GD&TĐ – Before she could fully immerse herself in the joy of victory, Nguyen Ngoc Linh had to leave for the industrial zone near her home to work part-time.
Nguyen Ngoc Linh – a student from Van Giang High School ( Hung Yen province). Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
Born and raised in a not-so-well-off family, Nguyen Ngoc Linh – a student at Van Giang High School (Hung Yen province) – has always been steadfast in her choice to study in order to escape poverty and help her parents have a better life.
Working an extra 12 hours per day.
When the Ministry of Education and Training announced the exam results, Ngoc Linh still had to cycle to the industrial park near her home to be on time for the 6 AM time clocking-in. The female student confided that she felt "like her heart was on fire" that morning, just hoping for lunchtime to come quickly so she could check her exam results.
“When I found out that my C00 subject score was 28.25 and I became the valedictorian of Van Giang High School in the 2024 High School Graduation Exam, I was so happy and overjoyed that I cried. I want to dedicate this gift to my parents, who have sacrificed so much so that my brother and I could go to school regularly and not be at a disadvantage compared to anyone else,” Ngoc Linh said.
The female student's current part-time job lasts from 6 am to 6 pm with only a 45-minute lunch break. In the beginning, Ngoc Linh always returned home exhausted, with aching legs, but she never thought about quitting.
Ngoc Linh scored 28.25 points in the C00 subject group at the 2024 High School Graduation Exam. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee.)
According to the top-scoring female student, this part-time job not only helps her develop perseverance and diligence, but also helps her cover some of the expenses for her upcoming university studies in Hanoi .
"Because my family isn't very well-off, I have to carefully consider my choice of major and university. I don't want to burden my parents any further. I plan to enroll in the Literature Education program at Hanoi Pedagogical University to receive tuition support and potentially work as a tutor to earn extra income to cover living expenses," the female student said.
Besides working part-time, Ngoc Linh also takes advantage of her free time to help her mother with housework and learn from older students to equip herself with more life skills, preparing for her upcoming time studying away from home.
Don't stay up past 11 PM.
Ngoc Linh once regretted not setting her goals earlier to strive for, instead waiting until 11th grade to start preparing. Every day, the student spends 8 hours studying at home and maintains a habit of going to bed early.
Ngoc Linh dreams of becoming a teacher. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee.)
The female student divides her study time evenly across all subjects, not dedicating more time to any one subject than another. “During the day, I study theory, and at night I practice with sample questions and memorize some important information. In the morning, I usually wake up at 3 a.m. to review some material and prepare for class,” Ngọc Linh said.
For Literature, the female student often analyzes a work multiple times to gain a deeper understanding of the subject. During the exam, Ngoc Linh also divided her time into smaller sections. She tried to complete the Reading Comprehension and Social Commentary sections within 30 minutes, and dedicated the remaining time to the Literary Commentary section.
Ngoc Linh further shared: “The literary analysis section carries the most points, so I always outline my points on a draft paper first before developing them. In my opinion, this method helps me avoid missing any main points, and the essay is also developed coherently and clearly, creating a good impression on the examiners.”
Meanwhile, the female student struggled with Geography and History, finding the knowledge required in these subjects very broad, and realizing that without a thorough understanding of the subject matter, it would be impossible to achieve high scores.
Besides focusing on classroom learning, Ngoc Linh also learns from teachers on social media and solves practice exams from other schools on her own. After each practice session, the student feels that she remembers the knowledge longer.
"I also study using mind maps and memorize keywords. Especially for History, there are many events that require memorizing dates, so I break down the timeline into smaller segments to memorize and see if the events are related to each other. This helps me remember them longer," Ngoc Linh said.
Ms. Vu Thi Nga, a teacher at Van Giang High School (Hung Yen province), admitted that she had never met a student with such high determination in their studies as Ngoc Linh. In 10th grade, Ngoc Linh's academic performance was average, but in 11th grade, Ms. Nga's student began to excel and achieve many high accomplishments.
"From what I've observed, Ngoc Linh pays close attention in class. If she doesn't understand something, she asks the teacher immediately, and she even uses a voice recorder to record the lectures and listen to them again at home. During recess, instead of spending time doing other things, she puts on her headphones to review the material and prepare for the next lesson."
"Ngoc Linh also regularly writes essays at home and brings them to me for correction and grading. Therefore, I wasn't too surprised that Ngoc Linh achieved a high score in the recent exam; that score is entirely deserved given her efforts," Ms. Nga said.
Besides her studies, the female student also excelled in her role as Secretary of the Youth Union branch. She always took the lead in all activities and, together with her class, achieved many high accomplishments. "Ngoc Linh always knows how to balance her studies and activities; she doesn't let them overlap, so I'm very confident in my student," Ms. Nga shared.
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