Night class in the mountains of the Northwest

Teacher Giang Seo Do enthusiastically solves problems and corrects students' mistakes - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

Inside these classrooms are hundreds of students from the Mong, Nung, Thu Lao, La Chi... ethnic groups, busy preparing for the final stage of their high school graduation exams.

Determination of students in mountainous areas

After the afternoon review session in class, more than 120 senior students of Simacai District High School No. 2 quickly returned to their dormitories; some went home to take care of their personal hygiene, eat dinner, and prepare for evening self-study. Since the middle of the first semester, this classroom has always been lit up when the sun has just set.

The three classrooms on the second floor of the three-story building were lit up. In the classroom, some students sat quietly solving problems, while 2-3 students sat together discussing and helping each other review.

The atmosphere in the classroom was more intense than ever. The high school graduation exam was just a few days away, and through the window were eyes filled with determination and hope to reach their dreams.

At the back of the classroom is a countdown board that students update daily: "The 2024 high school graduation exam is only 3 days away. In the final days, whoever is more diligent, persistent, and makes more effort will be the winner."

Enthusiastic in teaching, observing, and going to each seat to help students solve history problems in the middle of the night, Mr. Giang Seo Do, a teacher at High School No. 2 in Si Ma Cai district, said that the evening supplementary class schedule is very familiar to students here. Because right after having a plan to review for the 2024 high school graduation exam, from the middle of the first semester, the school launched the "teachers help students" movement, organizing free evening review sessions for grade 12 students.

The supplementary review time is from 7:30 pm to about 10 pm every night from Monday to Friday. Each session, a teacher from the subject subject of the graduation exam will come to supplement the knowledge for students. The three classes are divided according to the students' ability level so that the teachers can provide the most detailed support.

As a son of Simacai, Mr. Do sympathizes and understands the circumstances and learning determination of the students at Sin Cheng.

"Since the beginning of the second semester, non-boarding students have also been enthusiastic about going to night school. Especially, when the school year ended, many students asked to stay in boarding school to study because their houses were far away and the road to school was dangerous, especially at night. Seeing that they really wanted to study, we felt that this was the motivation to try to accompany them every day," said Mr. Do.

As soon as she put down her bowl and chopsticks, Lu Thi Xo, a Mong ethnic girl, prepared her books and notebooks to take advantage of the opportunity to go to class to solve more questions. This little girl's dream is to become a teacher. In the past few days, Xo and her friends have not only received free night school and daytime review support, but have also been taken care of by teachers, from food to sleep.

When studying until around 10pm, my stomach, which had just finished dinner, was quickly filled with hot bowls of porridge filled with love by my teachers. Sometimes it was chicken porridge, sometimes instant noodles with eggs.

"I feel very happy because the teachers have always tried their best to support us in every class. They are also my role models and the source of motivation for me to love teaching, giving me the strength to pursue my passion.

"Currently, there is a great shortage of teachers in my hometown. I want to study pedagogy so that I can return to my hometown to work, help many children access education, and change the extremely difficult lives here" - Xo confided.

Night classes are also where students support each other when needed - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

Crossing passes and climbing slopes to support students

Simacai District High School No. 2 has 21 staff members, teachers, and employees. Except for three administrators and three employees, the school only has 15 teachers teaching in the classroom. Of which, there are no teachers for English; math, physics, information technology, and physical education all lack teachers.

Due to the lack of English teachers, Ms. Dinh Khanh Diep, an English teacher at Si Ma Cai Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities, has been assigned to review graduation exams for students at Si Ma Cai District High School No. 2 since March 2024. Ms. Diep comes to support the school one day a week, teaching all three 12th grade classes with about 121 students.

Ms. Diep confided that Simacai district is the most remote and difficult district in Lao Cai province, and teachers' salaries are low, so many teachers are not interested in staying here for a long time. Due to this difficulty, teachers from different schools take turns implementing the "school supporting school" program.

For Ms. Diep, supporting average and weak students in English to prepare for graduation exams is very familiar because this is a difficult subject, most of the students in Simacai are very weak in this subject. When Ms. Diep took over the job, the students' English review schedule was interrupted, empty from the end of November until almost mid-March.

During the process of accompanying students, seeing many students lose their basics and almost give up on English, Ms. Diep and the teachers in the school tried to encourage them not to give up because there was still a lot of time to try, focusing on reviewing and starting with the questions that were easy to get points.

Recalling 10 years ago when she came to Si Ma Cai to take up her assignment, Ms. Diep said: "At that time, Si Ma Cai was very poor, had difficulties, the demand for learning was very low, and it was difficult to recruit students, especially Si Ma Cai High School No. 2. During this time, teachers were not teaching but going to students' homes to invite them to class. I am very happy because education here has changed a lot."

Ms. Nguyen Thu Trang, a literature teacher at Lao Cai High School No. 1, traveled more than 100 kilometers from Lao Cai City to Sin Cheng Commune (Si Ma Cai District) to "fuel" students during the final review session.

Ms. Trang was surprised when she arrived and the students sat up straight in the classroom with excited faces to welcome the new teacher to the final leg. Without hesitation, the students always tried to discuss and express their concerns and questions about the knowledge with the teacher, even late at night they still texted her to ask her to review their lessons and correct their questions.

"Staying in the boarding area with the students for three days, I clearly saw how much passion they put into the high school graduation exam. In addition to attending classes in the morning and afternoon, in the evening, as soon as they put down their bowls of rice, they quickly and voluntarily went to class to study until 10pm. I believe that they will definitely pass this important exam well," said Ms. Trang.

Traveling hundreds of kilometers to students

Mr. Hoang Dinh Hoat, vice principal of High School No. 2 in Simacai District, said that last school year, in addition to the school being assigned a physics teacher, the school also lacked teachers for English, literature, and math. Therefore, the department mobilized 1-2 teachers from other schools each week to support teaching the main curriculum.

Mr. Hoat affirmed that the teachers who come to the school all have the intention of helping students, and because they love the students in the highlands, they travel hundreds of kilometers to be with the students.

Many models to overcome difficulties

In the 2024 high school graduation exam, Lao Cai province has 1 examination council and 26 examination sites. Of which, Bac Ha has 3 examination sites, Bao Thang has 3, Bao Yen has 3, Muong Khuong has 3, Lao Cai has 5, Sa Pa has 2, Si Ma Cai has 2, Van Ban has 3. The total number of candidates registered for the exam is 8,385.

Organizing review sessions for students in some highland schools and some vocational education and continuing education centers is still difficult. The Lao Cai Department of Education and Training has implemented many solutions to overcome this, including flexible and appropriate solutions such as "schools helping schools", "teachers helping teachers", and "students helping students" in both direct and online forms.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/lop-hoc-dem-giua-nui-rung-tay-bac-20240624000739266.htm