The secret to overcoming difficulties and studying well of a male student who became valedictorian of 2 specialized schools in Nghe An

Secret to good study

In late June, Nguyen Xuan Nguyen's small house at the foot of Quyet Mountain on Tu Xuong Street (Trung Do Ward, Vinh City) often had friends coming to congratulate him after the results of his 10th grade entrance exam were announced. Xuan Nguyen is a 9C student at Dang Thai Mai Secondary School, Vinh City.

In the recent 10th grade entrance exam, Xuan Nguyen registered his first choice at Huynh Thuc Khang High School. With a score of 28.5 points, including 9.75 points in Math, 9.0 points in Literature, 9.75 points in English, if only considering the exam score without adding priority and encouragement points, Xuan Nguyen is one of the 5 top students at Huynh Thuc Khang High School. 28.5 is also the highest exam score in Vinh City and 4th in the whole province. But that is not Nguyen's greatest achievement.

In the entrance exam for the Physics specialized class at Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted, Xuan Nguyen excelled with 17.5/20 points. With the formula of calculating the specialized exam score by multiplying it by 1.5 and then adding the total score of the 3 previous general exams, Xuan Nguyen achieved 54.75/60 ​​points and became the valedictorian of this prestigious school. “After taking the entrance exam for Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted, I was sure that I would pass, even though I didn’t know the score yet. That’s why I decided not to take the entrance exam for Vinh University High School for the Gifted. But with the encouragement of my teacher, I continued to try. This time before taking the exam, I didn’t study, but I didn’t expect my score to be high,” Xuan Nguyen said with a smile.

In the entrance exam for the Physics specialized class - Vinh University High School for the Gifted, according to the regulations, the 3 general subjects will have to be retaken from the beginning. In addition, the Physics specialized subject is calculated on a 20-point scale and multiplied by 1.5. As a result, Xuan Nguyen scored 9.3 points in Math, 7.5 points in Literature, 9.75 points in English, and 18.75 points in Physics. With the above calculation formula, Nguyen's total score is 54.67/60 points, becoming the valedictorian of Vinh University High School for the Gifted.

Before achieving this feat, Xuan Nguyen also won many awards in competitions. Most recently, in 9th grade, he won second prize in the Nghe An Province Excellent Student Competition in Physics, and in the City-level Excellent Student Competition, he won third prize....

Regarding the reason for choosing the Physics specialized class in the 10th grade admission, Xuan Nguyen said that he liked studying Physics because since he was young, he had a passion for natural phenomena around him that are closely related to life. Physics is like a "key to enlightenment", helping him discover, explain and understand the laws behind those seemingly simple things. Not only does it help him satisfy his curiosity, Physics also trains him in logical thinking, analytical skills - and patience. Because it is not always possible to understand everything immediately. But that process makes him love it even more and want to pursue it further.

To study Physics well, Xuan Nguyen believes that the most important thing is to understand the essence, not to memorize. When you understand the root, all formulas become easy to remember and apply. In addition, he often draws diagrams and pictures to visualize phenomena, and combines solving many types of problems to practice reflexes.

Overcome circumstances

Xuan Nguyen is the youngest of two children. Nguyen’s older sister is also famous for being a good student and is currently a student majoring in Finance and Banking at the National Economics University. Nguyen’s mother, Nguyen Thi Thu Hien (50 years old), said that the family is very proud to have a good student.

"Seeing our children studying well, some people also asked about their experience in raising children, but in fact we have no experience at all. Everything happened naturally, luckily the children were self-conscious in studying, never having to be reminded. Even many nights, seeing my children studying too late, I had to advise them to rest," Ms. Hien shared.

Mrs. Hien and her husband are “handymen”, meaning they do whatever they come across, they do whatever people hire them to do, mostly hard work. Sometimes they are hired to clean up trash, sometimes they demolish houses, dig the ground… “Before, I worked as a worker at a brick factory, but for many years now the company has moved to another location, it is too far away so I quit to follow my husband to work. There are lucky days when my husband and I earn 1 million VND, but sometimes for many days in a row no one calls to hire us. So we don’t have much left, just enough to raise 2 children to go to school,” Mrs. Hien said.

Mrs. Hien is from Quang Binh, and her husband, Mr. Nguyen Van Thai (52 years old), is from Ha Tinh. Mrs. Hien's husband was orphaned at a young age and only studied until grade 7, while she was luckier, but only finished grade 9. They met while working for hire in Vinh City. The family still does not have a stable home, and has to live in the small house of her husband's aunt. This small house is only about 60 square meters wide, and on summer days it is sweltering hot inside. However, the family still does not have the means to install an air conditioner or buy a washing machine...

“There are days when I see my children sweating profusely while studying, and I feel sorry for them. But when I ask them, they say it’s okay, they’re used to it, they know their parents work hard so they never ask for anything,” said Ms. Hien.

Xuan Nguyen said that his family situation is the biggest motivation for him to try hard in his studies. “Every day, seeing my parents working hard, their shirts soaked in sweat, their faces covered in dirt, I feel so sorry for them. But I just try to study hard, not asking for too much, so as not to let my parents down.” Unlike many other students, besides studying in class, Xuan Nguyen does not study at any center. Instead, every time he comes home, he often studies by himself from books and the internet.

Talking about his dream, Nguyen shared that until now he has not thought about what job he wants to do in the future. He only plans to take the entrance exam to the University of Science and Technology, Pedagogy or follow his sister to the National Economics University. He only dreams of going to work soon to earn money to build a house for his parents. But right now he has not thought about what job he will do.

Commenting on her student, Ms. Tran Thi Hao - homeroom teacher of class 9C - Dang Thai Mai Secondary School said that Xuan Nguyen is a diligent, studious, and modest student. He is especially passionate and has outstanding talent in the subject of Natural Science Physics. In other subjects, he has achieved excellent academic results. He always strives to improve his studies with a spirit of learning and discovery. Whenever he does not understand something, he proactively asks teachers and discusses it with friends. In addition, Xuan Nguyen is also an exemplary and energetic class officer, demonstrating a high sense of responsibility in all school and class activities./.