It is undoubted that teacher autonomy (TA) and learner autonomy (LA) are among the factors that affect the effectiveness of English teaching and learning in non-native English speaking contexts like Vietnam.  Investigating how teachers and students perceive TA and LA may be considered a valuable addition to the literature. This study, therefore, aimed to explore students’ perceptions of teachers’ practices used to foster LA and teachers’ perceptions of challenges they may encounter in fostering LA in EFL classes at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HUTECH)-Vietnam. Two instruments were employed to collect both qualitative and quantitative data, namely the questionnaire and interview with the participation of 12 EFL teachers and 160 first-year English majored students. The findings of the study revealed that most of the EFL teachers who taught the first-year students used practices through responsibility-informing and in-class activities to foster LA. However, the findings also indicated that the teachers encountered several challenges related to students, teachers and the context. It is expected that the findings of the study would partly contribute to the enhancement of TA and LA in English language education at HUTECH in particular and at the Vietnamese tertiary level in general.

Communication strategies (CSs) play a significant role in enabling EFL students to achieve a higher level of English proficiency and good ability in oral communication. Helping both EFL teachers and students be aware of CSs is essential in the Vietnamese context.  This study, therefore, aimed to explore the most commonly used strategies in English oral communication among English-majored students at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HUTECH)-Vietnam. Two instruments were employed to collect both qualitative and quantitative data, namely (1) the questionnaire and (2) the focus group with the participation of 213 English majored sophomores, juniors and seniors. The findings of the study revealed that the most commonly-used speaking strategies are ‘fluency-oriented’, ‘message reduction and alteration’, and ‘negotiation for meaning while speaking’, and that the students used achievement strategies more often than reduction ones; and the most commonly-used listening strategies are ‘negotiation for meaning while listening’, ‘non-verbal’ and ‘scanning’. The findings also revealed that there are no significant differences in the use of CSs among the three academic levels of students. It is expected that the findings of the study would partly contribute to the enhancement of communicative competence (CoC) and the use of CSs among students at HUTECH in particular and at the Vietnamese tertiary level in general.