'Teach children to dare to step out of their comfort zone'

This morning, November 20, Hanoi National University of Education held a ceremony to celebrate Vietnamese Teachers' Day. At the ceremony, Professor Nguyen Van Minh, the school's principal, delivered a speech to students and lecturers, sharing his thoughts about the profession, not only from a principal of a "model" pedagogical school in the country, but also from a teacher with nearly 40 years of experience in the teaching profession.

Professor Nguyen Van Minh: "Teach children to dare to step out of their comfort zone"

"We have the right to be proud of our noble profession"

At the beginning of his speech, Professor Minh shared his memories of his first days in the teaching profession in the Central Highlands, where his love for his students and his profession began. That was in 1985, when he had just graduated from university. The Central Highlands in the young teacher Nguyen Van Minh's mind at that time was imagined through the work "The Country Stands Up" by writer Nguyen Ngoc; through the imagination of vast grasslands and wild horses yearning for freedom galloping in the blue sky and strong wind.

But up there, the young teacher truly "absorbed" the life of the people in the great forest, knew what the dry season was like with the wind howling all night long, the fields a yellowish color with withered grass; understood what the rainy season was like, the rain was like a bag of water suddenly tearing open and pouring down. The Central Highlands at that time was "lack of food, lack of clothing", "years of life's challenges, extremely difficult but also extremely memorable".

There, Mr. Minh taught preparatory students of the Ede, Ba Na, Jrai, Se Dang, and Mo Nong ethnic groups; and Cham students from Ninh Thuan who came to study; and students from Thai Binh, Ha Nam, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Quang Ngai... who followed their families to the new economic zones. They were unfamiliar with the things in books, but were gentle and affectionate like basalt soil, simple and honest like wild forest trees. And extremely lovable.

"I cannot clearly explain whether it was a love for my students or a love for my profession that grew within me. Then that love grew and grew, taking over me. That love became the reason for living," Professor Minh confided.

He also shared: "Each of us comes to the teaching profession in a different way, but the most valuable thing is that deep down, each of us has a deep love for humanity and a desire to help future generations grow up and become more mature, so that we can join hands to make society more civilized and the country more beautiful. We have the right to be proud of our noble profession."

Equip students with "filters" to separate the turbid and bring out the clear.

Sharing with students, Professor Minh said that genuine values ​​and good standards are being distorted by hybrids and deviations. Equipping each person with a "filter" to filter out the turbid and clear the impurities helps absorb the good things and eliminate the dregs as a responsibility of the school, a sacred duty of teachers, students and their families.

One of the most important values ​​that the school and teachers must take on is to educate children about family values, social norms and behavior in the integrated world, the desire to master knowledge and act honestly. Educating each child to love their father, mother, siblings, neighbors and more broadly, their fellow human beings; that is the root of love for the homeland and country.

"Once those values ​​are cultivated, teach children to dare to step out of their comfort zone. Don't be afraid, when you have true faith, your actions will be true," Professor Minh shared.

According to Professor Minh: "The new can start from what we already know, but the new can be different from what we already know, even things we don't know yet. Let's accept it, nurture it and teach children to dare to think differently. If there is not a generation of citizens who dare to think and do like that, they will forever be left behind. Creativity must have a foundation, but sometimes it must be bold."

According to the Principal of Hanoi National University of Education, schools and teachers need to educate children to know that if they want to go out to the vast "ocean" with strong winds and big waves, they must have "ships" that stand tall and set sail. Dare to go out to bring back good things and bring to friends around the world the precious things of Vietnam.

"Teachers are not the ones who have the monopoly on knowledge, nor are they the ones who impart values, but they are the ones who accompany and inspire the hidden potential of learners so that within them there arises the desire and courage to conquer new things," said Professor Minh.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/hay-day-cho-tre-dam-buoc-ra-khoi-vung-an-toan-185231120105455193.htm