American guy chooses to study and graduate with master's degree in Mathematics in Vietnam

David William Coley (born 1986, American) is one of the students receiving a master's degree in Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics from Hanoi National University of Education on April 18.

David Coley received his master's degree in Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics from Hanoi National University of Education. Photo: NHL

The sadness of a math teacher who can only teach good math students

David Coley dreamed of becoming a mathematician since he was 16 years old. After graduating from the University of Chicago (USA), he worked as a math teacher. David admitted that at that time, although he had a lot of math knowledge, he had no teaching experience.

In his first year as a teacher, his teaching method was to talk about things that were theoretical but did not help students understand and apply knowledge in practice.

“At first, I thought that all students would understand my lectures right away. However, I quickly realized that most of the students could not absorb the content of the lecture and seemed bored. Some students even sat down and wrote poems about the boredom of math class. Seeing students like that made me feel discouraged. Only a few students understood the lecture well, but perhaps even without me teaching, they would still understand math.

If only good math students understand the lesson, what benefit does it bring to the teacher? Thinking so, I decided to change my teaching method to make math more attractive for all students in the class,” David Coley said.

David Coley with the new masters. Photo: NHL

After teaching in the US, in 2022, David Coley came to Vietnam to work as a teacher at a private school in Hanoi. Here, he met two colleagues in the same field who were studying for a master's degree in Mathematics in addition to teaching at school.

“When I shared my dream of becoming a mathematician, they encouraged me to apply for a master's degree with them,” David Coley said.

He enrolled in a master's degree in Probability and Mathematical Statistics at the Faculty of Mathematics and Information Technology of Hanoi National University of Education, thinking that applied mathematics was closer to reality than number theory.

Math teacher studies Vietnamese diligently

David said he received enthusiastic attention and guidance from his teachers. “Although I made many pronunciation and grammar mistakes, the lecturers still listened attentively to my questions and answered honestly. Many times when I heard the lecturer ask a question in front of the class, I only understood about 60% but still boldly raised my hand to answer. Sometimes the answer was right, sometimes wrong because I made math mistakes or misunderstood Vietnamese, but each time I learned from the experience to continue to improve myself,” David said.

David said that other students also explained to him about Vietnamese culture and education in a friendly manner.

“Every time I had an exam coming up, my friends and I would go to the library to study. After the exam, we would all go out for lunch. When I was preparing to defend my thesis, I was a bit nervous, not knowing how to express myself in Vietnamese so that my teachers could understand. Two close friends came to my house to help me practice presenting my thesis more clearly,” David shared.

After all his efforts, David Coley's achievement was a master's degree received on April 18.

David Coley with Associate Professor Dr. Ngo Hoang Long (left) and Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Nhu Thang (right) - 2 deputy heads of the Faculty of Mathematics and Information Technology of Hanoi National University of Education .

Associate Professor Dr. Ngo Hoang Long (lecturer in charge of the major of Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics and also the person who directly taught 2 subjects of David Coley at Hanoi National University of Education) commented that this is a student with a foundation in Mathematics and a very good learning attitude.

“Although we can communicate in English with David, he is always proactive in speaking Vietnamese. David’s way of learning and thinking is very proactive and progressive. When I ask about a certain concept in Mathematics or ask him to present a result he has learned, he not only repeats the definition and properties but also shares his thoughts on how this knowledge can be applied. He is also willing to share what he has learned with his classmates and lecturers, making the classroom atmosphere more exciting. I am very happy to teach students like David,” Mr. Long shared.

Mr. Long said that David Coley also participated in the Putnam University Mathematics Competition (an exam with many top universities in the US) and ranked 26th.

David Coley believes that studying for a master's degree in Vietnam is a good foundation for his future career. He is currently doing a PhD in Mathematics in South Africa and hopes to apply the knowledge he has learned at Hanoi National University of Education to solve practical problems there.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chang-trai-nguoi-my-chon-hoc-va-tot-nghiep-thac-si-toan-tai-viet-nam-2392986.html