Exciting free summer classes!

GD&TĐ - During the summer of 2024, many free classes were opened to help students review and consolidate their knowledge, and practice skills to prepare for the new school year with a solid foundation.

A class session at a charity school in Binh Trung Dong ward, Thu Duc City (Ho Chi Minh City). Photo: Minh Anh.

Reinforce knowledge

As summer arrives, from Monday to Saturday afternoons, the charity class in Binh Trung Dong ward, Thu Duc City (Ho Chi Minh City), run by Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy (69 years old), is filled with young children carrying their books to study. This special class has been in operation for over 10 years. Throughout these years, with Ms. Thuy's love and dedication, along with the volunteer teachers and benefactors, it has helped underprivileged children learn to read and write. In particular, many students attending primary and secondary schools in the area have been able to review and reinforce their knowledge here, leading to faster academic progress. “On normal days, the class only has about 50 children attending, but during the summer, the number increases to about 80. Half of them are children attending primary and secondary schools in Binh Trung Dong ward. Most of the children attending local schools who come to the charity class have average academic performance. Those who only attend regular classes come from disadvantaged backgrounds. However, during the learning process, with the care and teaching of the teachers and volunteers, many children have made rapid progress in their studies, learning to read and do arithmetic. In particular, they are very well-behaved and respectful to adults,” Ms. Thuy shared. Meanwhile, in Bien Hoa City ( Dong Nai province), in mid-June 2024, the charity class run by Venerable Thich An Thuan (Phap Tuyen Buddhist Temple, Block 4B, Trang Dai ward) reopened to welcome children to study. As in previous years, the summer break for students in Bien Hoa City marks the final stage of preparations for opening the summer classes. According to Venerable Thich An Thuan, the class currently has 30 students registered for the summer program and 9 volunteers, all teachers from Dong Nai province, who have contacted the temple to teach the children. “This summer of 2024 marks the fourth year the class has been organized. The children in the class all share a commonality: they come from disadvantaged families, having recently moved here with their parents from Central Vietnam. The class teaches Math and English. Besides reviewing material for students from grades 1 to 9, the class also teaches children who lack the resources to attend school to read, write, do math, write essays, and acquire essential social knowledge. As in previous years, the temple will provide notebooks and pens for the students on the opening day,” said Venerable Thich An Thuan.

Children's class time at Phap Tuyen Buddhist Temple, Trang Dai Ward, Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai Province. Photo: Minh Anh

Officers from the Long Hoa Border Guard Station (Can Gio District, Ho Chi Minh City) instruct children on how to administer first aid in case of drowning. Photo: Minh Anh

Skill training

Besides helping underprivileged children learn to read and do arithmetic, the charity classes at Phap Tuyen Buddhist Temple also equip them with many life skills. According to Venerable Thich An Thuan, along with teaching academics, the teachers also integrate basic knowledge about skills and methods for handling situations so that the children know how to protect themselves, the environment, and have responsibility towards their families and society. In Can Gio District (Ho Chi Minh City), to equip students with drowning prevention skills, the Youth Union of Long Hoa Border Guard Station (Ho Chi Minh City Border Guard Command) continues to open a "community swimming and drowning prevention class" for children in Long Hoa commune (Can Gio district). This is the fourth year that the soldiers of Long Hoa Border Guard Station have coordinated with the Long Hoa Commune Youth Union to organize this model for elementary school-aged children. The swimming class runs from June to mid-August 2024. This model not only helps children improve their health and develop skills to prevent drowning, but it is also a meaningful sporting activity and a safe and beneficial playground. According to Lieutenant Le Tuan Anh, Deputy Team Leader of the Community Mobilization Team of Long Hoa Border Guard Station, due to the Long Hoa commune's many ponds, lakes, rivers, and canals, and the fact that most families are from disadvantaged backgrounds and work in fishing, students lack playgrounds during summer vacation. Therefore, the unit mobilized the Phuong Nam Tourist Area Management Board to support the provision of a swimming pool; officers, soldiers, youth union members, and teachers from schools in the area participate in teaching swimming and drowning prevention skills for free, combined with educating elementary school students about maritime sovereignty and marine environmental protection. “The classes are held on Thursday and Saturday afternoons every week. Currently, over 30 children have registered to participate. During the classes, the children will be equipped with basic knowledge to save themselves in case of an accident; they will be guided on water safety skills, first aid for drowning victims; they will be reminded to only swim in areas with lifeguards and rescue equipment; they will be instructed to comply with swimming pool regulations and warned about potential drowning hazards in the area…”, Lieutenant Le Tuan Anh said. Colonel Nguyen Van Tien - Deputy Political Commissar of the Ho Chi Minh City Border Guard Command, informed that in addition to swimming classes, the Long Hoa Border Guard Station also offers free English classes every summer, attracting many children. Notably, not only this unit, but for many years, the program of opening cultural knowledge classes, vocational training, and life skills training for children, students, and people in coastal border areas has been regularly organized by units within the Ho Chi Minh City Border Guard Command and has yielded positive results.

Nguyen Van De (a second-grade student at Trang Dai Primary School, Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai Province), who previously attended the Phap Tuyen Buddhist charity class during the summer, said:

“The teachers explain things clearly, and I'm very happy to be a part of the class. Studying here, I not only review the knowledge I've learned in previous subjects, but I also learn many useful things such as: preventing drowning, self-rescue in case of terrorist abduction, fire, earthquakes, and communication skills within the family and society.”

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