THE PERCEPTION ON CULTURE AND ITS INTEGRATION PROCESS INTO THE EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT OF DALAT UNIVERSITY

Abstract

The present paper aims to explore the conception of culture within higher education settings in Vietnam. On the one hand, the study investigates the perception on culture of administration, faculty, staff, and students of Dalat University. On the other hand, the integration process of culture into their educational environment has also been studied. The results of synthesizing and analyzing recent official reports in this field, along with data from a survey conducted during the academic year 2017-2018 at Dalat University, indicate that the university has been endeavoring to foster an academic culture to enhance their cultural profile. Indeed, both tangible and intangible values constitute essential components of the university’s identity. Tangible values encompass material aspects or various activities visible on campus, while intangible values pertain to the humanistic and professional aspects of the university’s community. However, it appears that academic culture is primarily confined to institutional principles, often interpreted simply as “Do’s” and “Don’ts”, without fully considering its multidimensional aspects. The author concludes by providing some insights into this matter as well as raising some concerns related to the concept in question.