Meet the dedicated teacher who nurtures young talent in Biology.

With dedication and competence, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh (Hue National High School for Gifted Students) has nurtured many generations of biology students to achieve high results in national and international exams.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh guides the team of outstanding students in practical biology. (Photo: Van Dung/VNA)

Having spent 29 years guiding students, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh (born in 1974), Head of the Biology Department at Quoc Hoc Hue High School for the Gifted in Hue City, remains full of enthusiasm in nurturing young talents with a passion for Biology.

With her dedication and competence, she has sought out and nurtured many generations of biology students who have achieved high results in national and international competitions, bringing glory and pride to their homeland and country.

Aspiration to help Biology students reach international standards.

In October 2013, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh took on the role of Head of the Biology Department at Quoc Hoc Hue High School for the Gifted. Previously, the school's achievements in Biology were quite modest, only reaching second place in the National Student Excellence Competition and no students had yet qualified for international competitions.

Therefore, she was always concerned with creating new training methods, with the goal of early identification of students with aptitude and potential in Biology and nurturing them to achieve high awards in national student competitions and the International Biology Olympiad.

She developed a plan to nurture gifted students with three solutions, including: early identification of students with aptitude and potential in Biology; standardizing the training program and content within the subject group and updating materials promptly, thereby providing effective guidance and training; and contacting and exchanging information with Biology teachers in and outside the local area.

Portrait of Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh, Head of the Biology Department, Quoc Hoc Hue High School for the Gifted. (Photo: Van Dung/VNA)

Ms. Dieu Hanh stated that the International Biology Olympiad (IBO) is a prestigious academic competition, bringing together world-class students, many of the most outstanding in the field of Biology.

Training, identifying, and nurturing high-achieving students in the IBO competition not only plays a role in developing advanced education but also contributes significantly to talent development and affirms Vietnam's position on the international stage.

For specialized schools, identifying, guiding, and nurturing students to achieve high results in the International Biology Olympiad is considered one of the top priorities.

“I am fortunate to teach at Hue National High School for the Gifted – a place with many excellent, passionate, and motivated students whose abilities are quite good, making it easy to guide them effectively. This also fuels my desire to help them overcome their limitations and achieve high results in national and international exams,” Ms. Dieu Hanh shared.

Secrets to Nurturing Talented Students

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh, identifying gifted students in Biology should be done early, starting from grade 8, 9, or 10.

Sources for identifying such students include: students with high average grades in Biology, who present their work logically; students who are passionate and frequently ask additional questions beyond the textbook; and students who actively participate in school and provincial-level Biology competitions.

In addition, to select and nurture gifted students, she and the other biology teachers also organize selection tests to assess specific biology abilities (including critical thinking questions, case studies, and reading English materials), combined with observation of students' reasoning and reflexes to identify potential students.

In addition, if talented students are not identified and selected in grades 8 and 9, they have the opportunity to participate in the selection process starting from grade 10. They undergo tests to gradually select the best students, and at the beginning of the second semester, the 10 most outstanding students are chosen. Teachers in the grade 10 tutoring group will then be assigned to provide intensive tutoring sessions for these 10 students until the end of the summer, ensuring they have all the necessary knowledge for the national gifted student competition.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh with the team of outstanding biology students from Quoc Hoc Hue High School for the Gifted. (Photo: Van Dung/VNA)

Ms. Dieu Hanh revealed that during the process of training gifted students, teachers must closely follow the in-depth curriculum issued by the Ministry of Education and Training and base their curriculum framework for specialized Biology classes on the actual situation.

In the teaching plan at the beginning of the year, she assigned each teacher to conduct in-depth research on a specific topic in order to teach that topic effectively to gifted students.

"To innovate teaching, teachers must constantly explore and research materials, regularly update information from the media, and always keep up with the trends in national and international gifted student exam questions to guide students in the right direction to achieve high results," Ms. Dieu Hanh shared.

According to her, achieving high scores in exams requires a combination of many factors, with detailed and clear planning being the most important.

In addition, the teachers directly involved in the training also play a crucial role. The more accurate the selection of core, key students, the smoother and more successful the training process will be.

*Reaping the rewards of dedication: With meticulous methods of identifying, selecting, guiding, and training students for the competition, over the 8 years from 2017 to 2025, Quoc Hoc Hue High School for the Gifted has had 5 outstanding students win medals at the International Biology Olympiad (in 2017, 2020, 2022, 2024, and 2025, with 2 gold medals and 3 silver medals).

Among them, notable achievements include Truong Dong Hung winning a Gold Medal at the 2016-2017 international competition in the UK; Ho Viet Duc winning a Gold Medal at the 2019-2020 international online competition organized by Japan; Truong Van Quoc Dat winning a Silver Medal at the 2021-2022 international competition in Armenia; Ho Duc Trung winning a Silver Medal at the 2023-2024 international competition in Kazakhstan; and Bui Hoang Dai Duong winning a Silver Medal at the 2024-2025 international competition in the Philippines.

Speaking about a student who impressed her, Ms. Hanh shared: “Each generation of students leaves a deep impression on me, but perhaps the most memorable is Ho Duc Trung. Trung has a sharp mind, is intelligent, and has a passion for Biology since he was a child. Notably, he is also the younger brother of Ho Viet Duc – the winner of the Gold Medal at the 2020 International Biology Olympiad. Both brothers were taught by me and their talents were discovered in middle school.”

During the 2024 International Biology Olympiad, I closely monitored, mentored, and encouraged Trung during difficult times. Through his efforts, Trung won a Silver Medal.

"In particular, in December 2024, I and my younger brother Ho Duc Trung had the opportunity to visit the Presidential Palace. He was honored to receive the Third-Class Labor Medal, while I received a Certificate of Merit from the Ministry of Education and Training."

Vo Huy Hoang, a 12th-grade student specializing in Biology, who is currently being coached by Ms. Hanh, expressed: “During the preparation for the national gifted student exam, Ms. Hanh not only imparted solid professional knowledge but also guided us on how to think biologically and approach problems systematically. Besides that, she was very dedicated, promptly adjusting our learning methods and encouraging us, helping us feel more confident when entering the exam. She created great motivation and gave us hope throughout the gifted student preparation process.”

Throughout her long career as a teacher, Ms. Dieu Hanh's greatest joy has been seeing her students achieve high academic results and become excellent students and scientists who continue to contribute to the country.

With her existing experience, she hopes to continue her work to identify students with passion and talent early on, so that they can achieve even greater success and bring glory to the tradition of Hue National High School for the Gifted.

With her dedication and enthusiasm for the education sector, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh has received numerous awards, including: a Certificate of Merit from the Minister of Education and Training for outstanding achievements in implementing the Project for the Development of Specialized High Schools in the period 2010-2020; a Certificate of Merit from the Minister of Education and Training for outstanding achievements on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Vietnamese Teachers' Day; a Certificate of Merit from the Minister of Education and Training for outstanding achievements in training, teaching, mentoring, and leading student delegations to win prizes in international Olympic competitions in 2024; and a Certificate of Merit from the Chairman of the People's Committee of Hue City for outstanding achievements in implementing the emulation movement in the city in the period 2021-2025.

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/gap-go-co-giao-tan-tam-uom-mam-tai-nang-tre-voi-mon-sinh-hoc-post1084167.vnp