The Role of French Colonialism in the Field of Culture and Education

geography, residential habits, ethnic psychology and the development history of the Vietnamese people (expanding territory, constantly facing territorial expansion ambitions...), this characteristic of Vietnam in cultural relations with the outside, by the 19th century was clearly demonstrated in cultural relations with the West in many fields, including education.

When they conquered Cochinchina, De La Grandière and Lemyre de Viler, who shared the same views as the clergy and merchants, had the idea of immediately abolishing Confucianism in Cochinchina and replacing it with a new education brought from the West. The invaders did not realize that: completely different from the subjects they had conquered in Africa or other regions; in the country they had just conquered, people had long established lasting cultural values, and were eager to preserve traditions. Every attempt to impose culture from the outside had failed, and this was no exception for the French. Although the national sovereignty of the people of this country had been taken away, the enemy was still far from achieving the goal of “spiritual conquest” because of the obstacles of the non-cooperation and constant resistance of the people. Therefore, the initial haste of the colonial government was replaced by a more cautious approach in Cochinchina, North and Central Vietnam. The curriculum according to the 1874 Regulation and the 1879 Regulation applied in Cochinchina (until 1917) while giving absolute priority to French and subjects of Western education, Chinese characters and Latin script still had a certain position associated with Confucian content and although very uncomfortable with the existence of Confucian schools, the French authorities, in the two Regulations mentioned above, allowed schools of teachers to be freely established without having to consider the conditions of morality and ability as prescribed for private schools. Although taking place in the context of “Annam recognizing and accepting the protectorate of France” (Patenôtre Treaty), the Residents General and Governors General of Indochina, when carrying out educational reforms and adjustments, ignored the recommendations to abolish Chinese characters and Confucianism from the missionary priests, but, due to the influence of the association trend and the experience gained in Cochinchina, paid attention to the recipients and traditional cultural factors. This explains the existence of Chinese characters and Quoc Ngu, although not much time but stable, in the curriculum; for the decision of Governor-General Albert Sarraut in the circular dated March 20, 1918, reaffirmed by Governor-General Martial Merlin in the Decree dated September 18, 1924: Vietnamese is the main language in the Preschool and Preparatory classes, French will be taught from the Elementary class, to replace the language regulation at the Primary level in the curriculum issued by Governor-General Klobukowsky (1910) and Article 134

of the General Education System (1917); for the simultaneous existence of three types of schools at the Primary level: Native Primary School, Elementary Primary School, Full Primary School and the establishment of the First Year Intermediate Class (1927); and at the Secondary level, the existence of Vietnamese and Chinese literature in the Native Baccalaureate program alongside subjects taught entirely in French according to the Western Baccalaureate program.

Pham Phu Thu, Nguyen Truong To and many other Confucian scholars had hoped that the court would reform the education system in the Western style so that the country would have enough strength to resist the invasion of French colonialism, but because of suspicion, indecision and unexpected changes in the war situation, King Tu Duc failed those who were always worried about the fate of the country. When the military advantage and the establishment of domination gave the French the initiative to establish an education system according to the model of the mother country, that is, Western education was present in Vietnam, then in turn, the people, because of their spirit of resistance, refused to access the schools of the invaders, continuing to follow the teachers of the Classics and Saints so that, if they did not advance through the path of imperial examinations, they would be proud to have fulfilled their duty of loyalty to the king. After many reforms, the French-Vietnamese education system contained many "native" elements to suit the recipients, the Vietnamese people. This led to the consequence that Vietnamese society had to witness the period when “exams and learning were over” (Tran Te Xuong) and people voluntarily abandoned the Five Classics and Three Parts, accepting the new education. By the beginning of the 20th century, New Books, New Literature and the power of Japan had created a change in the perception of scholars. At this time, the old-school class condemned Confucianism, enthusiastically paving the way for new learning, and although it did not exist for long, the Duy Tan and Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc movements “alerted the people and urged the authorities to amend policies to follow New Learning and abolish the imperial examinations” [108, p.156]. Thus, when facing the introduction of education from the West, with a philosophy completely different from Confucianism, the Vietnamese people avoided two extremes: accepting it to the point of being stereotyped and resisting it to the point of being conservative. The French carried out educational reforms with the aim of creating stability in their rule, while the change in attitude towards the new education system of Vietnamese scholars stemmed from the ideal of national enlightenment. In any case, the Franco-Vietnamese education system has become a part of Vietnamese culture.

3.3. The role of French colonialism in the field of culture and education

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Definitely determined by the Patenotre Treaty (June 6, 1884), the independence of Dai Nam was abandoned by the Nguyen Dynasty, instead, the country was placed under the protection of French colonialism. “After the soldiers had completed their careers, it was the turn of the teachers to carry out their careers” [cited in 106, p.35]. The French “spiritual conquest” created many changes in the field of education, at the same time Vietnamese culture also had many new elements coming from the West.

Originating from the requirements of governance and different perceptions of the situation in Vietnam, the French Admirals and Governors-General had different policies in organizing the General Education to replace the existing Confucianism. There was a time when French officers intended to abolish the study of Chinese characters and deny the Confucianism program, but then they realized that the customs, language, and laws of a nation could not be easily changed; both the national language and Chinese characters had to be used to popularize science, allowing French civilization to penetrate the people [9, pp. 45-46]. Caution replaced haste. The French gradually built a comprehensive curriculum to provide students with knowledge about the country, people, behavior, and knowledge of common science associated with subjects such as Mathematics, Ethics, National Literature, History, Geography, Intelligence, Hygiene, Philosophy, etc. with specific regulations on content and duration. The curriculum also retained some of the Confucian content, such as the teaching to a certain extent of the Four Books, Five Classics and many other Chinese works. No longer glorious in the past, Confucianism in the 19th century had become an obstacle to social development, outdated in content and method. The scholar class could be a model of morality, loyal to the king, but it was not useful in developing science and technology, expanding the economy, building up national defense potential so that the country could face the plots and acts of invasion of Western colonialists. Meanwhile, the French curriculum, although heavy on the foundation, had a wide scope, meeting the cognitive and practical requirements of learners. From this advantage, the new curriculum gradually replaced the Confucian and Mencian principles; Vietnamese education was separated from Chinese influence, taking on a completely new look: “Schools were established and organized according to a modern model, operating in an industrial style: formal education, tightly organized according to a vertical industry system, like a factory - concentrated and punctual; curriculum by level,

Each system is relatively unified, with teaching methods introduced from the main

national. The abolition of Chinese characters, replacing them with French and a part of the 21F national language will gradually change the way of thinking and the stereotyped knowledge available in books, which also means approaching modern Western thoughts and civilizations..., students will shift from passive learning to active, positive learning. (...) Learning is not as fanciful as before but is more practical. The scientific spirit changes the way of thinking and lifestyle of students... opening up a new horizon for Vietnamese youth" [cited in 44, pp.5-6].

Changes in education have impacted Vietnamese culture. “Thanks to educational reforms, the number of literate people increased, creating opportunities for the development of journalism. Education created momentum for the development of literature and journalism, becoming the core of culture” [cited in 44, p.6]. Growing up in Franco-Vietnamese schools, the New Learning intellectuals received the values of the Enlightenment ideology of freedom, equality, fraternity... and after overcoming obstacles, French, the main language in schools, became the means for Vietnamese intellectuals to directly contact the new ideologies of the era, for Vietnamese culture to interact with French and Western culture. Thus, through schools (and other channels), “First of all, the Western cultural class brought to Vietnamese culture new values such as freedom, equality, democracy... which are humanistic values belonging to universal human beings as raised by the Enlightenment ideology. Then, it helped Vietnamese people develop individual consciousness, considering the individual not as opposed to but as supporting the development of society. The awakening of individual consciousness was one of the driving forces of cultural development in this period" [cited in 102, p.58].

Through the reforms and adjustments of the French authorities, the boundary between French-Vietnamese education and national education was gradually blurred. However, the Trung Bac Tan Van Chu Nhat (1945) newspaper still questioned: “Did the French really take care of education in this country? The only agency they set up for education in our country was the Education Department. They blatantly implemented a policy of fundamentally destroying us. There was only Education but no education.”

… No need to say much, everyone knows that the schools in this country only serve to train a generation of slaves full of lust and easy to do” [quoted from 43, p.223]. In international forums, Nguyen Ai Quoc also made similar accusations: “The French did not organize a new education system to replace the Annamese education system. They only built a few schools to train

22 In fact, the intention of the clergy, merchants, Admiral De La Grandière, Lemyre de Viler to completely abolish Chinese characters did not become a reality. In the educational regulations applied in Cochinchina (until 1917) and the study programs issued by Governor-General Paul Beau, Klobukowsky, Albert Sarraut..., Chinese characters were given a certain position, although not much but stable in terms of duration.

creating parrots, people who are unpatriotic and lacking in morality and general knowledge” [cited in 106, p.88]. These comments stem from the content of the curriculum and the number of students attending school. In Franco-Vietnamese schools, students are exposed to a lot of French literature and history, are taught a lot about “the French civilisation in Annam” [see 106, p.94] and are oriented to view popular uprisings as riots and bandits. The magazine Nam Phong (1919) expressed concern: “In high schools, students are not taught Nam history and Vietnamese literature, they are taught French history and French literature. Therefore, after graduating or dropping out of school, our students do not know anything about their own country, they have turned them into foreigners” [cited in 106, pp.94-95]. At the end of the 1941-1942 school year, according to the statistics of the Annuaire statistique de l' IC, Vietnam had 3 high schools, 16 primary colleges, the vast majority of students were in primary school, mainly at the elementary level, accounting for 88.18%; 1% were in primary college and only 0.12% were in high school [see 106, p.84]. Thus, it is undeniable that there have been advances in the curriculum, the orderliness of the educational organization system, the degree system of the French-Vietnamese education system and the high level of education of the Newly Learned intellectuals: “Looking back at the history of the formation of the Vietnamese intellectual class through generations, I [Hoang Tuy] still wonder about a big question: why in the past 80 years, it seems that no generation of intellectuals has surpassed in talent, intelligence and personality qualities, the generation of intellectuals in the 1930s-1945s of the last century - the period of Tu Luc Van Doan, the New Poetry movement, with musicians Van Cao, Dang The Phong, with scientists, modern educators Dang Thai Mai, Hoang Xuan Han, Ta Quang Buu, Le Van Thiem, Ton That Tung, Ho Dac Di, Nguyen Manh Tuong, Nguyen Van Huyen, Tran Duc Thao, with political activists Pham Van Dong, Vo Nguyen Giap, Phan Thanh ... Most of these intellectuals studied in French schools” [cited [according to 41, p.288] but if we consider the Vietnamese education system from a national standpoint and the criteria for assessing development is the number of students studying at educational institutions organized by the French, then assessments such as "The French colonialists implemented a policy of keeping people ignorant in education, poisoning culture to create favorable conditions for them in ruling and exploiting the colony" [27, pp.12-13] are not entirely speculative or stem from political prejudice. "The policy of educating people to keep them ignorant is a tool for spiritual enslavement" [35, p.66] may be a harsh assessment of the general education system during the French colonial period. But the view of "viewing education as a precious thing that cannot be distributed to anyone" and the limitation of the student population "first of all among the children of leaders, children of nobles" [cited in 35, p.57] has led to a situation where more than 95% of the Vietnamese population

The South was illiterate after the August Revolution - 1945. This went against the civilizing mission that France declared when it began its war of aggression.

No longer able to solve social problems, and rejected by the Vietnamese scholar class and students, Confucianism had drifted into the past forever by the early 20th century. The existence of Western education organized by the French colonial government, although not successful from the perspective of mass education, contributed to the modernization of indigenous education [41, pp.283,287], laying the foundation for building a modern, timely education. Along with the development of education, Western culture gradually spread into the changing Vietnamese society and naturally integrated into the national culture.

Western culture inspired scholars Pham Phu Thu, Dang Huy Tru, Nguyen Truong To... with real ideas for educational reform, but the conservatism of culture sowed doubts and, together with the unexpected changes of the war situation, prevented the implementation of recommendations for national modernization. The Western educational model was applied by the French colonial government in Vietnam, but in the beginning, the people reacted with an uncooperative attitude and only accepted it when this educational model contained indigenous elements. Thus, whether the country still had its independence or had been deprived by invaders, the process of cultural contact and reception always went hand in hand with the process of cultural assimilation and interaction. The French "spiritual conquest" created many changes in the field of education, and at the same time, indigenous culture also had many new elements coming from the West. Although the noble ideas of the Enlightenment philosophy crystallized in the slogan "Liberty - Equality - Fraternity" were not expressed, the birth of the French-led education system marked the development of Vietnamese education.

CONCLUDE

Studying the field of educational reform in Vietnam during the period 1862-1945 from the perspective of the interaction between French cultural factors and Vietnamese cultural factors, we would like to present our perception of the following issues.

1. The reform requirements of Vietnamese education in the 19th century

Adopted from China, Confucian ideology with Confucian-Mencian principles became the philosophical foundation of education in Vietnam for thousands of years until the early 20th century [94, p.122]. Confucian education was necessary for a society in the process of establishing the position of the monarchy but increasingly proved to be unsuitable for the country's development requirements. Following Gia Long's reign in a country and region with many changes, King Minh Mang, King Tu Duc and many scholars wanted to reform the way of studying and taking exams, focusing educational content on practical issues. The policy focused on practical learning, but the court's reforms were still limited to the framework of the Four Books and Five Classics, and the imperial examinations were still the only way for scholars to advance. The mandarins' proposals to change the education system were only individual measures, lacking in system, originating from sensory perceptions when exposed to Western civilization during their overseas missions, and therefore could not be applied in practice. Nguyen Truong To's ideas for educational reform, although presented more clearly and systematically than the proposals of Pham Phu Thu, Dang Huy Tru, etc., but in the face of the betrayal and invasion of French colonialism, the court was no longer calm enough to continue implementing or paying attention to the renovation projects. All of this led to the consequence that Confucianism still existed with outdated theories.

After achieving military victories, the French paid attention to education. Because opening schools was necessary to first create officials to undertake the work of interpreters and secretaries in the newly established administrative agencies, and at the same time create connections between the ruling class and the native people; and in the long term, to create a source of human resources to supply the great economic programs that would be implemented. The French also realized that the existence of Confucianism was an obstacle to their intention to establish their domination. Because this education was a basis for the existence of traditional cultural values, the school of the teachers was a place to nurture patriotism. All policies of civilization,

The spread of Western civilization would not be effective if Chinese characters were not replaced by French and Quoc Ngu.

Thus, from different motives, the Nguyen Dynasty kings, mandarins, scholars and French authorities proposed ideas and policies to reform the existing education system. Military superiority and the establishment of domination gave the French the initiative to carry out educational reforms in order to continue the conquest that the soldiers were completing.

2. The process of establishing French-Vietnamese education in Vietnam

The curriculum and educational organization system are designed to meet educational purposes, in accordance with the educational policies of the government. When education is still in the process of groping, the curriculum and organizational system, due to the influence of the governing viewpoint and the actual situation, cannot immediately achieve stability.

The land of Cochinchina, due to historical circumstances, was the first place in Dai Nam to receive a new education system. After 13 years since Admiral Charner signed the Decree to establish the Pigneau de Behaine School (1861), through 2 changes in policy: Bonard - "Respect for letters and educated people", De La Grandière - "Deliver a fatal blow to the old Chinese rationalism" [cited in 115, pp.181,199], the new Cochinchina education system was organized according to a charter with specific regulations on the system of levels of education, curriculum and was only truly complete when this education system was organized according to the 1879 Charter issued by Lafont, which was applied until 1917.

Stationed in a country where Confucianism still reigned, the people continued to fight according to the Can Vuong call, the educational reform policy (as well as other fields) of the French authorities, of course, because of the provisions of the Patenôtre Treaty (1884) was not easily implemented in the North and Central regions. In the beginning, Paul Bert and his successors only established a few Interpreter schools, primary schools teaching Western languages and scientific knowledge; the teachers continued to teach the Four Books and Five Classics so that students could take part in the Confucian examinations organized by the court. The educational reform initiated by Paul Beau in 1906, continued by Klobukowsky and Albert Sarraut, accepted the coexistence of two educational systems: Confucianism and Modernism. It was not until 1917, when he took office as Governor-General of Indochina (for the second time), that Albert Sarraut took a decisive step: establishing a French-Vietnamese education system in Vietnam. After that, Martial

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