Remembering and cherishing the land of learning...

After 1975, Dien Ban was like a giant minefield, with reeds and bushes covering the entire countryside. People fled, carrying their belongings back to their ancestral homes, leaving the villages desolate and empty.

A new life began with building thatched roofs, planting bamboo groves, filling bomb craters, clearing mines, and reclaiming farmland... Our generation, from all over the country, gathered with our parents, walking barefoot along the country roads to school. The school was a three-room house built right on an empty plot of land.

Despite the hardships and difficulties of life, Quang Nam - Da Nang in general, and Dien Ban in particular, began the endeavor of searching for, nurturing, and cultivating talented students.

Our team of gifted students in the 1980s and earlier all studied at the education offices, schools in Dien Phuong, and Tu Quang Pagoda...

The students returned home and were encouraged by their teachers to share accommodation with local families near the school. They spent almost an entire semester studying there before the national-level gifted student competition.

Tu Quang Pagoda (Dien Thang Bac), located right next to National Highway 1, is the chosen training ground for many gifted students from Dien Ban.

One day, we attended regular high school at Nguyen Van Troi Junior High School. The next day, we practiced Buddhism at a Buddhist temple. Ms. Nam and Ms. Lu were our foster mothers, taking care of our meals.

Even now, many of us, though now grandparents, have traveled far and lack nothing, but we never forget that meal. Whenever we meet, we always mention, "Mother Nam's and Mother Lu's rice was the best, so filling." When Mother Nam passed away, we went to see her off, and her whole family embraced us as if we were family members.

The families who provided us with lodging gave us the best rooms in their houses to live and study in. Almost every night, the homeowners would send their children up to "replenish" us with food and drinks—boiled peanuts, sweet potatoes, plums, guavas... all gathered from their gardens.

Before packing up to return home for the big competition, Hai's mother (whose house is opposite Tu Quang Pagoda) said tearfully, "Good luck in the competition, my child. Later, no matter how important you become or what you do, remember to come home and visit!"

Our cohort of outstanding students is nurtured and cultivated by the knowledge and dedication of our teachers; by the love, care, and aspirations of the people of this studious land.

Even now, many of us still wonder why Tu Quang Pagoda – a Buddhist sanctuary – was chosen as the training center for gifted students preparing for the competition.

Teacher Nguyen Minh Hung, who has worked with many talented students from Dien Ban and Quang Nam - Da Nang province, shared a meaningful message: students will succeed in the place where they feel most at peace and where they are nurtured by the strongest belief.

And that expectation came true. In the 1982-1983 student excellence competition, Dien Ban led the province in the number of winners; both 5th and 9th graders won high awards in Mathematics and Literature. It can be said that Dien Ban achieved the best individual and team results in the province during the 1981-1990 period. Afterward, many students went on to win national awards.

Continuing the tradition of "Five Phoenixes Soaring Together," many outstanding students from Dien Ban have spread their wings like phoenixes, excelling in various fields. Many of them later became managers, scientists, lecturers, teachers, doctors, journalists, and entrepreneurs.

No matter who they are, whether they spread their wings to the four corners of the world, settle abroad, or live in their homeland, the vivid image of the traditional value of academic excellence in Dien Ban will always remain in their hearts.

Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/nho-thuong-mien-dat-hoc-3137873.html