Warm teacher-student relationship

(Baonghean) - Under the roof of Nghe An Province Boarding Ethnic High School - a common home of love, a place to nurture young talents of ethnic minorities in the Western region of Nghe An, teachers are not only the ones who teach and guide students, but they are also the fathers and mothers who take care of their students' meals and sleep, and share with them the joys, hardships and difficulties in life. From the loving arms of teachers, many generations of students have had their dreams fulfilled; many of them have become cadres contributing to the development of their homeland, mountainous villages, remote areas of the province.

“Today is a day that I will remember forever… I was sick and couldn’t go to class, lying alone in the infirmary. The homeroom teacher came to visit me, she gently sat down, wiped the tears from my cheeks with her soft hands and asked me how I was doing. Then she brought me porridge, bought me medicine, encouraged me to try to eat, rest, and go to school soon… At that moment, I felt like a child being cared for by the loving arms of my mother. Teacher, let me call you mom…!”. Those were the loving diary entries that the Thai student from Luong Ha Nam – class 12C sent to his homeroom teacher Luong Thi Thu Hien, shared on the “Sending words of love” section of the school’s weekly radio program. Those very real emotions received the sympathy of the students of the provincial Ethnic Boarding High School. Because the children come here from the mountainous villages of Ky Son, Tuong Duong, Con Cuong, Tan Ky, living far from their families and lacking parental care, teachers are the ones who take on that noble responsibility.

Students of the Provincial Boarding School congratulate their teacher on the school's founding day.

Teachers always consider students as their own children. Working closely with the boarding school and working closely with the students in the mountainous areas, the school's teachers always identify that in addition to their professional work, taking care of students is also the responsibility and love of fathers and mothers. Teachers always understand the circumstances of each student and always care and share with them about their studies, family, and feelings... Loving the poor students, teachers also volunteer to tutor them after class, keep their money, and let them withdraw it gradually every month... Ms. Ho Ngoc Viet Nga, a Literature teacher who has been working with the students in the mountainous areas for more than 10 years, shared that many students have difficult families and live far away, so when they are sick, their parents cannot come in time, so the teachers take care of their families to provide medicine; there are times when a student has to go to the hospital and their family can only take care of them for a few days, so they "send them to the teachers"; the teachers and the students in the class take turns taking care of them...

After school hours, teachers also go down to the cafeteria to care for and ask about the students; to create a warm family atmosphere in each meal of the students. The daily meals of more than 500 students of the school are personally taken care of by 14 staff of the school cafeteria. Not only are the dishes changed every day, the teachers also care for the students like their own children; there are special diets for those who are on a diet or sick... Thanks to that, the students of the school, although living far from home, far from their parents' arms, still feel the warmth, love and care of their teachers. Therefore, although she has left the school, Vu Thi Trang, a former student of class 12C, still has intact feelings about the teachers with the silent work of staying on duty at night in the dormitory. “Three years of boarding school have left a deep impression on me of the teacher who silently and diligently reminded us in the middle of the night to study seriously and go to bed on time. He not only brought us interesting and engaging lectures but was also a father and a relative to each of us. In our hearts, he was more than just a teacher!”

The school's students come from mountainous villages, remote areas, most of them have difficult circumstances; some are in such dire circumstances that they receive attention and help from teachers. Vi Xuan Tu, class 11A3, is a Tho ethnic group, left the mountainous village of Giai Xuan (Tan Ky) with the determination to study to change their lives. His family is poor, his father died early, his mother had to work far away, Tu and his brother support each other. Sharing his efforts, the school's teachers sympathize and encourage him to try. All contributions to the class fund are exempted; the school also offers "Lighting up Dreams" scholarships to poor students like Tu. Tu shared, "The attention and sharing of the teachers has made me feel the love of family, giving me more confidence and motivation to strive to study better and better". There are also teachers at the school such as Ms. Tran Thi Mai, a math teacher who wants to encourage the spirit of students in the highlands to study hard, so every year she gives rewards to students with high university entrance exam results; or teacher Phan Long, who has been attached to the Ethnic Boarding High School for more than 20 years, and for the same number of years he has supported students during university entrance exam seasons. Knowing that the students live far away and have difficult families, he creates conditions for them to stay at his house during exam days, taking care of their food, rest... And there are countless teachers at the school who are always "spiritual support" for students to come back to share their joys and sorrows, worries or even difficulties in life...

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa, Vice Principal of the Provincial Boarding Ethnic High School, shared that the school's special feature is that it trains students of many ethnic groups, from all mountainous ethnic districts of the province, so teachers, in addition to their career of educating people, always identify the responsibility of fathers and mothers in caring for their children in their daily lives. Not only striving to create a good learning environment, the school also encourages students' spirit by finding scholarships to support students in difficult circumstances; creating playgrounds for them through sports activities, cultural and artistic clubs, etc. Thereby helping them have fun and share their thoughts, feelings and concerns; with the hope that even though they are far from their families, they will always have a feeling of closeness and familiarity under the common roof.

From the loving arms of teachers, many generations of students at Nghe An Province Boarding High School for Ethnic Minorities have had their dreams fulfilled; many of them have become cadres, contributing to the development of their homeland, mountainous villages, remote areas of the province.

Article and photos:Dinh Nguyet