Teacher for over 30 years devoted to eliminating illiteracy for poor children

GD&TĐ - For over 30 years, teacher Nguyen Thi Do (Can Tho City) has persistently maintained the "Charity Class", helping to eliminate illiteracy for poor children in rural areas.

Maintain charity class

Coming to the simple little house of Ms. Nguyen Thi Do (83 years old, also known as Ms. Ba Do) in Nga Bay ward, Can Tho city, what moved us was the warm spirit emanating from the words placed right in the corner of the yard: "Charity class".

The classroom is just a small blackboard with a few old tables and chairs, but that is where Miss Ba Do has quietly sown the seeds of knowledge for the children for over 30 years. With her silver hair and skinny hands, Miss Ba Do carefully writes each letter, teaching the children thoroughly.

Ms. Ba Do shared that more than 30 years ago, after she put aside her dream of standing on the podium because of her family's circumstances, she was troubled when she witnessed many poor children having to drop out of school early to follow their parents to make a living. From that concern, she decided to open a free class right in her home.

In this class, she taught from the first lessons to basic knowledge of Math, Vietnamese, English... to children in difficult circumstances.

Charity class in a small, simple house. Photo: Yen Phuong.

Ms. Ba Do's class usually maintains more than 20 students, sometimes up to more than 100 students in the summer, with all grades from grade 1 to grade 9. Students can proactively arrange to come to study at any time, and she is always ready to teach, including morning, afternoon and evening time slots.

Due to the different ages, Ms. Ba Do will teach according to each student's level. Students who cannot read or write, or have been held back for many years, only need to attend her class for about 1 month to be able to read and write fluently.

A place to sow the seeds of knowledge and morality

Miss Ba Do’s charity class is not just a place to impart knowledge. What’s special is that Miss Ba Do also imparts lessons on ethics, lifestyle and the value of kindness.

Cao Hoang Long (13 years old, Nga Bay ward), a student who has been with the school for more than 6 years, happily said: “Before that, I was not very literate. Since studying with Ms. Ba, I have learned to read, write, calculate and even learn English. She also regularly teaches us to be polite, obey our parents, and love our siblings.”

Mr. Pham Van Manh (41 years old, Nga Bay ward) said that his two children both study at Ms. Ba Do. Due to their poor family background, he and his wife could not afford to pay for their children's education. Fortunately, thanks to this class, their children can read and write and are taught to be much more well-behaved.

“Miss Ba Do teaches for free, without charging anyone a penny. She only receives books from kind-hearted people and then gives them to students in difficult circumstances. It is her simple heart and unconditional love for her students that makes her loved and respected by everyone,” Mr. Manh added.

The classroom has only a small blackboard and a few old tables and chairs. Photo: Yen Phuong.

Despite her old age and declining health, Ms. Ba Do still steadfastly maintains the class. “I just hope that the children will have the knowledge to move forward. Many of them have gone to university and graduated to work, some are working for a living, but all of them are well-behaved and often call me to ask about me,” Ms. Ba Do confided.

For over 30 years teaching without pay, Ms. Ba Do has become a teacher and a mother, helping to eradicate illiteracy for thousands of poor children in the locality. Many generations of students, thanks to her, have now grown up and have stable jobs. Seeing them grow up, Ms. Ba Do loves the job she has been attached to even more.

Can Tho City is implementing the Plan to implement Directive No. 29-CT/TW of the Politburo on universal education, compulsory education, adult literacy and promoting student streaming in general education by 2030 in the city.

The objective of the Plan is to ensure that all people have equal access to education in an open, diverse and flexible system. Complete basic literacy and move towards functional literacy for adults...

The city maintains the level 2 literacy standard. Strive for the level 1 literacy rate for people aged 15-60 to reach 99.1%, of which the level 1 literacy rate for people aged 15-60 in ethnic minority areas to reach 98.8%...

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/co-giao-hon-30-nam-miet-mai-xoa-mu-chu-cho-tre-em-ngheo-post752830.html