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In early May, English teachers from Marie Curie School ( Hanoi ) once again traveled hundreds of kilometers to schools in the mountainous district of Meo Vac to meet their students, whom they had taught for almost a year, online.
An English teacher in Hanoi and her students in Meo Vac during their end-of-year English speaking "exam".
This visit was different from the first time the teachers came to see the students at the end of the first semester, because they also conducted a one-on-one English speaking test after the students had been introduced to this new subject for the first time in their school year. This unique testing format, appearing for the first time in this remote area of the country, greatly excited the students. Each student had 5 minutes to chat and answer questions in English with their teacher.
Ms. Minh Hong, an English teacher at Son Vi Primary School (Meo Vac District), said she was quite surprised and delighted when checking her students' speaking test. "Compared to the beginning, this time the children have overcome their shyness and timidity to communicate actively with me. From not being able to pronounce new words, they can now recognize words, repeat entire sentences, and understand short sentences in conversation. I am happy to see their progress," Ms. Hong said.
Confidence and excitement were evident on the faces of the students from Meo Vac when they reunited with their English teacher. Learning a new language seemed to open new doors in their thoughts and dreams for the future. Confident in their English skills, some wanted to become tour guides to attract more foreign tourists to their hometown; others hoped to become English teachers in Son Vi when they grew up, as there are currently no English teachers in the entire commune.
Hai Dang, a student in class 3A1 of Son Vi Primary School, also dreams of setting foot in America, the country featured in the book and the stories and images that Ms. Hong introduced.
"Worry turned into endless joy."
Ms. Le Nhung, Principal of Can Chu Phin Primary School (Meo Vac District), shared: "At the beginning of the school year, it was the first time the 3rd grade students were introduced to virtual classrooms, new subjects, and a new foreign language, so they were quite unfamiliar with it. At that time, they still spoke standard Vietnamese with a slight accent, so when the teacher asked them questions in English, they were shy and didn't know how to answer."
After nine months of learning, the children have become more confident, proactive, and very enthusiastic about English lessons. Although she is young, she did not give up in the face of the initial difficulties. That is a great encouragement for us teachers and students in this remote place."
According to Mr. Bui Van Thu, Head of the Education and Training Department of Meo Vac District, previously, students would take exams on paper, and teachers would grade them according to a pre-set answer key. However, teachers at Marie Curie School have implemented one-on-one speaking skills tests, meaning each teacher checks every student individually. This method has proven highly effective in assessing the abilities and learning outcomes of each student after a year of study; it also fosters confidence in English communication among students. The enthusiasm and perseverance of the teachers in Hanoi have dispelled the initial shyness and hesitation of the ethnic minority students, making them look forward to and be excited about each lesson.
Thanks to this systematic English language training, this school year, four elementary school students from Meo Vac Town (Meo Vac District) won prizes in the provincial English language competition. This is something that the teachers and students here had never dared to dream of before. The Ha Giang Department of Education and Training also decided to award certificates of commendation to 24 teachers of Marie Curie School for this special and unprecedented support.
Mr. Nguyen Xuan Khang, Principal of Marie Curie School, could not hide his emotion upon receiving the initial results of the project. "When I received Mr. Bui Van Thu's request to help teach English, I was very worried. But after a year of implementation, that worry has been replaced by boundless joy," Mr. Khang said emotionally.
Previously, Thanh Nien Newspaper published numerous articles about the severe shortage of primary school English teachers nationwide during the implementation of the new general education program, but the situation in Meo Vac District is a prime example of this severity. The entire district has nearly 20 primary schools, but only one English teacher. She alone teaches one school, which is already overwhelming, not to mention the additional support she provides to other schools.
Faced with this situation, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Khang decided to "rescue" Meo Vac District by recruiting and paying 21 contracted English teachers solely to organize online English lessons for third-grade students in 18 primary schools throughout Meo Vac District. With 3 lessons/week/class x 35 weeks of actual learning x 76 classes, Marie Curie School will support online teaching for all schools in Meo Vac District, totaling 7,980 lessons/school year. The total cost to help teach English to third-grade students in Meo Vac District is approximately 1.7 billion VND for the 2022-2023 school year alone.
"Continue teaching this group of students for at least another year."
Not stopping at just one year, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Khang also suggested that the leaders of Meo Vac District could create conditions for Marie Curie School to "continue teaching this group of students for at least another year." According to Bui Van Thu, Head of the Education and Training Department of Meo Vac District, Mr. Khang's suggestion is an invaluable support. Meo Vac currently has 76 third-grade classes in the entire district at the main school locations. Next year, 122 second-grade classes will move up to third grade and will also have to go to the main school locations to study English and computer science. According to calculations, these 122 classes will have to be combined into about 70 third-grade classes. Thus, next year there will be nearly 160 third-grade and fourth-grade classes having to study English. The need for teachers and facilities will double compared to the present, while recruiting English teachers in Meo Vac still faces the same difficulties as the previous school year.
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