Special class on top of Suoi Giang

The special thing about this class is not only in the way it is organized and the content of the lessons, but also in the love and the desire to send dreams and aspirations to these children in the mountainous areas, which are often deprived.

In Pang Cang village, Van Chan commune (former Suoi Giang commune area), there is a special class opened and directly taught by teacher Chu Thi Tu Lien (Ngai ethnic group), currently Vice Principal of Hoang Van Thu Primary and Secondary School. The special thing about this class is not only in the way it is organized and the content of the lessons, but also in the love and the desire to send dreams and aspirations to children in the mountainous areas who are often deprived.

For over 3 years, teacher Chu Thi Tu Lien has devoted her love, passion, perseverance and patience to teaching the children of Suoi Giang.

For over 3 years, that special class has been maintained in the middle of the Suoi Giang mountains and forests despite many difficulties. The 57-year-old teacher still regularly, alone on an old motorbike, from Trung Tam ward, through the old Phu Nham commune, up the slope to Suoi Giang.

Teacher Chu Thi Tu Lien shared: “The class is held every Saturday and Sunday. During the summer, the class increases experiential activities, students will study extra on Fridays or whenever the teacher has time. Currently, the class has 35 students. The children are all very conscious of participating in learning; parents are also very cooperative and create conditions for their children to attend class.

"There were days when class was off, the children texted: Grandma, we want to go to class" - Ms. Lien shared.

To get that result, perseverance alone is not enough, Ms. Lien has put in so much love and passion.

Ms. Lien still remembers clearly, in April 2021, during a trip to find materials for a book on local cultural education , when she came to Suoi Giang and witnessed the Mong children here being honest and sincere but lacking in everything, from life skills, self-study ability, self-training to fear of strangers, shyness... This urged her to do something for the students here and "Mrs. Lien's Class" was opened 1 year later.

English is a subject that takes a lot of time.

On the first day of class, there were only two students in the class. Ms. Lien learned the Mong language to be able to communicate well with students and parents; continued to coordinate with local political organizations to go to each house to convince parents to let their children go to school.

“She told the parents that she promised that this class was free and that she would accompany the children for a long time, not just for a day or two. Then the number of students coming to class increased, and there were times when the class was “overloaded” and there were not enough seats,” Ms. Lien recalled.

However, the sudden but uneven increase and the frequent absences of students have affected students' self-awareness and disrupted their learning process.

Seeing the shortcomings, Ms. Lien organized a meeting for parents to agree on the content of classroom management. Parents need to understand the class hours, days, and content. In case of missing more than 3 sessions, the children will be arranged to attend the next class, both to avoid confusion when having gaps in knowledge and to create awareness so that each student has the will to study.

Students in "Mrs. Lien's Class" learn how to harvest ancient Shan Tuyet tea.

Ms. Lien said: “Although I always create an open, fun, and comfortable atmosphere, I am also very serious. From school to school, from class to class, that awareness will be an important foundation, not only in this class but also in the future.” Thanks to that approach, up to now, the number of students has remained steady, they love going to school and try hard to study.

"Mrs. Lien's Class" has gradually become an interesting and useful destination every weekend for Pang Cang children. That interesting and usefulness comes from the integration of many subjects and unique teaching methods.

Ms. Lien personally prepares the lesson plans, changing them every week and every month. The learning content is rich, from life skills, self-confidence training to Mong, Vietnamese, English and even subjects about transmitting and preserving Mong ethnic culture, tea making...

Ms. Lien not only teaches but also connects with English teachers and foreigners so that children can learn English; connects with folk artists and prestigious people to teach national cultural knowledge. She also trains the habit of self-studying after each class, inspiring self-study interest. During the class, songs, dances, folk games, and teaching are integrated, combined with exchanges and conversations, helping children easily access and acquire knowledge.

The classroom also becomes a small stage where traditional culture is passed on and continued. At the end of each lesson, the children prepare their panpipes and flutes and go on stage with the teacher to perform. Sometimes, the teacher and students also play folk games together. Ms. Lien, in traditional Mong costumes, joins the children in each performance and folk game, without any distance, only laughter echoing throughout the area.

She and her students happily played folk games together.

Giang Thi Mai, 15 years old, is studying to be a tour guide at Yen Bai Vocational College. She still goes to class every weekend evening when she returns home. Mai sings well, dances well, plays the flute well and has a confident demeanor.

“Since joining the class, I have not only grown to love and be proud of my national culture, but also learned English better and am much more confident. I will bring the knowledge I have learned to the children in my class so that in the future, we can work together to build and develop our homeland” - Mai shared:

"Mrs. Lien's Class" is not only a place to impart knowledge, but also a launching pad for dreams. By organizing many activities such as reading competitions, storytelling, making men men, assembling lego to build a "dream house"... Ms. Lien understands the ambitions of each student, and from there has a method to encourage them to study to realize their dreams.

Ms. Lien confided: “I hope to have at least 10 students who are fluent in English and have a good understanding of the local culture. I will accompany them until they finish university, return to their village, and develop their homeland.”

Her goal is very clear, to help her children become tour guides, confidently promoting their ethnic culture in the context of Suoi Giang focusing on developing community tourism. Ms. Lien's journey will continue like that, quietly sowing seeds of knowledge, cultural knowledge and hope, so that the "young shoots" in Suoi Giang have more strength to rise up and take control of their own future.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/lop-hoc-dac-biet-tren-dinh-suoi-giang-post879692.html