VietNamNet Bridge - Professor Truong Nguyen Thanh, vice rector of the Hoa Sen University in HCMC, has given lectures in a t-shirt and shorts in an aim to teach about creative thought. But his efforts have stirred controversy.

The image of Prof Thanh in shorts first appeared on Facebook page of a startup expert and it spread rapidly.

A reader commented: “I am studying in the US and I have never seen any professor go to class in shorts. I think in this context, Prof Thanh wants to use this image as an example to prove his view which have relations with his lecture. This is his right to wear shorts, while it is the right of students to make comments."

Meanwhile, Hoang Giang, another reader, affirmed that lecturers in foreign countries often go to class in shorts. “They laugh and chat with students very comfortably, but they are very serious in discussing with students and giving marks,” he said.

Professor Truong Nguyen Thanh, vice rector of the Hoa Sen University in HCMC, has given lectures in a t-shirt and shorts in an aim to teach about creative thought. But his efforts have stirred controversy.

Meanwhile, there are some very harsh criticism. 

“I wonder if Thanh’s odd image is accepted by the students as he wants, or the image will only make them see Thanh as an eccentric lecturer,” a reader of Phap Luat commented.

“I think what students need is not a professor with odd fashion style in lecture hall, but the school’s reasonable development model, curricula and good extra activities,” he wrote.

Professor Thanh said that his image in T-shirt and shorts is a testament to creativity, a part of his lecture in the training course titled ‘Innovation Roadmap’ which took place on April 23-24.

Thanh believes that in order to develop creativity, it is necessary to remove barriers in thoughts and not let anything restrict ones’ thinking.

He affirmed that he normally works and dresses in a serious manner, and he wore T-shirt and shorts just to make his students better understand his viewpoint. 

He could not imagine that the fact would cause such a big effect.

Born in 1961, Thanh graduated from North Dakota University in the US. In 1990, he successfully defended a PhD dissertation and continued postdoc study.

Since 1992, Thanh has had nearly 200 scientific articles published in scientific journals.

Thanh is currently teaching and researching at the University of Utah (USA). He was one of Viet Kieu (overseas Vietnamese) scholars invited to Vietnam to set up the Institute of Computational Science and Technology in HCMC in 2007.

Thanh has just taken the post of vice rector of Hoa Sen University.

Hoa Sen University defended the professor, saying that he does not wear shorts daily and did so to make a point.

RELATED NEWS

Prof. Nguyen Kim Phi Phung wins Kovalevskaia awards 2016

University education lags behind in curricula, lecturer quality

Ha Anh