Students in a commune have to go to school in 3 provinces because there are no schools.

Students in one commune have to go to school in three provinces.

K' Nhan, from Quang Hoa commune, Dak Glong district, Dak Nong province (10C grade student, Nguyen Chi Thanh High School in Krong No commune, Lak district, Dak Lak province) has to travel nearly 16km to get to school every day. His family is in a particularly difficult situation, his parents work on the farm, with an unstable income.

This morning, I had to wake up at 4am to prepare cold rice to bring to school. With the hope that my education will help my family escape poverty. "There is no high school where I go to school. My house is far away, my parents have to work in the fields and cannot take me to school, so I have to ride my bike to school by myself," K' Nhan confided.

Quang Hoa Commune, Dak Glong District, Dak Nong currently has no high school, so students have to go to school in 3 provinces. Photo: HN

During the heavy rain caused by storm No. 3, Mr. Nguyen Van Son (village 11, Quang Hoa commune, Dak Glong district, Dak Nong province) packed his bags and took his eldest daughter to Lak district, Dak Lak province to study in grade 10. The distance from his house to his daughter's school is more than 12km, making it difficult to pick her up and drop her off every day, so he planned to let his daughter rent a place to stay. However, leaving his daughter behind made him worried because it was difficult to care for her, in addition to the financial burden.

According to Mr. Son, there is no high school in Quang Hoa commune, and the school in the province is too far away, so he has to send his children to Dak Lak province to go to school. "My child just started 10th grade this year, and the school is too far from home. Many parents and students really hope that the State will pay attention and create conditions to build a high school for the locality. If the school is close, we can work and produce with peace of mind, without having to worry about transportation, and parents can feel more secure," Mr. Son shared.

Mr. Phan Dinh Mao, Chairman of the People's Committee of Quang Hoa Commune, Dak Glong District, Dak Nong Province, said that the population of the commune is more than 8,000 people, the proportion of ethnic minorities is more than 90%, it is a commune in the 3rd region with special difficulties. Each year, the commune has more than 120 children who want to study high school but the commune does not have a school at this level.

Meanwhile, the high schools in the district center or neighboring communes in the district are too far away, at least 50km, some schools even up to 120km. Therefore, only over 30% of the children study at high schools in the district, 35% of the children have to apply to study at schools in Dak Lak and Lam Dong provinces, the rest can study a trade or are at risk of dropping out of school early.

The fact that students have to go to school in 3 provinces, with a very long distance and in the context that localities have to implement student streaming is a concern of local authorities.

"Going to school too far away is very difficult for parents and students. Besides, it is an economic problem, students staying to rent a house will add more financial burden to families. The commune also proposed that all levels and sectors approve to implement grade 10 in the 2025-2026 school year, then complete the facilities and teachers to implement grades 11 and 12," said Mr. Phan Dinh Mao.

Mr. Phan Dinh Mao, Chairman of the People's Committee of Quang Hoa Commune, Dak Glong District, Dak Nong Province, is very concerned about the fact that the locality does not have a high school to meet the learning needs of students. Photo: HN

Lack of schools, lack of classes, lack of teachers

Mr. Le Luong Nhien, Principal of Quang Hoa Secondary School, Quang Hoa Commune, Dak Glong District, Dak Nong Province, said that with the increasing population in the commune, the need to open classes for high school students is very urgent.

At the end of August 2024, the School also received a document from the Provincial People's Committee on studying to upgrade the school to a 2nd-3rd grade inter-school. This is a good thing, but there are still concerns about the lack of teachers. If an inter-level school is established, the pressure on the teacher staff will be greater, requiring attention from all levels and sectors.

In the commune of Region 3, Quang Hoa, more than 90% of the students are ethnic minorities. Every year, more than 120 students want to study high school, but the lack of schools, classes, and teachers forces many students to go to vocational training or drop out of school early. Photo: HN

"The biggest difficulty in upgrading to level 2-3 is the lack of staff. At least 20 more staff are needed to teach level 3. In addition, the facilities must be rebuilt to meet the needs of teaching and learning," said Mr. Le Luong Nhien.

Mr. Phan Thanh Hai, Director of the Department of Education and Training of Dak Nong province, said that the fact that students in Quang Hoa commune have to go through 3 provinces to study high school has been a concern of the education sector for many years. The unit is coordinating with the Dak Glong district government and relevant departments, agencies and branches to advise the province to establish a joint junior high school - high school in this extremely difficult commune in Region 3.

At present, the establishment of schools is favorable when implementing national target programs, district and commune levels have funding and budget to build school facilities. However, the most difficult problem is arranging and assigning teachers. While the school has not been established, for now, in this school year, the children will temporarily study at the schools they have enrolled in. The education sector is consulting and proposing to the province appropriate policies and regimes to support the children with food, accommodation and travel expenses.

Hundreds of junior high school graduates in Quang Hoa commune, Dak Glong district, Dak Nong province have to split up to study in three provinces. Photo: HN

"In the long term, we are coordinating with the District People's Committee and departments, especially the Department of Home Affairs, under the direction of the Provincial People's Committee, to review and evaluate the number of students in the next 5 years to have appropriate plans and projects to establish the school as soon as possible. If the staffing issue can be arranged, the school can be established in 2025-2026," said Mr. Phan Thanh Hai.

On the first day of school, while students in many places across the country go to school with joy and excitement, students in the commune of region 3 Quang Hoa, poor district 30a Dak Glong go to school with difficulties, obstacles and many worries.

Source: https://danviet.vn/hy-huu-hoc-sinh-o-mot-xa-phai-di-hoc-o-3-tinh-vi-khong-co-truong-20240905103337074.htm