, active learning methods,
assessment of learning, and program evaluation. These six standards reflect the
fundamental changes for innovation of teacher training programs at Vinh
University.

4. Results and Discussion

One of the CDIO principles is to continuously improve the program. After a four-
year cycle of implementing the program, the university conducted a
comprehensive review of the CDIO program implementation. The teacher
training departments conducted surveys of stakeholders and organized meetings
to review the program implementation. Strengths and areas for improvement
were pointed out for the next cycle of revision. Reflections of faculty and students,
along with the AUN-QA’s external assessment show that the implementation of
the CDIO programs is a suitable choice for the university’s educational reform.

4.1 Enhancing the Competence of Faculty Members

When the university started to build and develop the CDIO-based teacher training
programs, only a few universities in the country applied this model. There was no
model of CDIO teacher training to consult. Therefore, one of the priorities was to
enhance the faculty’s competence in curriculum development, teaching and
assessment. A 16-member CDIO expert committee was established with
representatives from different departments.
The committee gives advice to the departments and guidance for implementing
the programs. The university also receives regular consultancy and advice from
an American professor who is an expert in CDIO programs. Based on expert
consultation and research, the university has developed CDIO competency
framework for teaching faculty, as shown in Table 2.

Table 2: CDIO competency framework for teaching faculty (Yen et al., 2021)
Domain of
Components Evidence
competency
Annual staff evaluation sheet
Political stance
Feedback from managers and colleagues
Work ethics Professional training certificate
Teacher conducts Feedback from managers, colleagues
and students
Knowledge Master degree in the field
Field Relevant degrees or certificates of
Skills
training
Field Planning the course Course plans

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Designing and development

Coursebooks, lesson plans, books
materials
Diplomas in teaching methodology
Using teaching methods and
Certificates of participation in
techniques
pedagogical training workshops

Certificates of participation in training

Assessing student learning
workshops on assessment

Building the learning Feedback from learners

environment Evaluation from administrators
Certificates in information-technology
as required by the Ministry and the
Foreign Using a foreign language and
University
language and information-technologies in
Products showing competence in a
information - teaching, research and
foreign language and information -
technologies communication
technologies (e.g., articles written in
English, e-learning lesson plans, etc.)
Designing and carrying out
research and technological Research products
Research transfer
Instructing learners to carry
Research products by the learners
out research

CDIO-based course syllabi that have

Designing CDIO curricula
CDIO been designed and implemented
curriculum Implementing and
Improved CDIO-based course syllabi
developing CDIO curricula
Setting up the network of
An established network of enterprises
Communication enterprises and/or
and/ or associations
with the associations
Results from partnership with
industries Communicating with
enterprises and/or associations
partners

To enhance the competency of the faculty members to implement the CDIO

program, the university regularly organized seminars and training workshops to
share experiences. Experts from Vietnam and overseas were invited to train the
faculty and staff for the construction and implementation of the CDIO program.
The training workshops focused on the writing program and course learning
outcomes, curriculum development, teaching methods, and especially on project-
based learning, CDIO-based assessment, and program accreditation. In addition,
faculty members and heads of departments were sent to other universities in
Vietnam and in the United States to learn about the experiences and best practices
of CDIO-based program implementation.
After four years of regularly implementing training and sharing experiences, the
capacity of lecturers has been significantly improved. However, many lecturers
are still not proficient in active teaching methods, especially project-based
teaching. This is the point that the university needs to focus on improving their
competency in time to come.

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4.2 Building CDIO-Based Teacher Training Programs

The CDIO-based teacher training programs at the university began with building
learning outcomes. First, the program learning outcomes of the CDIO-based
teacher training programs were scientifically developed and highly practical
because they were based on the survey results of stakeholders, including experts,
teachers, alumni, administrators of high schools, departments and offices of
education, pedagogical faculty and students. Based on the learning outcomes that
have been consulted with stakeholders, the university built an integrated teacher
training program including modules and knowledge blocks to ensure that
students will achieve the learning outcomes after completing the program. Along
with equipping specialized knowledge, students can form their personal qualities
and interpersonal skills such as communication, teamwork, presentation, and
critical thinking, which are critically important for teachers in the 4IR era. It can
be said that the CDIO teacher training program has fully covered the "hard" skills
as well as the "soft" skills that were insufficient in the previous programs.

The Introduction to Teaching Profession is a typical course of the CDIO program,

which was absent in the traditional model. It outlines the framework of teachers'
competencies and responsibilities, as well as familiarizing students with the
school context from the perspective of teacher students. With project-based
learning, students often work in groups, present, debate and go on field trips to
collect information to for projects on educational activities.

The feedback from students for the introductory course has been very positive.
Students are more interested when they can directly "switch roles" from students
to teachers when they interact with high school students, build their own
educational plans and feel like they are "being a teacher". Students are more
confident and self-assured when presenting in front of many people. These are
one of the many important skills a teacher needs and that are beneficial when
formed early in the training process. The Introduction to Teaching Profession
Course not only instills career passion for students from the first year, but also
helps them define what knowledge and skills to be equipped with in the
remaining years to become a teacher.

The instructor's feedback about Introduction to Teaching Profession has been

“very effective and highly practical. It is consistent with the philosophy of "Theory and
Practice go hand in hand" (Report of Primary Education Department).

The mentoring role of the teacher is promoted and students are closer to the
lecturers: “The bond between teachers and students is enhanced because teachers
frequently contact with students during group work and project implementation"
(Report of Mathematics Department).

In the first phase of CDIO program implementation, the remaining issue is that
project-based learning did not include interdisciplinary projects in the CDIO
programs.

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4.3 Teacher Training Spaces

CDIO training programs require a learning space that supports and encourages
the practice of building systems, processes and products, accumulation of
disciplinary knowledge, and interactive learning. The CDIO learning space for
engineering requires restructuring of the system for practice, experiments, self-
study and group work to support students in implementing the CDIO process.
For pedagogical disciplines, in addition to traditional learning spaces, such as
classrooms, lecture halls, libraries, and laboratories, the university has built an
additional self-study area that is open from 7 am to 10 pm, and assigns each
faculty member to connect with school teachers to set up a network for students
to practice, do internship and to exchange professional expertise. All these
activities are designed to link the training process with practice via partnerships
with 62 satellite schools. The collaboration between the university and the satellite
schools is mutually beneficial. The cooperation agreement includes the following
main details:

Table 3: Cooperation agreement between university and satellite schools

University Satellite schools

− Arrange faculty members to support and − Coordinate and support the

advise satellite schools on the contents university in teacher training
and methods of teaching, testing, such as internship, practice,
assessment, practice and experiments in implementation of educational
accordance with the National General research.
Education Program 2018.

− Support satellite schools in digitalization,

including building an online learning − Support the university in
management system (LMS); technical collecting opinions from
guidance on building e-learning lessons; stakeholders in order to
building a model of combined teaching implement the strategic plan for
and flipped learning classrooms; share development of the university
digital learning materials in the teaching and curriculum development.
and learning process of teachers and
students.

− Transfer to the satellite school the model − Support the university in

of active teaching, programs and developing continuous
necessary materials for teaching and professional development
learning English at the school, with the programs for school teachers.
outlook to international standards.

− Support and advise the satellite school on

experiential activities, career guidance, − Support the university to
life skills education, academic counseling develop faculty’s professional
and soft skills for students. skills.

− Support and advise teachers of satellite

schools to implement initiatives in

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teaching, and participate in contests for

− Coordinate with the university to
exemplary teachers.
implement piloting teaching
models in accordance with the
− Support satellite schools to build English
National General Education
speaking community models.
Program 2018.
Thus, the CDIO-based learning space for teacher training is not only confined to
the main campus of the university but also expanded to a network of affiliated
schools. Surveys on the use of study space show that students use the self-study
areas and library to their fullest capacity for group work, project implementation
and self-study. Before implementing the CDIO program, self-study and group
work were not as effective.

Students only focused on studying in the last month before the end of each
semester because their academic results depended largely on the final exams. The
CDIO programs require ongoing learning and continuous assessment from the
first week to the end of the course.

Findings from the interviews with students show that students were very satisfied
with the new teaching method that focused on developing skills concurrently
with equipping disciplinary knowledge. Students can enhance their skills of self-
study and teamwork. At the same time, they can have the opportunity to interact
with school pupils regularly.

Previously, the training program offered only two weeks of observation in the
fifth semester and eight weeks of practicum at school in the final semester. Now
students are more independent in the process of exploring knowledge and they
can have more opportunities to do internship and practice in real-world situation.
The fact that students are trained in an active learning environment will be a solid
foundation for effective implementation of the National General Education
Program 2018.

The feedback from lecturers on the use of learning space is that "Students are excited
to study and actively explore, create, practice teamwork and presentation skills" (Report
of Chemistry Department). Changing the assessment methods which involves
multiple components also has a positive impact on the use of the self-study space:
"Students are more active in self-study, group work, searching for documents and
learning content; …. Students' ability to present written reports is improved” (Report of
Foreign Languages Department).

CDIO's integrated program and active teaching method proved to be critically

effective in the training process and suitable for career orientation "The content of
the course is designed in such a way that students can understand and remember what
they learn deeply and it is in line with the overall general education program 2018”
(Report of Physics Department).

4.4 Active Learning Methods

To implement the CDIO training program, the university adopted a blended
learning model (Graham, 2013; Dziuban et al., 2018), which combines virtual
classes on the LMS (learning management system) with face-to-face meeting. The

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teaching methods used by the lecturers are diverse, in which group activities are
prioritized for development of communication and cooperation capacity.
Furthermore, ICT application is maximized for students’ independent learning.
Active teaching methods to form and develop disciplinary and professional
competencies for learners are highly encouraged. Project-based learning which
involves teamwork and student-centric activities is dominant during the training
process. Through group activities, students develop skills for future careers
(organization and teamwork, project development, micro-teaching, and
presentations). For lecturers, through the process of implementation teaching
activities, as well as learning from experience, especially after revising curricula,
the awareness and responsibility of faculty members has increased remarkably.
They have invested more time into improving the quality of teaching to meet the
requirements of CDIO-based training.
Initially, some students could not follow the pace of learning as they had to work
harder both in face-to-face classes and e-classes. Some instructors complained that
"Although in general, the academic performance of students looks positive, some students
find it difficult to respond to the CDIO-based teaching because of their poor self-study
ability" (Report of Literature Department).
For large classes, the organization of group discussions and individualization of
learning faced certain difficulties. The traditional arrangement of desks attached
with benches is inconvenient for discussion and group work because it is difficult
to move and rearrange them due to restricted spaces. At the early stages of CDIO
implementation, some lecturers also faced certain pressures: “The faculty members
have to invest a lot of time to carry out the stages of CDIO. Some lecturers are not very
proficient in the application of information technology in CDIO-based teaching. Some
lecturers do not know much about CDIO training methods, so they are still confused in
organizing teaching and managing students' self-study and learning records. This exerts
a lot of pressure on teachers” (Report of Political Education Department).
These are the difficulties that need to be solved in the upcoming time to improve
the effectiveness of the CDIO training program.

4.5 Assessment of Learning

In accordance with the CDIO principles, the university’s learning assessment is
based on learning outcomes, including both continuous and summative
assessment. The former comprises, but it is not limited to portfolios, quizzes,
presentations, teamwork, and a midterm test; the latter is a final exam or other
alternative forms of assessment, depending on the course learning outcome
requirements. This is a significant improvement as compared with previous
assessment schemes, which mainly relied on midterm tests and a final exam. The
outcome-based assessment makes learning process becomes more productive and
focused. The constructive alignment of learning strategies and evaluation to
course learning outcomes help students to be informed of their progress at each
stage of learning.

Moreover, the application of many forms of assessment based on learning

outcomes creates a favorable condition for students to enjoy many opportunities
to strive for high results for each subject and to meet the requirements of

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competence-based examination, instead of knowledge-based tests. Ongoing

assessment eliminates the stress and pressure of the exam as it once existed, and
requires students to work through the process.

However, the implementation of the CDIO programs reveal that some problems
need to be improved. Some lecturers still resorted to tests, which could not meet
the requirements of the outcome-based assessment. They did not effectively use
the rubrics for assessment of project-based learning. The report of Mathematics
Department indicated that “A number of lecturers were used to paper and pen tests.
Therefore, the shift to alternative assessment was a challenge for them at the initial
stage…. The rubrics did not adequately cover the academic content, skills and other
competences as indicated in the learning outcomes”. There was little involvement of
school teachers in the assessment of professional skills.

4.6 Program Evaluation

The reform of Vietnam's higher education in the past five years has involved
many aspects, in which educational accreditation has been of increasing
importance. The revised Higher Education Law and training regulations
require higher education institutions and training programs to be accredited.
The program has been highly appreciated by external assessors due to the
implementation of the teacher training program that adheres to the 12 CDIO
standards. This is a new model of teacher training in Vietnam whose
implementation is consistent with national and international accreditation
standards. Of the 14 teacher training programs, the Mathematics Teacher
Education Program was the first to be internationally accredited by AUN-QA
(ASEAN University Network–Quality Assurance) in April 2021. The international
assessors gave a high opinion of the program regarding its strengths, as detailed
as follows.
The information in the Bachelor Program in Mathematics Education (BPME)
Programme Specification is comprehensive and up to date with structured and
logically sequenced curriculum, allowing students to focus on graduation
internship to demonstrate the application of all they have learned from their
courses.
The constructive alignment of teaching and learning activities with the BPME
ELOs is evident in course specifications. The AUN-QA program assessment
report of assessor’s interviews with school headmasters indicated that:
Employers identify teaching methodology as one of the main elements for BPME
becomes a quality programme that produces good graduates. Various teaching
and learning activities are employed to foster life-long learning competencies.
Students are informed about details of their assessments which include methods,
timelines, weight distribution through the programme and course specification
documents. (AUN-QA program assessment report, 2021, p. 18)
In addition to the AUN-QA assessment of the Mathematics Teacher Program,
eight other teacher training programs have also been nationally accredited,
including English, Literature, Geography, History, Primary Education, Nursery
Education, Physical Education, and Chemistry. Thanks to CDIO-based
curriculum development, all these programs were highly appreciated by the
external assessors.

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The assessed curricula are said to be structured and constructed in accordance

with the program learning outcomes, integrating relevant knowledge, skills,
attributes, and qualities that are required for future teachers. Methods of teaching
and assessment are in line with competency-based education. For instance, the
English Teacher Education Program is integrated with skills, knowledge,
competencies, and attributes that are highly relevant to the teaching profession.
The CDIO approach to curriculum development and program implementation
gives students many opportunities to intensive practical experience during the
training process.

The external assessors have a consensus that the CDIO approach to curriculum
development at Vinh University is a new model of teacher training program that
is highly relevant for the 4IR and it is particularly effective during the Covid-19
pandemic thanks to the integrated and blended mode of teaching and learning.

5. Conclusions
The CDIO-based teacher training programs at Vinh University grew out of the
need for a fundamental education reform in the context of 4IR. It is shown that the
CDIO-based education innovation requires implementing large-scale changes
that involve significant shifts in the culture of teaching, learning and evaluation
across the entire university. These changes involve revamping the structure and
contents of its curricula, as well as changing the principles and practices of
university management and governance.
Furthermore, a high priority and enabling factors for the curriculum reform
process are enhancing faculty teaching competence, their personal and
interpersonal skills, product, process, and system building skills, as well as
disciplinary fundamentals. The study of the CDIO-based teacher training
program implementation at Vinh University has proved that the CDIO
framework is highly applicable for pedagogical programs. It is not only suitable
for the outcome-based teaching and assessment, but also relevant for developing
professional skills and competence with which future teachers need to be
equipped.
It should be noted that the CDIO standards have been updated with version 3.0
(CDIO, 2022). In addition to a physical learning environment, a digital learning
environment that includes on-line tools and spaces that support and enhance the
quality of teaching and student learning is required for teacher training programs.
This study is hoped to make contributions to the innovation of teacher training
programs based on the CDIO standards.

Funding: This study has not received any financial support from other
individuals or organizations.

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