Improving the quality of primary education in difficult areas through innovation in professional group activities

From observing students to innovating lessons

In the difficult socio -economic conditions, teachers in remote areas always have to make many times more efforts to maintain the quality of teaching. However, instead of stopping at difficulties, many primary schools in Dak Lak have chosen to innovate professional activities as a key to improve teacher capacity and student quality.

Ms. Le Thi Viet - Principal of No Trang Long Primary School, Head of Professional Cluster No. 13, Dak Lak Department of Education and Training deployed the content of professional activities.

On October 31, at No Trang Long Primary School (Krong Pac Commune), the 5th grade professional team regularly organized activities in the direction of lesson research (NCBH) - a model that allows teachers to design, observe and analyze students' learning activities together. The October 2025 theme "Using simple electric circuits - STEM: Pocket flashlight" has become a typical example of this innovative spirit.

This is the content of the Professional Cluster No. 13 activity guided and directed by the Dak Lak Department of Education and Training to be implemented from the 2025-2026 school year.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha - Head of the Professional Group (No Trang Long Primary School) said: "Instead of just evaluating the teaching of colleagues, we focus on observing the students: which students understand the lesson, which students are slow, and what are the reasons. Each meeting is a real opportunity to learn a profession."

Thanks to that approach, the professional team has agreed on many flexible teaching methods suitable for the characteristics of ethnic minority students.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha and students discuss lesson content.

According to the plan for November 2025, No Trang Long School continues to implement demonstration lessons according to the NCBH model with the focus on "Simple electric circuits - conductors and insulators". Teachers in the group prepare lessons together, design learning activities, anticipate situations where students encounter difficulties and appropriate ways to handle them.

Notably, teachers have boldly applied artificial intelligence to lesson design: ChatGPT helps write activity scripts; Gemini supports drawing illustrations; Canva creates lesson videos ; Veo3 creates experimental animations.

The combination of technology helps make lessons more intuitive and easier to understand, especially for ethnic minority students with limited Vietnamese vocabulary. Teacher Nguyen Thi Sinh, who is in charge of the demonstration lesson, said: "When students can see, hear and do it themselves, they are much more interested and confident in expressing their opinions instead of being afraid to speak up."

After the lesson, the entire professional group discussed and shared experiences, without any criticism or grading. All suggestions were aimed at the sole purpose: helping students learn better. This open and sincere spirit created a learning culture in the school – something that was difficult to achieve in previous professional meetings.

Students report the results of their group work.

Technology and artificial intelligence pave the way for teachers in remote areas

Not only stopping at innovating methods, many schools in disadvantaged areas in Dak Lak are also pioneering in applying AI in management and teaching. A typical example is Dinh Nup Primary School (Tan Tien Commune), where more than 94% of students are Xo Dang ethnic people.

According to Mr. Duong Van Huan - Principal of the school, AI application helps teachers save time and improve teaching efficiency.

"AI does not replace teachers, but helps us create exercises, images, and scenarios that are close to ethnic students, helping them access knowledge more naturally," Mr. Huan acknowledged.

The school has implemented professional activities combining four steps: planning - teaching illustration - analysis - sharing, and using tools Gamma.app, Canva, ChatGPT in lesson plan design. Thanks to that, Vietnamese, Math or Ethics lessons become lively, linked to the cultural reality of Xo Dang.

Not only does this model help students understand lessons faster, it also helps to shorten the professional gap between teachers, when experienced people guide young people, learning and creating together.

Through the implementation in primary schools in remote areas, it can be seen that innovation in professional group activities is not only a form of professional improvement, but also a transformation of school culture - where all teachers can learn, listen and be creative.

Teachers and students warm up together for a lesson.

In places where conditions are still lacking, “innovation from within” is the most effective way to maintain the quality of education. Each professional activity session, each demonstration lesson becomes a pedagogical laboratory – where teachers experiment with methods, observe students, and learn from their own experiences.

Mr. Duong Van Huan affirmed: “When teachers change their teaching methods, students will change their learning methods. The greatest benefit of professional activities based on lesson research is that it helps teachers become more confident and love their jobs more, and students learn more practically.”

From the innovations in No Trang Long, Dinh Nup and many remote schools in Dak Lak, it can be said that improving the quality of primary education starts with the professional group. When group activities become a forum for creativity, when technology and AI are used in the right direction, "difficult areas" will no longer be barriers, but the starting point for sustainable progress in education.

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/nang-chat-luong-giao-duc-tieu-hoc-o-vung-kho-tu-doi-moi-sinh-hoat-to-chuyen-mon-post754952.html