The school spans three centuries.

From primary school to Collège de Mytho

On March 17, 1879, the Governor of Cochinchina, Lafont, signed a decree establishing the Cochinchina Department of Education and the education system. According to this decree, each province had a primary school, called the provincial school, teaching from grade five to grade one (corresponding to grades 1 to 5 today; in the past, grade five was the lowest grade). The first school in My Tho was located near the village office of Dieu Hoa, and later moved near the Provincial Governor's office. After assuming the position of Governor of Cochinchina, on June 14, 1880, Le Myre de Vilers issued a supplementary decree, allowing My Tho province to upgrade its primary school to Collège de Mytho.

Initially, the school consisted of only one single-story building and one two-story building, with the main gate facing Rue d'Ariès (now Le Loi Street). In 1918-1919, two more sturdy two-story buildings were constructed, one on the north side along Ngo Quyen Street and the other on the south side along what is now Le Dai Hanh Street. According to the My Tho Province Gazetteer of 1937, after 1930, the school added two-story buildings. The ground floor housed classrooms, while the upper floors were for boarding students, with 286 beds.

Nguyen Dinh Chieu School today

Row of houses facing Nguyen Dinh Chieu School

The school's rules were very strict: Students had to wake up at 5:00 AM for exercise and personal hygiene. Breakfast was at 6:30 AM, classes started between 7:00 AM and 10:00 AM. Lunch was at 10:30 AM, classes continued between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM, dinner was at 5:30 PM, and bedtime was at 9:00 PM. Classes were held five days a week, with Thursdays and Sundays off. All expenses were covered by the budget, and textbooks were provided free of charge. From 1889 to 1896, due to a lack of funding, the secondary school program was temporarily suspended, leaving only the primary school.

In 1957, along with the construction of 10 additional classrooms, Collège de Mytho expanded westward, bordering what is now Hung Vuong Street, creating a U-shaped campus with a total area of ​​over 40,000 ^m² . At this time, the school's main gate was also moved to the Hung Vuong Street side.

Open a branch in Can Tho.

Initially, at the primary level (3 years), Collège de Mytho admitted students aged 10-14, and at the secondary level (4 years) students aged 12-17. French was the main language. From 1951-1952, the school began to switch to the Vietnamese curriculum. Each year, one class in the Vietnamese curriculum was added while one class in the French curriculum was removed. French became a foreign language subject.

In 1917, Collège de Mytho opened a branch in Can Tho under the name Collège de Cantho (this branch was later renamed Phan Thanh Giản High School and is now Châu Văn Liêm High School). At that time, students who completed primary school at Collège de Cantho were eligible to take the entrance exam for Collège de Mytho. In 1925-1926, Collège de Cantho opened all secondary school classes and separated from Collège de Mytho.

The school's horizontal rows of buildings

The school's traditional house

In 1928, the primary school classes were separated from Collège de Mytho and transferred to My Tho Boys' Primary School (now Xuan Dieu Secondary School). Near the end of 1957, when Le Ngoc Han Girls' High School was established, all the female students were transferred to that school. From then on, Nguyen Dinh Chieu School was exclusively for male students until 1975.

In 1941-1942, Collège de Mytho was requisitioned by the Japanese as a military base. After the Japanese withdrew, Collège de Mytho was renamed Collège Le Myre de Vilers. On March 22, 1953, the Minister of National Education of Vietnam, Nguyen Thanh Giung, signed a decree renaming the school Nguyen Dinh Chieu High School.

Unique traditional house

According to Principal Vo Hoai Nhan Trung, Nguyen Dinh Chieu School was rebuilt in 2012 with a ground floor and three upper floors following the old architecture, but retaining a section as the school's traditional building. This is where many valuable artifacts and images are preserved, like a unique miniature museum, including many photographs taken when the school was still called Collège Le Myre de Vilers.

Most impressive is the "Memorial Hall," established before 1931, which serves as a place of worship and gratitude to the teachers who have worked at the school, including the school's management board and principals throughout the years since 1881. These include French principals such as Alfred André (1881-1885), Émile Joseph Roucoules (1885-1887), Louis Ferru (1888-1889), and the first Vietnamese principal, Mr. Nguyễn Thành Giung (1942-1945).

Travel expenses

Particularly noteworthy is the altar dedicated to Mrs. Bosson, whose deceased wish was to leave behind a relic as a model for students to study; this relic is still preserved in a glass case. Every year, on the 22nd day of the twelfth lunar month, the school holds a very solemn memorial ceremony according to traditional rituals, in the spirit of respecting teachers and valuing education.

The school's traditional house still preserves many artifacts such as teachers' salary records, grade books, student files and transcripts, and numerous photographs of outstanding and successful alumni, famous figures who studied at the school, such as: Professor Nguyen Van Huong, Doctor Nguyen Duy Cuong, Professor Truong Cong Trung, lawyer Tran Cong Tuong, architect Huynh Tan Phat, Professor Tran Dai Nghia… The list of outstanding students of Collège de Mytho also includes cải lương playwright Nam Chau, writer Ho Bieu Chanh, patriot Nguyen An Ninh, eccentric Tran Van Trach, famous industrialist Truong Van Ben, General Nguyen Huu Hanh, pilot Nguyen Thanh Trung…

At the traditional house of Nguyen Dinh Chieu School, there is also a dedicated area to display images and artifacts related to Chairman of the Council of Ministers Pham Hung, an outstanding student who was the school's first Party branch secretary under the name Pham Van Thien.

According to the Province de Mytho 1937, among the famous figures who taught at Collège de Mytho were Mr. Nguyen Van Tam, father of scholar Nguyen Duy Can, who served as the My Tho Education Inspector and was granted the title of District Governor; Mr. Trinh Hoai Nghia, nephew of Trinh Hoai Duc, a renowned Vietnamese literature teacher and poet of the time; Mr. Nguyen Van Nhan, owner of Anh Sang Publishing House; Mr. Le Van Vang, director of Tan Viet Publishing House; and former Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam Tran Van Huong, teacher of General Duong Van Minh.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/truong-xua-o-nam-ky-luc-tinh-ngoi-truong-qua-3-the-ky-185250113225414115.htm