Textbooks give me knowledge.

Implementing the effective community mobilization model "Textbooks for Knowledge," over the past five years, Trang Dai Junior High School (Bien Hoa City) has provided more than 1,000 sets of textbooks to disadvantaged students. Remarkably, these textbooks are carefully preserved and kept clean by the students themselves, ready to be donated to subsequent classes.

Students from Trang Dai Junior High School (Bien Hoa City) participate in the "Exchange Textbooks for Gifts" program, aiming to donate books to disadvantaged students. Photo: NTCC

By doing this, the school's students are not only educated about the spirit of saving and preserving "intellectual assets," but also have the opportunity to share love with their peers.

From addressing situations during a pandemic

The beginning of the 2021-2022 school year coincided with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Due to social distancing measures, parents found it difficult to purchase textbooks. Meanwhile, students had to study online and remotely, and without textbooks, their learning became even more challenging.

As the head of the school, Principal Pham Thi Hai Anh was constantly concerned about how to ensure that 100% of the school's students had sufficient textbooks for their studies.

“I remember seeing old textbooks being used as packaging materials, old textbooks in recycling bins… Along with the thought that there must be a lot of old textbooks in the community, we developed and implemented activities to collect and donate textbooks to students in difficult circumstances. The special thing was to find the quickest way to get books for students to study in this challenging situation,” Ms. Hai Anh recalled.

Trang Dai Secondary School has nearly 4,000 students. According to the school's survey, every year there are about 150-200 students from disadvantaged backgrounds who need support with textbooks for their studies. The price of a set of textbooks is not too high, but for families with many children attending school or families facing financial difficulties, this is a significant amount of money.

After finding a way forward, Trang Dai Secondary School posted the information on its Facebook page. Each staff member, teacher, and employee posted the information on their personal page, and also sent requests for textbooks for grades 7, 8, and 9 (textbooks from the 2006 General Education Program) to neighborhood Zalo groups and personal online groups.

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, many textbooks were donated to the school, and the school made efforts to deliver them directly to students who needed them. In September 2021, according to the school's survey, 100% of students had sufficient textbooks.

Following that initial success, at the end of the 2021-2022 school year, Trang Dai Secondary School called on students to donate textbooks for grades 6, 8, and 9 to the school. As a result, the school collected over 1,300 books. After sorting, 136 complete sets and hundreds of individual books were identified.

From here, the "Skilled Mass Mobilization Movement for Knowledge-Giving Students Textbooks" was born and has been implemented annually to this day as a traditional activity of the school.

Practical and effective model

The "Skilled Public Relations Movement: Textbooks for Knowledge" at Trang Dai Secondary School is implemented systematically in three steps. First, the school surveys and assesses the textbook procurement situation of each student. Next, the school decides to establish a team to receive and distribute textbooks to students, usually consisting of 15 members, responsible for advising on and organizing the reception, classification, and distribution of books. Finally, the school develops a plan and organizes its implementation.

Accordingly, the plan consists of three phases, implemented in a circular, overlapping manner. Phase 1 is a competition to preserve textbooks for reuse over many years. This competition is launched during the flag-raising ceremony in the first week of the school year. The school assigns the student council to be in charge, with timely reviews and encouragement.

Ms. Tran Thi Kieu Oanh, a parent of a student at Trang Dai Secondary School, said: “I am very pleased that the school has implemented the 'Textbooks for Knowledge' program. Thanks to this program, my child has become more conscious of taking good care of their textbooks. At the end of the year, when my child donates their old books, they also receive gifts, even if it's just a pen or a drinking cup, but it's a great way to encourage them.”

Phase 2, titled "Donate Books to Your Friends at School," is usually carried out during the last two days of the school year (approximately May 24th to 28th). The receiving team is responsible for receiving, sorting, packaging, and preparing the books for donation. This phase includes a summary and awarding of prizes to students, along with awards for outstanding participation in end-of-year activities.

Phase 3, themed "Donating Textbooks to Support Students in the New School Year," was implemented in mid-August (approximately August 14-18). During this phase, homeroom teachers surveyed students' textbook needs and compiled a list of students requiring assistance.

Based on the existing book resources, if there are not enough books to donate to students, the school will continue to spread awareness, solicit donations of used books, receive new books, and organize the distribution of textbooks to students.

Through this process, over the past five years, Trang Dai Secondary School has donated, solicited, and given to students more than 1,000 sets of textbooks (both the old and new curricula) along with thousands of individual textbooks.

In May 2025, Trang Dai Secondary School organized a collection event for its Textbook Exchange Program, collecting over 400 sets of textbooks and more than 600 individual books. At the end-of-year ceremony, the school donated over 300 sets of books to students in grades 7, 8, and 9. Currently, there are 101 sets of grade 6 textbooks and hundreds of individual books that will be distributed to students at the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year.

Sea Swallow

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/xa-hoi/202506/sach-giao-khoa-cho-em-tri-thuc-e1218c8/