Ms. Ngo Thi Kim Chi talks about her memories of going to school at the age of 64.
At the age of 64, Ms. Ngo Thi Kim Chi (born in 1959) is still very strong in her learning spirit. Every day, Ms. Chi goes to school regularly and completes all her homework like her friends at the Center for Vocational Education - Continuing Education in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City.
"I'm old, how can I learn?"
Ms. Chi is the eldest of five children. Due to economic difficulties, after 8th grade, she had to drop out of school to help her parents work and earn money to raise her younger siblings, leaving her dream of becoming a doctor unfulfilled.
"When I had to quit school, I cried a lot. But society pushed me, and my circumstances were so difficult that I had to accept it. I tried to work hard to earn money so that my children would not fall into the same situation as me. I also wanted to have the conditions to go back to school," said Ms. Chi.
Ms. Chi asked permission not to wear the ao dai because she was old, but she always wore the same uniform as her classmates. (Photo: Thanh Tung)
Before joining the class at the Vocational Education - Continuing Education Center of District 7, Ms. Chi had attended the evening cultural supplementary class organized by the locality. However, at that time, due to having a family and many jobs, Ms. Chi had to stop studying once again.
"Before going back to school, I owned a small restaurant. Thanks to this restaurant, for 40 years, I have been able to provide my three children with a full education. All three of my children have graduated from university and have stable jobs. My youngest son has a master's degree and is living with his wife in the US," said Ms. Chi.
In 2016, Ms. Chi stopped her trading job and started her journey to fulfill her dream of going to school.
Although it was her dream, because she was away from school for so long and felt hesitant, Ms. Chi initially applied to study at a continuing education center far from home to avoid embarrassment in front of her neighbors, but was not accepted. After that, overcoming all her complexes, she decided to study at a center near her home.
" Many people say that I'm old, why study? Don't you feel ashamed to still go to school? I'm very sad, but that's nothing. I only stop studying when the pain is too much to walk. Besides, for me, nothing can stop my passion for studying.
I still remember the day Ms. Duong Le Thuy, then Deputy Director of the Center for Continuing Education - Vocational Education of District 7, received my application. Since I no longer had my old transcript, Ms. Thuy told me to start from grade 6 again. At that time, I told Ms. Thuy that as long as I could go back to school, any grade was fine, " Ms. Chi choked up.
She always tries to study hard to keep up with her classmates. (Photo: Thanh Tung)
As the oldest student in the class, Ms. Chi initially kept to herself, day after day only paying attention to class, studying and then going home, and not interacting much with the students in the class. After a while, the 11-year-old children got used to the presence of a woman her age, took the initiative to help and made her more open.
Whenever the teacher was talking too fast to write down, she would look at her classmates' notebooks. Whenever she had difficulty reading words due to her blurred vision, she would ask her friends to help her look at them. And conversely, whenever the exercises were complicated, she would share them with her classmates who did not understand.
Since knowing the graduation exam date, Ms. Chi's study schedule has become more packed. Except for Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, Ms. Chi is at school from 7am to 5pm every day of the week to study and review.
Ms. Chi received a certificate of merit for her "overcoming difficulties and studying hard" in the 2016-2017 school year. (Photo: Lam Ngoc)
Study with grandchildren
Mrs. Chi’s special experience is probably studying with her grandson. In 2016, Huynh Tan Phat Secondary School – where Mrs. Chi’s grandson studied – was rebuilt, and students had to temporarily study at the District 7 Vocational Education and Continuing Education Center.
I thought it would be fun for us to go to the same school. But when I saw my grandchild's friends laughing at me because I was old and still went to school, Grandma Chi felt sorry for me because I didn't understand, and was afraid that I would be embarrassed when I heard that, so she told me, "At school, you don't need to greet or look at me."
Some time later, teachers at Huynh Tan Phat Secondary School learned about Ms. Chi and shared her story with the students in the school as an example of lifelong self-learning. The attitudes of those friends also changed positively, and Ms. Chi's grandchildren became even more proud of her.
With her eagerness to learn and progress, from grade 6 to grade 12, Ms. Chi always achieved the title of Excellent Student of the Center for Vocational Education - Continuing Education, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City. Notably, in grade 9 and grade 12, Ms. Chi also won second and third prizes in Geography at the City-level Excellent Student Competition for the continuing education system.
Ms. Chi said that among the subjects, Math, Physics and Chemistry are the three subjects that always make her worry, having to remember many dry formulas and being flexible in applying them in exercises.
She had to try 2 or 3 times harder than other young students, spending more time solving problems and reviewing knowledge. If she didn't understand something, she would ask her teachers and classmates.
The youngest son's family flew back from the US to attend the closing ceremony with Mrs. Chi. (Photo: NVCC)
Teacher Nguyen Quang Phu, homeroom teacher of class 12A1, shared that when he first met Ms. Chi in 2019 in class, he thought there was a student's grandmother in the class. At that time, he also felt very surprised and confused because he did not think there would be an elderly person still willing to go to school like that.
"I taught Ms. Chi Math in 9th and 10th grade and was her homeroom teacher in 12th grade. She is a studious person with great determination and willpower to learn, " said Mr. Phu.
Seven years have passed in a flash, and in just a few days, Ms. Chi will take the most important and special exam of her life. Regardless of the result, this 64-year-old woman already has a plan.
If her grades are good, Ms. Chi will go to university with the hope of getting into a teacher training college, or she will open a free class for disadvantaged students in the neighborhood to share the knowledge she has learned.
For 6 consecutive years, Ms. Ngo Thi Kim Chi has been the President of the Association for Promotion of Education in Ward 3, Tan Thuan Dong Ward, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City. She was awarded the Medal for the Cause of Promotion of Education by the Central Committee of the Vietnam Association for Promotion of Education.
Lam Ngoc
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