Today (September 16), many schools in areas severely affected by flooding after Typhoon No. 3 (Yagi) will welcome students back to school. However, there are still many problems and shortages; many schools still have to let students stay home because they need more time to clean up and repair...
TEACHERS AND STUDENTS WHO WILL NEVER RETURN
The most haunting image to date for the education sector nationwide is probably the image of teachers at Phuc Khanh Kindergarten No. 1, Lang Nu (Bao Yen District, Lao Cai) bewilderedly looking through the remains of their children from Lang Nu village. A kindergarten class of 18 children, after just one day, 9 children were permanently unable to return to school after the flood receded. For teachers, there is no greater pain than that.
Lao Cai province focuses resources on cleaning up schools after floods to welcome students back to school
PHOTO: MINH THU
Looking at the list titled "Students swept away by flood" compiled by Phuc Khanh Primary and Secondary School No. 1 (Bao Yen District), anyone would be heartbroken when the number reached 20 students in all grades of a school. At the end of the list, there is a note: "Students highlighted in yellow are injured, students highlighted in red are deceased". Even more heartbreaking is that the number of students "highlighted in red" is up to 13, leaving only 7 students "highlighted in yellow". In Bat Xat, the initial statistics of the district's Department of Education and Training on the number of teachers and students in difficult situations needing help also reached hundreds of cases. Among them, there are also names of students "highlighted in red" with the note: "lost" or "lost the whole family"...
Many forces join hands to clean up the school after the flood to welcome students back
PHOTO: PROVIDED BY MINH CHUAN SECONDARY SCHOOL (YEN BAI)
Storm No. 3 has left serious consequences for the education sector in Lao Cai province. Ms. Duong Bich Nguyet, Director of the Department of Education and Training of Lao Cai province, said that the whole province currently has 35 students dead and missing, 15 students injured due to storms and floods. Bao Yen district has the highest number with 25 students dead, of which 23 are from Lang Nu village, Phuc Khanh commune. According to information from the Department of Education and Training of Yen Bai, the whole province has 2 teachers, 8 students dead, 2 students injured due to storms and floods; in Cao Bang, 2 teachers and 7 students died, 1 student injured; in Lang Son, 2 students were also lost due to floods... In many localities, schools are still "lost" in contact with students and their families, so the date of their return to class is unknown. "It is very painful. We are trying to do a good job of stabilizing the psychology of teachers and parents, ensuring that attendance rates are not affected," said Mr. Bui Minh Tuan, Head of the Department of Education and Training of Bao Yen district.
Cleaning up schools after floods to welcome students back to school soon
PHOTO: MINH THU
For many schools, although no students were lost, the worry that they would not return to school still lingered in the teachers' minds when they suddenly became orphans or had families with nothing after the historic storm and flood. Nguyen Van Hanh, a 12th grade student at Bao Yen District High School No. 1 (Lao Cai), was one of the lucky ones to survive the flood that flattened Lang Nu, but his mother was swept away by the flood and his father passed away at the end of 2023. Lying in the hospital with wounds all over his body, left alone in the world, he was confused by the thought of having to drop out of school to work for a living. The homeroom teacher and teachers at the school took turns taking care of Hanh, encouraging him to get up little by little.
The school is still in disarray after the flood, school supplies, desks, chairs, and books are severely damaged.
PHOTO: MINH THU
Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong, Vice Principal of the school, shared with Thanh Nien that the most worrying thing is that students in extremely difficult areas will not return to school. Up to now, only about 80% of students have been able to contact them due to the loss of phone signal. Therefore, according to Ms. Hong, the school will soon increase the number of students staying in dormitories so that orphans and homeless children will be better cared for. Students like Hanh really need the help of philanthropists and the community because they need to study to graduate from high school and be able to learn a trade, go to university, etc.
LOST ALL BOOKS AND SCHOOL MATERIALS
However, teachers also said that for many students and teachers who have gone through the recent historic storm and flood, it is fortunate that both parents and teachers are still present when returning to school. With the spirit of mutual love and support of our country, students and schools will certainly receive support and assistance. The immediate task is to ensure the minimum conditions for students to return to school.
PHOTO: MINH THU
Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong said that in recent days, the school has been doing its best to clean up the school. The dormitory for hundreds of students was the most severely damaged when almost all the essential items for the students' meals and accommodation were gone. Many teachers in the school whose houses were flooded and have not had time to clean up still come to school to deal with the consequences and pick up their students. Among them, Ms. Dao Thi Thanh Thuy, homeroom teacher of class 12A9, whose house is deeply flooded, prioritizes spending time at the hospital to take care of her students because she has no relatives left. In addition to that time, she goes to school to clean up the flood, trying to welcome the students back on September 18. "If school is closed for too long, we are worried that many students will drop out," Ms. Hong reiterated.
There is still much work to do to welcome students back to school after the storm and flood.
PHOTO: MINH THU
Similarly, Pho Rang Secondary School No. 1 (Bao Yen District, Lao Cai) is also one of the schools with the most severe damage to facilities in the district. Ms. Pham Hoang Ngoc Hue, Vice Principal of the school, said that it is expected that students will gather this weekend and classes will be held early next week. The reason is that the school is still covered in mud, many damaged items have not been counted and repaired in time. More importantly, nearly 500/617 students of the school had their houses flooded and lost all their books and school supplies. More than 100 students in isolated communes have not been contacted yet, so it is unknown what their condition is, how to get to school, etc.
ENSURING CONDITIONS AND SAFETY FOR STUDENTS TO RETURN
Lao Cai Department of Education and Training said that on September 16, 521 schools will resume teaching, 77 schools have not yet organized teaching (accounting for 12.87%). 5 localities with 100% of schools organizing normal teaching from the beginning of the week are Lao Cai City, Sa Pa Town and the districts: Van Ban, Bao Thang, Muong Khuong. In Bao Yen District, the haunting place of Lang Nu's pain, according to Mr. Bui Minh Tuan, due to the heavy impact on students and teachers, difficult schools, and traffic separation between areas, it is expected that only 30 schools in Bao Yen District will allow students to return to school from September 16, the remaining 43 schools are expected to organize learning for students from September 23.
Documents, school supplies, books were severely damaged after the flood.
PHOTO: PROVIDED BY MINH CHUAN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL (YEN BAI)
Vice Chairwoman of Yen Bai Provincial People's Committee Vu Thi Hien Hanh shared that immediately after the flood receded, Yen Bai province mobilized the maximum force in the province and the support force with the number of about 104,000 people to overcome the storm and flood. Up to this point, most of the flooded schools have mobilized and coordinated with forces inside and outside the industry to clean up, and are basically clean. However, cleaning and sanitation in some schools in Yen Bai city encountered many difficulties due to power outages, lack of water sources, and lack of specialized equipment. Many schools suffered from landslides, subsidence of structures, and landslides of fences that have not been fixed. Currently, the schools have reported to the authorities and management levels for assessment and solution.
Join hands to clean up the school to welcome students
PHOTO: PROVIDED BY MINH CHUAN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL (YEN BAI)
As of the end of last week, the whole Yen Bai province had 152/442 schools from kindergarten to high school organizing to welcome students to school and organize educational activities, reaching 35%. Ms. Hanh informed that she will try to send students to school on September 16 to ensure the school year. Schools with very serious flooding are expected to let students go to school from September 18. According to statistics, the whole Luc Yen district has 3 flooded schools; 19 schools have landslides, collapsed fences, and leaks. Of which, Minh Chuan Primary - Secondary School was the most affected, with classrooms flooded, teaching materials, library, kitchen, toilets, dormitory, garage, and the entire school's electrical system submerged in mud or swept away by floodwaters. The water has receded for several days, but from the school yard, classrooms to tables and chairs are covered with thick mud. Ms. Dinh Thi Giang, Deputy Head of the Department of Education and Training of Luc Yen District, said: "Currently, the remedial work is being urgently implemented by the entire district education sector with the highest determination but also ensuring safety for students to return to class."
Teachers take portraits of children who died in the flood to paste on the children's belongings at Phuc Khanh Kindergarten (Lao Cai).
PHOTO: Tuan Minh
Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Thu, Director of the Cao Bang Department of Education and Training, said that 10/519 educational institutions have not yet been able to resume classes due to high water levels in rivers and streams and landslides and cut-off roads. Currently, nearly 700 students have not been able to be contacted due to loss of phone signal. Many students cannot go to school due to the cut-off terrain. The Tuyen Quang Department of Education and Training said that since September 16, 455/456 schools have allowed students to return to school. In particular, the Chiem Hoa Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities had to postpone the reopening for a week to repair and fix the electricity, water, kitchen and dormitory systems due to prolonged flooding. The Lang Son Department of Education and Training informed that as of September 15, 650/650 schools in the province were ready to return to normal schooling...
The Ministry of Education and Training proposed to pay first attention to the spirit of students and teachers. At the Government meeting on overcoming the consequences of storms and floods on the morning of September 15, Mr. Nguyen Kim Son, Minister of Education and Training, said: "Some schools in Lao Cai and Yen Bai suffered heavy damage. As of September 16, with the efforts of localities and teachers, thousands of schools reopened. However, on September 16, there were still 99 schools and school sites that could not welcome students. According to Lao Cai's calculations, even by September 23, there were still about 17 schools and school sites that could not be restored. Therefore, the Ministry of Education and Training proposed to the Government to balance the central budget to support schools in Lao Cai and Yen Bai, first of all, to build temporary buildings so that students have a place to study and then to rebuild the schools. Last weekend, when visiting and encouraging and giving gifts to teachers and students in the two localities most heavily affected by the floods Regarding Lao Cai and Yen Bai, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Chi, Deputy Minister of Education and Training, pointed out many things that need to be done to overcome the consequences of the education sector after the flood, in which Ms. Chi expressed her wish and noted that the Department of Education and Training and schools should pay first attention to stabilizing the spirit, ideology, and encouraging the spirit of students, teachers, and parents. Regarding the preparation for the reconstruction of teaching and learning, Deputy Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Chi emphasized: "Try your best to return to teaching and learning soon, but will not try when teachers and students do not ensure adequate safety conditions. Students are not allowed to go to school in unsafe places. Although the storm and flood have passed, there is still a potential risk of thunderstorms and landslides, so it is necessary to remind and educate students to go to a safe place".
Warmth of teacher-student relationship during the flood There are many warm and admirable stories about teacher-student relationship during the flood. Mr. Luu Hoang Anh, Vice Principal of Si Ma Cai District Boarding Secondary and High School for Ethnic Minorities, said: "Although we were given a day off, due to the isolated area, nearly 100 students stayed at school to continue their activities and studies during the flood. Due to the impact of storms and floods, buying and selling food for cooking was difficult, and electricity and water were scarce, but we always tried our best to take care of the students staying at school during the flood. Fortunately, in difficult times, we also received support from all levels, sectors, localities and benefactors." The landslide caused the garage and 16 boarding rooms of Bat Xat Secondary and High School in Muong Hum commune to collapse, but fortunately, 2 hours before, the school leaders had predicted the situation early, coordinated with the commune police to urgently move all 131 boarding students and 11 teachers and staff to safety. At the two temporary accommodation points, teachers were divided into teams to be on duty, cook, manage, and remind students not to move on landslide-affected roads to avoid possible dangers...
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