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Liberal arts education was perhaps one of the most poignant, unfinished dreams of the Republic of Vietnam—a dream that quietly rooted itself in the South and attempted to grow amid the chaos of war before being buried alongside the very regime that produced it.

More than half a century later, the term “khai phóng” (liberal arts) has unexpectedly become sensitive. When the phrase appeared in the 2026 national high school exam , some accused it of signaling a “color revolution.” [1]

This sensitivity likely stems from how unfamiliar liberal arts education has become in contemporary Vietnamese educational life. To many, it remains a vague concept that sounds foreign and Western, making it easily burdened with political meanings that far exceed its actual content.

Yet, this educational philosophy is not entirely alien to Việt Nam’s history. Without looking far, South Vietnam over fifty years ago possessed an education system that situated “liberal arts” alongside two other principles: “humanism” (nhân bản) and “national character” (dân tộc). Hence, before judging whether it is dangerous or necessary, the first step is simply to understand it.

What exactly was liberal arts education in the South before 1975? Was it merely an imported American slogan or an educational project that educators in the South genuinely discussed, debated, and tested?

The study “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building: The Republic of Vietnam’s Liberal Arts Education and Its Performances during the Vietnam War (1965–1975)” by researcher Hà Triệu Huy, published in the journal History of Education, helps answer these questions. [2]

What is “Liberal Arts"?

According to Professor Vũ Tường, who once taught in the Department of Political Science at the University of Oregon (USA), “liberal arts means opening outward, not closing in (khai), and freely striving upward without being constrained (phóng) in the pursuit of knowledge.”

He added that this educational model helps learners build a broad foundation of knowledge, allowing students to become less prejudiced, less doctrinaire, and more capable of viewing issues from multiple angles. This foundation enables them to advance further in their studies, careers, and lives.

During the Republic of Vietnam era, although the liberal arts were designated as a foundational philosophical pillar of national education, the concept was rarely discussed in official documents. [3] Consequently, at the systemic level, the understanding of “liberal arts” remained inconsistent and lacked specific interpretation within higher education.

By contrast, the other two foundational principles—“humanism” and “national character”—were much more clearly defined. “Liberal arts” was simultaneously recognized as a philosophical pillar and left as an open concept, awaiting concrete elaboration by educators, universities, and policymakers.

Why the South?

Assuming that liberal arts education appeared in the South merely because it followed capitalism while the North followed communism is a somewhat arbitrary conclusion. In reality, the South had already built a favorable foundation for liberal arts education well before the country partitioned in 1954.

According to Hà Triệu Huy’s research, the initial seeds were sown within the Franco-Vietnamese education system that emerged during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. [4]

When the French established their colonial education system in Indochina, they introduced more than just a new scholastic structure; they also brought to Việt Nam modern concepts of science, progress, liberty, equality, rational thought, and the role of knowledge in societal transformation.

Naturally, French education primarily served colonial interests by training local officials, creating an intermediary governing class, and maintaining the political order. However, an education system designed to serve the colonial administration inadvertently produced a class of intellectuals deeply concerned with nationhood, independence, reform, and social progress.

From Indochina University and Franco-Vietnamese schools to the Tân Học (New Learning) movement, a new Vietnamese intellectual class gradually emerged. They engaged with Western science, read modern political thought, and spoke French, while remaining dedicated to Vietnamese culture, language, and the nation's future.

This educational milieu nurtured prominent figures such as Phạm Quỳnh, Trần Trọng Kim, Nguyễn An Ninh, Bùi Quang Chiêu, and even Hồ Chí Minh, Võ Nguyên Giáp, and Phạm Văn Đồng.

Following 1945, this intellectual stream diverged. While some joined the Việt Minh and embraced communism, others continued their activities in urban areas and regions controlled by the French or various national governments.

According to Hà Triệu Huy, this specific non-communist segment of intellectuals helped maintain and transform elements of Franco-Vietnamese education in the South after 1954. [5]

Another important factor stemmed from the 1954 Geneva Accords and the division of Việt Nam at the 17th parallel. The South received a massive wave of Northern migrants , many of whom were Catholic and anti-communist. [6]

Furthermore, it absorbed an influx of human resources—including teachers, intellectuals, civil servants, and students—who brought diverse educational experiences with them. [7]

Within this context, the Ngô Đình Diệm administration began constructing the Republic of Vietnam as a non-communist state south of the 17th parallel.

For this young government, education was not merely about schools and classrooms; it was the foundation for shaping citizens. It served as the state’s mechanism to instruct the younger generation on their national identity, their core values, and the future they were meant to serve. As a result, the Republic of Vietnam sought to nationalize and "Vietnamese-ify" its education system. [8]

Although the influence of French education remained strong initially, the southern government refused to let its system be a mere extension of a colonial legacy. They required an education system characterized by the Vietnamese language, nationalistic goals, and a distinct philosophy that clearly differentiated it from the communist model in the North.

The 1958 National Education Congress

In this context, the 1958 National Education Congress, held in Sài Gòn, became an important milestone. [9] During this event, educators in the South established three foundational principles that they would frequently cite later: humanism, national character, and liberal arts.

Each principle served a specific purpose.

“Humanism” placed the human being at the center of education, aiming to develop the individual as a subject with dignity, reason, a spiritual life, and the capacity for choice.

“National character” represented an effort to move away from the French educational model by affirming Vietnamese identity, the Vietnamese language, and the developmental needs of the nation.

Finally, “liberal arts” emphasized freedom of thought, the expansion of knowledge, the reception of global culture and science, respect for differences, and the refusal to confine learners within a single ideology.

It is clear that these three principles reflected the major concerns of a postcolonial state while simultaneously establishing a concrete direction for building an education system for a new nation.

***

Understanding “liberal arts” at the conceptual level—and even establishing it as a guiding principle of an education system—is just the beginning.

What truly matters is whether universities actually realized that spirit when they implemented it. Did it create a genuinely open academic space, or was that intellectual freedom ultimately constrained by the security and political concerns of a nation at war?

Thúc Kháng wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on July 1, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine owns the copyright for this English translation.

References: +

Hoàng Nam. “The Ministry of Education Denounced for Promoting ‘Liberal Education.’” Luật Khoa Magazine , June 22, 2026. https://luatkhoa.net/2026/06/bo-giao-duc-bi-dau-to-vi-co-xuy-cho-giao-duc-khai-phong/ .

Ha, T. H. “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building: The Republic of Vietnam’s Liberal Arts Education and Its Performances during the Vietnam War (1965–1975).” History of Education (2024): 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/0046760X.2024.2418401 .

Ha, “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building,” 216.

Ha, T. H. “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building: The Republic of Vietnam’s Liberal Arts Education and Its Performances during the Vietnam War (1965–1975).” History of Education 54, no. 2 (2025): 215–216.

Ha, “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building,” 216.

Thúc Kháng. “The Southward Migration of Catholics After the Geneva Accords.” Luật Khoa Magazine , May 7, 2025. https://luatkhoa.net/2025/05/cuoc-nam-tien-cua-nguoi-cong-giao-sau-hiep-dinh-geneve/ .

Ha, “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building,” 216.

Ha, “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building,” 216–17.

Ha, “A New Higher Education Model in Nation-Building,” 216.

Liberal Arts Universities in the Republic of Vietnam–Part 1: When History Chose the South

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