Learn foreign languages, expand your dreams
In early May, English teachers from Marie Curie School (Hanoi) once again traveled hundreds of kilometers to schools in the mountainous district of Meo Vac to meet the students they have taught for nearly a school year online.
English teacher in Hanoi and student in Meo Vac during the English speaking "test" at the end of the school year
This return was different from the first time the teachers visited the students at the end of the first semester, because the teachers also conducted a 1-on-1 English speaking test after the first year the students were introduced to this new subject. This was a unique form of testing, appearing for the first time in the northernmost part of the country, which made the students extremely excited. Each student had the opportunity to talk and answer questions in English with the teacher for 5 minutes.
Ms. Minh Hong, an English teacher at Son Vi Primary School (Meo Vac District), said she was quite surprised and happy when checking her students' speaking test. "Compared to the first time, this time the children have overcome their shyness and timidity to actively communicate with me. From not being able to pronounce new words, now they can recognize words, repeat whole sentences and understand short sentences in communication. I am happy to see the children's progress," Ms. Hong said.
Confidence and excitement were evident on the faces of the Meo Vac students when they met their English teacher again. Learning a new language seemed to open new doors in their thoughts and dreams for the future. Confident in learning English, some students wanted to become tour guides to attract more "western" tourists to their hometown; some students hoped to grow up to become English teachers in Son Vi, because currently the whole commune has no teachers to teach this subject.
Hai Dang, a student in class 3A1 of Son Vi Primary School, also wishes to set foot in America, the country that appears in the book and the stories and images that Ms. Hong introduced.
"Worry turns into endless joy"
Ms. Le Nhung, Principal of Can Chu Phin Primary School (Meo Vac District), shared: "At the beginning of the school year, it was the first time that 3rd grade students got acquainted with a virtual classroom, a new subject, and a new foreign language, so they were confused. At that time, the children spoke Mandarin but still had a lisp, so when the teacher asked them questions in English, they were shy and did not know how to answer.
After 9 months of studying, the children have become bolder, more proactive and very interested in English lessons. Although still young, I was not discouraged by the difficulties in the early days. That is a great encouragement for us teachers and students in this remote place."
According to Mr. Bui Van Thu, Head of the Department of Education and Training of Meo Vac District, up to now, students will take the test on paper, and teachers will grade according to the available answer sheet. However, teachers at Marie Curie School have conducted a 1-1 speaking test, which means that the teacher tests each student. This form is highly effective in assessing the ability and learning results after 1 year of study of each student; opening up confidence in communicating in English for students. It is the enthusiasm and perseverance of teachers in Hanoi that has dispelled the initial shyness and hesitation of ethnic students, helping them to look forward to and be excited about each lesson.
Thanks to such systematic English learning, this school year, 4 primary school students of Meo Vac Town (Meo Vac District) won prizes in the province's English competition for excellent students. This is something that teachers and students here have never dared to think of before. The Ha Giang Department of Education and Training also decided to award certificates of merit to 24 teachers of Marie Curie School for this special, unique support.
Mr. Nguyen Xuan Khang, Principal of Marie Curie School, could not hide his emotion when receiving the initial results of the project. "When I received Mr. Bui Van Thu's request to help teach English, I was very worried. But after 1 year of implementation, that worry was replaced by endless joy," Mr. Khang said emotionally.
Previously, Thanh Nien Newspaper had many articles about the serious shortage of primary English teachers nationwide when implementing the new general education program, but this situation in Meo Vac district is typical of that seriousness. The whole district has nearly 20 primary schools but only 1 English teacher, she alone teaches an overloaded school, not to mention supporting other schools.
Faced with this situation, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Khang decided to "save" Meo Vac District by recruiting and paying 21 English teachers on contract just to organize online English teaching for 3rd grade students of 18 primary schools in Meo Vac District. With 3 periods/week/class x 35 weeks of actual study x 76 classes, Marie Curie School will support online teaching for all schools in Meo Vac District, which is 7,980 periods/school year. The total budget to help teach English to 3rd grade students of Meo Vac District is about 1.7 billion VND for the 2022-2023 school year alone.
"Continue teaching this generation of students for at least another year"
Not stopping at 1 year, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Khang also suggested that the leaders of Meo Vac District could create conditions for Marie Curie School to "continue teaching this generation of students for at least 1 more year". According to the Head of the Department of Education and Training of Meo Vac District, Bui Van Thu, Mr. Khang's suggestion continues to be an extremely valuable support. Meo Vac currently has 76 grade 3 classes in the whole district at the main schools, next year there will be 122 grade 2 classes moving up to grade 3 and will also have to go to the main schools to learn English and IT. According to calculations, these 122 classes will have to be combined into about 70 grade 3 classes. Thus, next year there will be about 160 grade 3 and grade 4 classes having to learn English. The demand for teachers and facilities will double compared to present, while recruiting English teachers in Meo Vac still has the same difficulties as the previous school year.
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