The two-faced teacher

The research project by two Vietnamese students participating in the International Science and Engineering Fair has surpassed many extremely strong competitors.

In May 2024, many artificial intelligence (AI) experts and scientists were astonished by the research of two Vietnamese students participating in the International Science and Engineering Fair. Overcoming many strong teams from technological powerhouses, the two students won second prize with a project on AI-based system software.

The 2024 International Science and Engineering Fair award is also the highest award won by Vietnamese students in 12 years. This time, the competition attracted 1,699 high school students from 64 countries and territories with nearly 1,700 projects. In addition to the second prize, the project by Nguyen Le Quoc Bao and Le Tuan Hy - 12th-grade students from Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted, Ho Chi Minh City - also received a Special Award from the American Informatics Association.

The award-winning project – "Deep learning integrated software for partitioning and reconstructing monolithic heart structures in 3D simulated space for medical practice applications" – by Quoc Bao and Tuan Hy was supervised by Mr. Do Quoc Anh Triet, a computer science teacher at Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted. This is not the first international award that he has mentored and supported for his students.

Quoc Bao and Tuan Hy recalled: "Before starting the project, we really wanted to be guided by Professor Anh Triet. He had many ways to assess whether we were capable of going the distance, and what our English and AI skills were like..."

Professor Anh Triet said that Quoc Bao and Tuan Hy started their research project in September 2023. "By undertaking this project, the two students not only satisfy their passion but also make a truly valuable contribution to the Vietnamese healthcare sector, if the work reaches its full potential," he commented.

When his students won major international awards, Professor Anh Triet rarely mentioned his role, instead emphasizing their talent and hard work. He recalled: "As Quoc Bao and Tuan Hy's mentor in AI and in-depth study of the technology, I searched for similar research projects around the world for reference but couldn't find any. With AI technology constantly developing, if the two students had the time to continue perfecting their project, it would greatly assist doctors and medical professionals in diagnosing and identifying diseases."

As an excellent teacher at Le Hong Phong High School for Gifted Students, Mr. Anh Triet not only teaches computer science and trains the MOS office computer skills team, but also guides students in scientific research and English public speaking competitions. He has mentored gifted computer science teams that have won city and national awards; and guided students in scientific research that has won city, national (ViSEF), and international (Intel ISEF) awards for many consecutive years.

Teacher Do Quoc Anh Triet guides students in scientific research. Photo: Phuong Quynh

Arriving at Le Hong Phong Specialized High School, witnessing groups of students huddled around Mr. Anh Triet, we could sense the affection they have for him. "Many students call me 'the two-faced teacher.' Sometimes I'm very strict and demanding; other times I'm like a friend to the kids. I don't understand why my students love me so much. They even play games... taking turns to 'love,' one class 'loves' on even days, another on odd days," he said with a gentle smile.

Quietly behind many of his students' outstanding research projects, Mr. Anh Triet admits that, faced with their questions and concerns, he sometimes feels that his own knowledge still has many gaps. Teaching students at specialized schools is very stressful because they are very talented, and the learning intensity of young people is increasingly fierce, so teachers must constantly improve their knowledge.

He expressed his admiration for his students: "Guiding students on many research projects, I've often been overwhelmed. For example, writing code for a project is like laying each brick to build a giant skyscraper. No matter how you write code, there will be mistakes, and mistakes must be fixed, each time taking a lot of time. Large projects require a lot of effort to write code, and when errors occur, they are not easy to correct, yet the students have always managed to fix them."

For many students at Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted, Mr. Anh Triet's teaching style is almost imperceptible. "When researching or exploring a particular topic, he often 'bets' with us, saying that if he can do this, we must be able to do that. He almost never loses in those 'challenges'," one student excitedly shared.

While one student was playing in the schoolyard, Mr. Anh Triet said that this student, who majors in English, was also very good at computer science. "He often challenges me to solve computer science problems. I once 'battled' with him for months before he was completely convinced, realizing that I could fill his knowledge gaps," he said happily.

According to Professor Anh Triet, he always tries to bring joy to his students. "When setting goals for my students, I always create motivation to help them overcome them. With scientific research, the more challenging and difficult the path, the more valuable and meaningful the results achieved," he observed.

Teacher Anh Triet is also remembered by many generations of students at Le Hong Phong Specialized High School as a teacher of connection. Many former students of the school can come to the school and meet him at any time. Thanks to that connection, many people, after graduating and achieving success, have returned to support and help younger generations.

"Sometimes I'm very strict and demanding; other times I'm like a friend to the kids. I don't understand why my students love me so much. They even play a game... dividing the days into even and odd days to 'love' their teacher," said teacher Do Quoc Anh Triet.

To date, Mr. Do Quoc Anh Triet has guided nearly 40 scientific research projects by students of Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted, participating in national competitions and winning numerous awards. In international competitions, besides the projects of Quoc Bao and Tuan Hy, the research project "Braille Display Board for the Visually Impaired" by student Tran Thi Dieu Lien won fourth prize in 2014. Dieu Lien is also famous for her achievement of being accepted into Harvard University in the US with a rare scholarship of $302,920 for four years of study.

With numerous achievements in training and nurturing students to win prizes in national and international competitions, in the 2018-2019 school year, Mr. Anh Triet was awarded a certificate of commendation by the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/nguoi-thay-hai-mat-19625012210355186.htm