Nurturing students' dreams

Dedicating their youth to a challenging land.

Ms. Thuy was born and raised in Yen Bai in a poor, large family. From a young age, Thuy harbored a dream of becoming a teacher. After graduating from Lao Cai Teacher Training College, she took a job at Ngai Thau Primary School in Bat Xat district.

Teacher Nguyen Dieu Thuy during a lesson.

She recalled: "On my first day packing my bags to take up my new job, I was so excited. Although I had to walk 7 kilometers from Y Tý commune to Ngải Thầu commune, the beautiful scenery made me forget all my fatigue. When I first started working there, the school hadn't been built yet, and there were only temporary classrooms. Seeing the children barefoot and with dirty clothes, it was heartbreaking. My class was a combined class with 7 fifth-grade students and 20 fourth-grade students. After the first lesson, I discovered that 100% of the students couldn't solve word problems, and more than half the class was still learning to spell. That's when I realized how difficult teaching was here. To provide water for the boarding students and teachers, the teachers and commune officials installed pipes to bring water to our classrooms. To call my parents, I had to walk all the way to the center of Y Tý commune. In the early days, far from home and working in a place without electricity, I felt lonely and cried alone at night." Over time, she got used to it. Moreover, the school is located in the middle of the village, surrounded by many houses, so she doesn't feel isolated. "Every day, I find joy and companionship in teaching the children. Here, if teachers can't endure hardship and don't love their profession, it's difficult to stay for the long term," Ms. Thuy confided.

Back then, roads weren't like they are now. The teachers had no choice but to walk all day, rain or shine. The roads wound along the mountainside, with deep ravines below. When it rained, the roads were muddy, slippery, and thick with dirt; they had to walk for hours in boots to reach their destination. Later, when motorbikes became available, falls were commonplace, causing pain and discouragement, but they still had to pick themselves up and continue their journey alone.

You may also like

The results of the 2026 high school graduation exam will be announced at 8:00 AM on July 1st.VTV.vn - The Ministry of Education and Training will announce the results of the 2026 high school graduation exam at 8:00 AM on July 1st. Candidates can request a review of their exam results from July 1st to 5th and register their college application preferences from July 2nd.

Be cautious when choosing a "hot" major.HNN - Choosing "hot" majors has been a trend among many students and parents in recent years. However, admissions experts suggest that, in addition to workforce demand and job opportunities, students should consider their own abilities, strengths, and practical circumstances to make a suitable choice.

Education on the 'runway' for double-digit growth: Unlocking the 'bottleneck' in core technology workforce.GD&TĐ - Higher education is identified as the central link in training high-quality human resources and creating new knowledge.

However, there are so many memories that still bring tears to Ms. Thuy's eyes whenever she recalls them. Stories about the ears of corn and eggs the children tucked into their waistbands as gifts for their teacher, the wildflowers they gave her on November 20th (Teachers' Day) that probably couldn't be bought anywhere else. And then there are the meals of roasted peanuts and dried fish, always filled with laughter. Ms. Thuy said: "My mother came to visit, crying and urging me to quit this job and go home to her, but the affectionate eyes of the children kept me here for 10 years of my youth."

A source of emotional support for students.

For 10 years teaching in this disadvantaged area, teacher Thuy has always been deeply concerned about the difficult lives of her students. They don't have enough to eat, and they lack warm clothes in the cold. She has often used her meager salary to buy books and school supplies, donated clothes and blankets for the students, and visited their families to understand their situation and encourage them to attend school. At night, many students are homesick, so she sleeps with them, comforting them to stay at school. To improve their lives, she borrows land from locals to grow vegetables, and each time she visits home, she brings dried fish, eggs, peanuts, and other food to supplement their meals. Gradually, she has become a second mother to the children, earning their trust and affection from both the students and their parents.

After saying goodbye to her students in the mountainous region, Ms. Thuy took up a position at Le Ngoc Han Primary School in Lao Cai City. Still carrying her passion and love for her profession and for children, she became a source of emotional support for the young students. She always found new teaching methods to impart knowledge to them without making them afraid of learning. Ms. Thuy said: “I pay special attention to the children's thoughts and feelings. Many children suddenly experience a decline in academic performance, lack of concentration in class, and during recess, I often sit with them, ask about their well-being, and talk to them. While children in the mountainous region have stories of material deprivation, city children have stories of a lack of family affection. At their age, family conflicts can affect their psychology, causing them to think negatively and lose interest in studying. Therefore, I always stay close to them, encourage them, and act as a bridge to their parents to help them overcome these psychological disturbances.”

Some students, even after graduating and becoming adults, still seek out Ms. Thuy for life advice or to share private stories they can't confide in anyone else. "Their innocence and purity are the spiritual medicine that helps me overcome the fatigue of my work. To me, they are like my own children!"

You may also like

To build world-class private universities in Vietnam: Develop a non-profit model.Many of the world's leading private universities thrive because they operate on a non-profit model. At their core, they have built a model that aligns with their mission to serve the long-term academic needs of their students, rather than simply being a financial model.

Admissions cannot rely solely on a single exam.International experience, the need for educational reform in the country, and the demand for human resource development all indicate that it is time for Vietnam to shift from a student admission model primarily based on entrance exams to a model that combines both selection based on academic records and entrance exams.

What's inside the $30 million lab system?With its $30 million laboratory system, USTH is building a training environment closely linked to practice, preparing high-quality human resources for the science and technology sector.

Having dedicated nearly 20 years to the profession, Ms. Thuy has received countless awards and certificates for her contributions to the cause of "nurturing future generations." With her love for her job and affection for children, she continues to nurture the dreams of her students every day…

THANH HUE

Source: http://laocai.edu.vn/hoc-tap-lam-theo-tam-guong-dao-duc-ho-chi-minh/vun-dap-uoc-mo-cho-hoc-tro-423577